Glory

Sunday Sermons

Mark Dunagan
08/14/05 - Sunday Morning

Glory

The term glory can have the meaning radiance, repute, praise, honor, fame and splendor. We are probably most familiar with the usage of this term when it is applied to God, “Glory to God in the highest” (Luke 2:14); “To Him be the glory forever” (Romans 11:36); “To whom be the glory forevermore” (Galatians 1:5); “To Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever” (Ephesians 3:21); “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever” (1 Timothy 1:17). We equally remember passages which call upon the Christian to “glorify” God through their example, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16); “Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11); “But if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name” (4:16). We can actually bring praise and honor to God by our own godly examples, and in like manner, the passages that speak of boasting in the Lord are teaching the same thing, that is, that all the praise and honor should be reserved for Christ. That we should be far more concerned with God being worshipped and praised than any praise that might come in our direction.

Lesser Glory

It is easy to get sidetracked by purely human accomplishments, “For all flesh is like grass, and all its glory (or all its splendor) is like the flower of grass, the grass withers, and the flower falls off, but the word of the Lord endures forever” (1 Peter 1:24). All the great accomplishments, splendor, achievements and attainments of mankind are temporary and fragile. The glory of the flesh involves such things as winning the Super Bowl, building the Golden Gate Bridge or the Empire State Building, the Pyramids, and so on.

Subtle and Dangerous Glory

Most people are not consumed with doing something that gets them in the history books or on television for 15 minutes of fame. What captivates far more people than swimming the English Channel, climbing Mount Everest or eating the most hotdogs in 12 minutes, is simply wanting to be popular among a very limited number of people. Even religious people, those who claim to be serving the true God, have often been influenced by a desire for human praise. Jesus said of the Pharisees, “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men” (Matthew 23:5). Jesus equally taught that such a hunger for human praise could affect His disciples as well when he warned, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you” (Luke 6:26). Paul specifically noted, “For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness—nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others” (1 Thessalonians 2:5-6). Thus Paul did not want the Corinthians boasting or glorying in men (1 Corinthians 3:21). This type of “glory” has prevented many people from obeying Christ, even religious adults. Jesus challenged His contemporaries, “How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?” (John 5:44). “While you are for ever looking for one another’s approval” (Phi). Notice that true faith is impossible as long as one desires the praise of men more than the praise that comes from God. Wanting to be popular and fit in with the crowd that has the clout can be a very real temptation, and it does not merely affect young people. Professors and scholars (such as the men in John 5) often fall into this very trap when respect from their peers starts becoming more important than God’s truth. “So our skeptic scientists, our critic theologians and others like them, still shower honors, titles, laudations, offices, and emoluments upon each other, boosting their own pride in themselves and in each other while ‘the real glory from the only God’ they do not even seek” (Lenski p. 422). Once again, look at the verse, “How can you believe”. It is impossible to obey Jesus Christ fully as long as one is preoccupied with the praise of men.

Glorying in Sin

“Whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame” (Philippians 3:19). “They are proud of what they should be ashamed of” (Tay). “They pride themselves upon those indulgences which are really their disgrace. Their boasted liberty is bondage to lust” (Erdman p. 128). This is glorying or boasting at its most perverted and lowest level. Here a man or woman is not boasting in morally neutral human accomplishments, rather they are actually boasting in what is shameful and outright selfish and evil. This is having pride in moral and personal failure.

The Glory waiting in Heaven

This is actually a glory that is often overlooked even by believers. While we are taught to be humble, not overestimate our abilities and give God all the praise, we tend to forget that eternal “glory” awaits the faithful. There are a number of passages that stress that heaven is a place where the faithful are honored, and eternity for the Christian will be an eternity of “glory” and honor.

“To those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life” (Romans 2:7); “but glory and honor and peace to everyone who does good” (Romans 2:10).

Notice that it is Scriptural to “seek for” glory and honor. It isn’t wrong to want a heavenly reward, or hear praise from God and enjoy His eternal favor. It is godly to want the “reward” that comes from God far more than anything else in life (Hebrews 11:6). We are making a mistake when we remain calm or almost apathetic about our future reward. Heaven is obviously a place of tremendous splendor, but the terms “glory” and “honor” infer that heaven is not merely a place where we praise and adore God, but where we are praised and honored, “Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities” (Luke 19:17); “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18). If we are having a difficult time getting motivated or excited about serving God, then we need to ask ourselves this question, “What is God’s praise of us worth?” “How important is it to be honored, praised and respected by the Creator Himself?” Do we realize and comprehend the fact that God desires to adore us for all eternity? Human praise is so subjective, temporarily, and often inaccurate, but when God says of one, “Well done”, such a statement is eternally meaningful, objective, and accurate.

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18).

“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17).

“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27); “When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:4).

“So that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:12).

This verse reminds believers that the splendor that awaits believers in eternity is the type of splendor that God enjoys. Part of the glory of heaven is being in the immediate presence of God, “They will see His face” (Revelation 22:4); “Behold the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people” (Revelation 21:3). Contrary to the claims of some that believers will spend eternity on the earth, or in some lesser heaven, God actually desires that believers enjoy the realm in which He lives. It is simply amazing to contemplate the thought that God actually desires our company, friendship, and love for eternity. God wants us to spend time with Him---forever.

“And a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed” (1 Peter 5:1); “And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory” (5:4); “After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ” (5:10).

The Glory of the Resurrection Body

“There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown is dishonor, it is raised in glory” (1 Corinthians 15:40-43).

The "heavenly bodies" apparently are those mentioned in the context, that is, the sun, moon and the stars. The "earthly" bodies are any bodies found upon the earth, including man and the animals. Bodies that reside on the earth. In this section we learn that stars differ in magnitude and brilliancy. The telescope has added more force to Paul's argument. “Just as differing glory can be seen in the heavens, so God can produce differing degrees of glory in man's body” (McGuiggan p. 201). The human body does have a degree of glory even in this life (Psalm 139), yet this is nothing compared with the future glory of the resurrected body that we will inhabit for all eternity. “Experience cannot teach that there is a type of life for which no suitable body can be found” (Willis pp. 575-576). What this means is that God has already designed the perfect body for believers in which they will be able to fully experience and enjoy the splendor and wonder of heaven.

“In this part of the argument Paul is correcting a cardinal error in Greek thought. They stumbled at the doctrine of a resurrection, because they regarded the body as a clog to the soul; and so the body might indeed be, if God could form but one kind of body. But He can form celestial as well as terrestrial bodies, and spiritual bodies adapted to the needs of the spirit, which will not hinder it as does this earthly tabernacle which it now inhabits--bodies which will not only prove no disadvantage, but of infinite assistance” (McGarvey p. 156). Consider for a moment that God is not going to “resurrect” or “recreate” the sun, moon and the stars. Like the earth, the “heavens” will pass away with a roar (2 Peter 3:10;12). As with the earth, the physical heavens do have a definite “glory” and splendor, and even with all his technology and advances, most men are still fascinated by a sunset, a full moon and the stars. Yet none of these things will endure, on the other hand, our physical bodies will be resurrected and the body in which we will inhabit for eternity is far more glorious than anything one would see in the present heavens. Your future body is far more impressive than the sun, moon, any star, constellation or super nova. In fact, the body that we will inhabit is a body that will conform to the body that the glorified Jesus inhabits. “Who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Philippians 3:21); “We know that when He appears, we will be like Him” (1 John 3:2).

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017