The Climbing Down Of God-Make Me See Your Glory
Are you a child of God? Have you seen His Glory? Rebekah reminds us how the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and the Good News was revealed.
Are You A Child Of God?
The Messiah has come and many miss it. Too busy to notice. Too blind to see. How the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The Son of God became the God-man that He could be our meeting place. A glorious mystery has split history in half and the Good News has been revealed. And there are only two responses. You either receive or do not receive; you either know God or remain in your darkness.
John 1:10-13 says:
“He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”
Children of God! Are you a child of God? This is a work of God—regeneration, new birth; not of any doing of ourselves, not passed on from generations, not of man by lust or will or free act. To become a child of God is completely and totally “of God”. All you can do is believe in the name of Jesus Christ and the work He has accomplished in His life, death, and resurrection. Even the believing is a gracious work of God.
Have You Seen His Glory?
In reading through John in my Bible, I’ve underlined the word ‘believe’ at least 77 times. It is imperative that you believe. In fact, John recorded this Gospel for this purpose, he explained in chapter 20: “these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:31)
Do you believe in His name? Have you become a child of God? Children of God have seen His glory!
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we have seen His glory . . . ” (John 1:14)
Have you seen His glory–the divine beauty, the radiance, the shinning of His shining, his infinite worth and absolute perfection?
Look back at when Moses was on the mountain with God after the Israelites had again willfully rebelled against God. Remember they constructed a golden calf while Moses was receiving from God the full law, the two tablets of stone on which God had engraved the 10 commandments, and the plans for the tabernacle.
When Moses came down from the mountain and saw the people worshipping the golden calf he burned with anger. God said he would blot out this stiff-necked people from His book. Moses approached God to once again intercede for the people and begged God to not take His presence away from His people. Peek back at what Moses asked of God in Exodus 33:18, “Please show me your glory?” Moses yearned for God to make Him see His glory.
In verses 19-23 we read how the LORD responded:
“I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” And the LORD said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, 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. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”
When reading through Exodus, it struck me that Moses asked to see God’s glory and God makes all His goodness pass before Him.
Children Of God See His Glory
And when He came away from meeting with God the skin of his face shone because He had been talking with God. He shone so brightly that he had to veil his face for the people were afraid to come near him. He glimpsed the goodness of God and his face shone with the radiance of the glory of God.
Children of God get to see God’s glory in the most glorious work of Christ. What is more glorious than all the goodness that God displayed at the cross? When we see His glory we see truth and grace—His steadfast love and faithfulness. The eyes of our hearts are enlightened and God reveals Himself to us. And not only that, but in 1 Corinthians we read: “ . . . we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 3:18)
Jesus Christ is the Son of God sent to our world to take on flesh that we could see God’s glory and be transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory. The Son of God who is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, was raised to life to conquer sin and death and ascended back into heaven with a resurrected body that we might have the right to become children of God and have abundant life.
This Christmas season, a time that we especially remember the first Coming of Jesus Christ, must be a time that we long for His Second Coming. He has promised that He will come again. Martyn Lloyd-Jones asserted, “What God did when He sent His Son into the world is an absolute guarantee that He will do everything He has promised to do.”
It is only the redeemed that one day–when our lowly bodies are changed completely into His likeness–will see God face to face. It is Jesus Christ who reveals God and His glory to us. If you want to know what God is like, study Jesus.
Do You See His Glory?
The real message of Christmas is that the Son of God put on human nature that He could die that we could have life in His name. Don’t miss this mystery. We cannot fully comprehend it, but by God’s grace, He has made himself known to us in the person of His Son taking on flesh, our meeting place, that we might be one with God and have an intimate union with God and behold His glory.
“O, was ever a heart so hardened,
And can such ingratitude be,
That one for whom Jesus suffered
Will say, “It is nothing to me?”
O grace of God, so boundless!
O love of Christ, so true!
Has sin your soul so blinded,
That Jesus is nothing to you?”
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory. We see God’s glory through the Person of Jesus Christ, full of grace and truth.
Do you see His glory?
Like Mary, are these words of praise on your lips: “he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name”?
May we ask God to: “Make me see your Glory” this Christmas!
How might we miss the Messiah at Christmas? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Rebecca Hughes
Rebekah Hughes survived a rare childhood cancer that left her with only one functioning lung, but the aggressive treatment she received to kill the cancer, severely damaged her heart.
She shares her insights to encourage us as we walk the path God calls us to, whether in calm or in crisis.
Rebekah produces Take Heart and Cut to the Heart for HopeStreamRadio. In her program she reflects on spiritual lessons from her observations of life, to encourage and strengthen us in our faith.
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