We're beginning the study of that great chapter 3 of 2 Corinthians which ends with this very significant verse 3:18 ESV "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." As we "behold the glory of the Lord," the Holy Spirit is gradually making us more like Christ "from one degree of glory to another." This is an amazing promise and encourages us to spend much time with the Lord in His Word--beholding His glory.
And what is the "glory of God"? It is who He is in His being--His attributes and all His works that He has done and is doing. So there is the Glory of God's greatness; the Glory of God's goodness; the Glory of God's grace; the glory of God's mercy and God's righteousness and God's holiness and God's wisdom--and everything else about Him. There is also the Glory of His Creation--"the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork." And especially the Glory of Redemption accomplished by Christ on the Cross and through His resurrection and ascension and coming again. God also gave us a visible representation of His glory in the glory cloud in the Tabernacle and in the Temple. Peter, James, and John saw that brilliant physical sight of the glory of God on the Mount of Transfiguration: "And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white." Luke 9:29 ESV
Man is created in the image of God and as such has a certain God-given intrinsic glory. King David observed the glory of God's creation in the sky and heavens above and saw the smallness of man in comparison to God's greatness and asked, "What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor." The New Testament also speaks of the glory of man--but characterizes it as transitory: "For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away." 1 Peter 1:24
We had a good group tonight and we thank the Lord for all of you. 9 people including 4 JBU guys and we talked about the glory of God as an introduction to studying 2 Cor. ch. 3. We read aloud and discussed all of Exodus 33 and 34. That's the remarkable passage where Moses asked the Lord, "Show me Thy Glory!" And God told him, Exodus 33:19-23 ESV "And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The Lord.' . . . [20] But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live." [21] And the Lord said, "Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, [22] and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. [23] Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen."
The glory of God in its visible form of the glory cloud or the fire at the burning bush and the pillar of fire in the night sky all represented the Presence of God. Moses told the Lord, "If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here." So God told Moses, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Exodus 33:14-15
We, too, must have the Presence of God in our lives for fellowship, for guidance, and for strength. And He has given us His promise, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Heb. 13:5 So He is there--always--whether we "feel" His presence or not. "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Col. 1:27 "Christ lives in me." Gal. 2:20 We are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.
"Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. [10] But if Christ is in you . . . , the Spirit is life because of righteousness. [11] If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:9-11 ESV
Because of His Presence within us and with us we should be able to have fellowship with God perhaps patterned after the way Moses did: "Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend." Ex. 33:11
We say, "Give glory to God" meaning to acknowledge God's providential hand in what has happened, but that does not enrich God any more than He already is. We can not "add" anything to God's perfections but He does want us to acknowledge our dependence on Him. It pleases Him for us to take our place as a creature before the Creator and to acknowledge His Lordship over our lives.
--Pastor Burnside
Word Study: Glory
1. Hebrew kabod "When applied to God, the word represents a quality corresponding to Him and by which He is recognized, a confession of God as God.
It means "majestic beauty, glorious light, preeminence, and lordship." "Glory and honor are in His presence; strength and gladness are in His place." 1 Chr. 16:27
2. Greek doxa (from dokeo meaning "to seem") = "the honor resulting from a good opinion." The "self-manifestation" of God in whatever way He reveals Himself, particularly in the person of Christ, in whom the fulness of His glory shone forth. The glory of God was exhibited in the resurrection of Christ and in His ascension and exaltation.
Click on this link and then on "Show me thy Glory!" to listen to an excellent message by Steven Lawson, pastor of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church in Mobile, Alabama.
http://www.sermonaudio.com/source_detail.asp?sourceid=christfellowship
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