For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in You! Psalm 84: 11, 12, NKJV.
Dear God and Heavenly Father, we give You thanks for helping us to progress in our Christian experience. Help us to know that all good gifts come from You. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
The life of the Christian is dynamic. We are always on the move. Thank God, that move is usually forward. Today we are going to look briefly at how we as Christians get from grace to glory. This, I believe, is the goal of every Christian. The question to be considered at this time is the following: What constitutes glory? And is glory always manifested in the same way? In order to answer this question let us look at two texts. One from the Hebrew Bible, and the other from the New Testament:
“So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here” (Genesis 45: 13). This text is taken from the story of Joseph. After Joseph had proven his brothers to see if they had really experienced a change, he told them to go and tell their father of “his glory.” Glory in this instance is representative of Joseph’s position of honor and power within the Egyptian dynasty. It also represents his enormous wealth and authority as the person who is second to Pharaoh.
Did Joseph need grace at such a time in his life? We can understand him needing grace to get him through the pain he felt when he was sold as a slave by his brothers. We can empathize with his need for grace when Potiphar’s wife accused him falsely and he was cast into prison. We can even understand his disappointment, and the need of grace to get him through the following two years when Pharaoh’s cup-bearer (butler) forgot to talk to Pharaoh on his behalf after he was released from prison. But why would he need grace when he was floating on the wings of prosperity, recognition, and ease? Let me reminds us all, that it is grace that will keep us humble; and grace that will remind us of our constant need of a Savior, when all is going well. Only grace can get us to glory, and beyond our pride!
“Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: ‘ “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You . . . I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17: 1, 4, 5). This passage you may recognize as taken from Jesus’ last prayer, the night before He was crucified.
We know that everything Jesus did while here on earth, was with the sole purpose of bringing glory to His Father. He never sought the honor of mortals. He never sought the praise of human beings. He never asked to be glorified on earth, until, that glory would also be ascribed to His Father (“glorify Me together with Yourself“). The glory Jesus sought had several “layers.” It was inward. That even in thought He would remain faithful to His Father. It was outward. That He might bear with dignity the reproach of His enemies, in the darkest hour of His suffering. It was upward. That He would never lose His grasp on His Father! For this moment of darkness, even the Savior of the world needed grace! Grace to get Him to the cross – to the grave – and beyond – to the glory He had with the Father – “before the world was!”
If Jesus, who offers us grace without measure, was in need of grace to secure our salvation, how much more you and I! If we ask, we will receive grace sufficient, to get us beyond the glory of this world – to the eternal glory that now awaits us!