Angels we have heard on high, singing sweetly o’er the plains. And the mountains in reply, echoing their joyous strain: Gloria, Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Glory to God in the highest!
The word glory appears over 350 times in the Bible!
It’s a significant word in Scriptures. What does it mean????
The original Greek word for glory is doxa, meaning greatness, majesty, beauty, eminence, awesomeness, excellence, brilliance,…….. everything worthy of praise!
The Apostle Paul was driven by God’s glory! Paul wrote about God’s glory! As Paul went out to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ, he stayed in the City of Corinth for over 18 months. A church for Christ was established there at Corinth. But as Paul left Corinth for other missions work, false teachers infiltrated the church.
And before visiting Corinth again on his 3rd missionary journey, Paul, led by the Holy Spirit, wrote 4 letters to respond to the false teachings. 2 of those letters are preserved for us to learn from.
The false teachers actually accused Paul of not having authority to minister.
Please open your Bibles to 2 Corinthians Chapter 3……
The Apostle Paul spoke for his fellow workers, likely Titus and Timothy. Their credentials to minister were questioned!
Apparently, some who were teaching in the Corinthian church had all sorts of letters of recommendations. They had diplomas from THE University of Jerusalem, Antioch Theological Semetary, and Judas Business College! They gave scholarships of 30 pieces of silver from that college.
All kidding aside, what credentials did Paul have?
Paul’s credentials were changed hearts!
Paul knew his calling from God was to minister because through him people accepted Jesus Christ into their hearts and they testified that they were Christians!
And look again at v6…………..
Paul emphasized that his confidence came from God; not from himself or from any letter written by human hands. Paul had confidence on Jesus Christ alone, by the power of the Holy Spirit (v4-6).
And what was being said in v7-11?
Remember the story of the 10 commandments? God placed His Words on stone tablets. God then gave those stone tablets to Moses to minister to the Israelites. And as Moses delivered God’s message to the people, Moses was lit up with God’s glory! God’s glory was so bright that the people were afraid and so Moses placed a veil over his face.
Even though the Word of God written on stone tablets brought laws to judge the people, the glory of God was evident on the messenger.
And so Paul states that if God’s Word that condemns written on stones came with glory, how much more glorious it is to have God’s Word written on people’s hearts which leads to righteousness!
Obtaining righteousness is the ministry of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. There is amazing glory in having the Words of Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit in people’s hearts! And that glory surpasses the glory that Moses had. The glory from Jesus Christ will never fade!
Paul knew he had this eternal glory! Do you have this glory?
And so Paul states in v12-13……………
Jesus Christ brought eternal righteousness to sinful people. And to those who believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, God filled their hearts with the Holy Spirit!
How can Paul not be bold about this amazing gift from God!
Paul was so convinced of this Good News that he would not cover it up! Paul would not veil the hope in Christ! We don’t read it in our text, but can you hear Paul proclaiming, “Jesus is the Light of the world!
Hide Him under a bushel? NO! I’m gonna let Him shine!
Let Him shine! Let Him shine!”
And we read in v14-17, only Jesus Christ can take away the veil hiding the glory of God. Look again v15-16 with me…….
A person can read or listen to God’s Word all day but will gain nothing unless they believe in Jesus Christ! God’s glory from His Word is veiled without Jesus Christ, especially the Old Testament. With Jesus Christ in a person’s heart, God’s glory is free to shine!
And Paul finishes the chapter with amazing truths for all Believers of Jesus Christ. Let’s all read v18 together………
What is God saying here?
1. Christians are not to be like Moses who covered the glory of God.
2. Christians are like mirrors who can reflect the glory of Jesus Christ!
3. Christians are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ!
In a Christian, the amazing glory of God can increase on a daily basis.
Am I, are you, experiencing this increasing glory of God?
Let us summarize what we need to do.
1st of all, the Apostle Paul was convinced in having God’s eternal glory. Paul was confident because he accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and Lord. Paul received Jesus Christ into his heart. Paul trusted and yielded his life to Jesus Christ. I received Jesus Christ into my heart on October 28, 1974. And on a daily basis, I trust and yield my life to Jesus. How about you?
You can have God’s glory but only if you accept Jesus Christ to be your only Savior from your sins.
Have you personally received Jesus Christ as your only Savior and God? Do it today! For tomorrow may be too late!
The 2nd biblical principle we can apply to our lives is knowing who to follow. The Apostle Paul was confident in leading because of 2 things: The Apostle Paul’s confidence was in Christ alone!
Paul’s confidence did not come from himself or commendations from others, or from education or from worldly or man’s wisdom! Paul was confident to lead because there were eternal results. Paul’s ministry was affirmed by changed hearts. Where does the confidence of our leaders come from? Where does our own confidence come from?
The 3rd thing we should apply to our lives is what was alluded to in v15……………….
In other words, when we read the Bible, do we keep in mind the glory of Jesus Christ? If your reading of the Bible is not honoring to Jesus Christ, your interpretation of Scriptures is likely wrong.
And 4thly and most importantly, we must live out on a daily basis the truths from v18:
Christians are not to hide the glory of God.
Christians are reflectors of the glory of Christ.
Christ is to increase daily in a Christian.
How are we doing?
Let me close with this illustration.
When you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord, you become like a mirror ready to reflect God’s glory.
As a Believer of Christ, God sees you like a mirror capable of reflecting God’s glory. Note the important word, capable.
Yes, with Jesus in your heart, God sees you clean.
Of course if you are not a Believer of Christ, God sees you unclean not capable of reflecting God’s glory and you can not go to heaven. Today is the day to believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior if you have never done so!
But, being a Christian doesn’t mean you will have a clean mirror perfectly reflecting God’s glory.
We all have baggage and dirt we carry into our Christian lives. And even as Christians we give in to sin. Sin adds more dirt to our mirrors making it harder to reflect God’s glory.
You see, we can be so comfortable with our sins, we remain dirty mirrors. A Christians can have such a dirty mirror that you can’t tell anymore that they are a mirror. All you see is the dirt.
God tells us, every Christian has a responsibility to allow God’s glory to reflect more and more.
As Christians, we must not hide the glory of God within us.
We must yield to God the Holy Spirit who will convict us of our sins. Ask God often to search your heart for any dirt that needs to be cleaned. Claim 1 John 1:9!
But we should not sin to begin with! Don’t add anymore dirt on your mirror. But if we do sin, immediately confess and claim the forgiveness of Christ.
Like a dirty mirror, as we realize our sins, as we confess them and claim the cross of Jesus Christ, we will be slowly cleaned. God may need a scraper, cleanser, and wipes….
God’s glory will reflect more and more as your mirror is cleaned daily…………….
This is the life of a Christian while on earth.
Are you a Christian destined for heaven? Then, you are a mirror for Christ here on earth! Keep your mirror clean!
