“Oh, The Glory of It All!” By Jeannette Haley

“Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the LORD:
For great is the glory of the LORD.” – Psalm 138:5

The Word of God is a revelation by the Spirit of the glory of God, yet fallen man is blind to both glory and truth until the Holy Spirit opens his spiritual “eyes and ears” for “…the whole earth is full of his glory” Isaiah 6:3b. Consider when Jesus was born and the “angel of the Lord” came upon the shepherds, “the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid” Luke 2:9. John 1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” and in 1 John 1:5-10 John declared that there is no darkness whatsoever in God because “God is light”. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” John 8:12a. Notice that the key to not walking in darkness is to be consciously, actively and diligently following Jesus. Showing up in some church every time the door opens does not a guarantee that a person is a true follower of Christ. Nowhere in Scripture are we told to follow after anyone or anything other than the LORD Jesus Christ, whether it is a certain denomination, popular “prophet,” religious traditions, sacraments, or the latest religious fad or movement.

Is it any wonder that so many professing Christians are lacking emotional and mental stability, and subsequently seek secular psychological counseling, or New Age, (yet ancient) eastern meditation relaxation techniques originating in eastern religions, cults (such as Yoga and contemplative meditation). Some look to self-help books or so-called “experts” (who offer “solutions” in addition to, or outside of, biblical truth). Others turn to and depend on anti-depressant drugs. People need to seek and find the LORD of glory, they need the real Jesus, not the “Jesus” presented in The Chosen movies, or the “Jesus” who “Is Calling” or the blasphemous fictional character in “The Shack” or the “Jesus” they think they “see” after chanting or vainly repeating His name! We need to pray for discernment, and beware of mistaking a false “light” for the glory of God, “…for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light” 12 Corinthians 14b.

Truly, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” Psalm 19:1. It is the darkness of the vast universe that showcases how bright, awe-inspiring and inscrutable and glorious the stars are as they silently testify of the fact that our Almighty God not only created them, but He numbers them, walks among them and calls them by name! (Psalm 147:4.) It can lift one’s spirit to consider that each one has its own glory, just as each person who ever lived has his or her own uniqueness. 1 Corinthians 15:41 says, “There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.” Psalm 50:6 says “And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Thus, we read that God’s glory is also righteousness. For mankind, the question is, will we be overcome by darkness, or will we overcome that darkness with the light of truth and glory, faith and obedience? Jesus prayed, “And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one” John 17:23. What a powerful verse! When we are one in the Spirit, the glory that God gave Jesus is given to us. That is something to meditate upon, and get deep into our spirit.

The truth is, it’s hard to adequately describe in mere words the fullness of “God’s glory” because the pure glory of God transcends the physical, material creation, even though all creation is evidence of God’s glory. In other words, one can be at a loss for words because such heavenly, eternal glory is beyond man’s finite, earthly comprehension. The Hebrew and Chaldee Dictionary use the words “rich,” “numerous,” and “honorable.” In the Lexicon, “heavy,” and “very impressive.” However, such words could adequately describe even kingdoms and kings of flesh and blood, such as King Solomon and his awesome kingdom. Even Satan tempted our Lord with kingdom glory in the wilderness by taking Him high up on a mountain and giving him a “view” of “all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them” Matthew 4:8b. The word “glory” in this verse, in the Greek, means “dignity, glorious, honour, praise, worship.” However, only God is worthy of such adoration. “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” Revelation 4:11.

God is also glory to His people. “But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. I cried unto the lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill” Psalm 3, 4. Note the connection between glory and holiness. The very holiness of God is glory, and light. Isaiah 60:1 declares, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.” The Lord is still calling His people to rise and shine forth His glory. Jesus said, “Ye are the light of the world” and “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven” Matthew 5:14, 16. There is only one source of life and true light. “For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light” Psalm 36:9. This reminds me of the Apostle Paul who, when he was still Saul and walking in darkness, encountered the glory of Christ when on the road to Damascus for “suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven.” (Read of his miraculous conversion in Acts 9.)

Sometimes you will see a person whose countenance is literally shining with the light of the Holy Spirit, and you know that they are a born-again Christian. Sadly, this is a rarity, but whenever I do spot a “shining example” I have to ask myself what my old face is reflecting to the world. Whatever is going on in our heart is registered in our eyes, our facial expressions and our body language as well. It would’ve been quite the experience to have lived when Moses came down from the mount with the glory of God shining so brightly on his face that the people were afraid and couldn’t bear to behold him, so he covered his face with a vail when in the presence of the children of Israel. (See Exodus 34:29-35.) In the previous chapter of Exodus, even though God spoke to Moses as a man speaks to his friend, Moses longed for more, and asked God to show him His glory. The closer one draws near to God and His glory, the more the heart longs to come closer yet, and to remain there just as Joshua, Moses’ servant, remained in the tabernacle because of the holy presence of the LORD. (Exodus 33:9-11.)

Those who have sought the Lord, who worship Him in Spirit and Truth, who love His Word, who are drawn to Him by a compelling power outside of themselves, and who long to be with Him are those who hunger and thirst for more of God and less of the world. “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” Psalm 16:11. The glory that God showed Moses is defined in Exodus 33:19 “And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.” The glory of God that shone forth from Moses’ face was all of the goodness of God, the majestic, almighty name of the LORD, and the power of His grace and mercy. No wonder the people were afraid! Who can stand before the consummate glory of God and remain standing?

Consider the transfiguration of Christ which took place six days after Jesus had told them this, “For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works” Matthew 16:27. On a high mountain and before His three witnesses, Peter, James and John, Jesus “was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light” Matthew 17:2. (Luke 9:29 describes Jesus’ glory thus, “And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering.”) As they beheld the light and glory of God in that moment, perhaps their hearts whispered “Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain” Psalm 104:1, 2.

We can only try to imagine how magnificent, awe-inspiring, wondrous, and genuinely glorious beyond description the transfiguration on the mount was. Appearing with Jesus was Elijah, representing the prophets, and representing the Law, Moses, who had pleaded with God to show him His glory. (Exodus 34:5—7; 33:18-23.) These two men had witnessed the glory, holiness and power of God in their earthly lives, and now they appeared with Him in the presence of the three disciples who were later witnesses to this event. Peter, writing to encourage the church, wrote “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.” 1 Peter 1:16-18. [Emphasis mine.]

The present darkness of this world, with all of its unholy complexities, demonic realities, fearful and often terrifying threats, shocking cruelties, and unspeakable sufferings are an inescapable assault on the faith of the saints. Satan is “the god of this world” (systems) and he is “pulling out all the stops” to ravage and destroy the entire world and all life forms within it. But, the Holy Spirit, through the Apostle Paul, assures us, “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” Romans 8:16-19.

The Apostle Peter also wrote concerning suffering and glorification, “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy” 1 Peter 4:13, 14. What glorious promises to hide in our hearts to remember, believe, rely on and live by. We who are redeemed have a glorious future with joy unspeakable! Jesus said, “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory” Matthew 25:31. We are told that “When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory” Psalm 102:16. “The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory” Isaiah 60:19. “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” Habakkuk 2:14.

The bottom line is, we have glamorized Christianity to make it more appealing to the flesh, so much so that progressive modernism has fashioned another Jesus, another gospel and another Spirit altogether. Hungry and thirsty seekers of the holy light, power and glory fail to find it in the man-centered, socialized, organized, compromising, worldly, dead churches because through the years a dark vail has methodically and cunningly been established. Nevertheless, the day is coming when Habakkuk 2:14 shall be fulfilled: “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.”