Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
Do you ever come across one of those verses in the Bible where you read it and you go, is that really true? It makes you a little bit uncomfortable because it seems to go against what you thought you believed about God's Word and who He is. Right? Those verses, like what Jesus says in John chapter 14, that you'll do greater things than Him, and you go, certainly I can't do greater things than the Son of God.
Well, today's Verse of the Day used to be one of those verses for me. It comes from 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, verse 14. Paul writes this: "He called you to salvation when we told you the good news. Now you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Can We Share in God's Glory?
Has anybody ever told you that you can share in the Lord's glory? Has anybody ever encouraged you to lean into that promise? Maybe if you hadn't read this verse before, you would find that person to be going against God's Word. But it's actually in here that we can share in God's glory. It feels like all the sermons and the worship songs and the Christian community we've been a part of has said the same thing over and over: "Only God deserves the glory." So how can we say that and also read a verse like this that says to share in the Lord's glory?
Well, we need to understand what God's glory is. Before we jump in too far, I want to explain the original word. In the Greek, it's the word doxa, and this word means "splendor." It means renown and honor. When we think of the glory of God, it's these majestic characteristics that He holds. I love the word in the Old Testament. It's the word kavod, and it generally is used in the same way. But the root word is actually the word "weightiness." When we think about God's glory, there's a true weightiness to what that means.
Two Things to Be Aware Of
Before we get too tied into this idea of taking God's glory upon ourselves, we need to use those words and begin to unpack what Paul is actually encouraging of the church. There's two things that we need to be aware of that we see in this verse. The first is in that first half of the verse he says, "He called you to salvation when we told you the good news."
This part is really important. If this doesn't happen, the second part can't happen. God's glory is a result of God working. We live in a culture that encourages you to build yourself up, to go and make your own path, to find your own way. Yet all of that glory will fall away when Jesus makes a new heaven and a new earth. True, weighty, everlasting glory is only a result of when God's Spirit is at work in you.
If you want to experience this verse in your life, it begins with opening yourself up to the ways that God wants to move in your life. It means allowing God to go to the deep, dark parts of your soul to say, "God, search me and know me. Uncover all of the things that aren't of your glorious splendor, and take those away and allow Your Spirit to transform me."
Our Glory Is a Reflection of God's Glory
Then we read the second half of the verse. Paul says, "Now you can share in the glory," and some translations actually use the word "obtain." You can obtain the glory of Jesus. What I want to point out in this is that by nature of salvation, our glory is a reflection of God's glory. See, when we're saved, passages like Galatians chapter 2, verse 20 tells us that we've actually died to ourselves, and it's no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us. Meaning, as glory begins to find its way into our lives, it's not us. These are the moments that our old selves are being chipped away, and Christ's character is beginning to shine through. This is how we partake in God's glory. It's not about making much of yourself, it's about Him being shown through your life.
It's sort of like what Jesus says in Matthew chapter 5 as He's teaching the Sermon on the Mount. He says, "You are the light of the world, a city on a hill." Notice Jesus doesn't say, "You're the light of the world, so that everybody would look at you and go, wow, look at how amazing you are." He says that people would look at you as a light, doing good works, and they would glorify your Father in heaven.
Yes, we can and we should partake in the glory of Jesus. But we must remember what that means. It means dying to ourselves as we experience new life in our salvation. It means letting the Spirit work so that Jesus is more evident in us and through us. Yes, ask God to make you into His image so that you might be glorified alongside Him. But remember, at the end of the day, the only One who receives all the honor and praise for it is our good Father in heaven.
