12. The Glory Revealed in Christians (Rom. 8:18)
This sermon was preached on 21/1/2010
At first glance at this verse, we could conclude that Paul was a stranger to suffering when he said that it was not comparable to the glory that believers would experience. Yet we know that was not the case. In 2 Corinthians 11:23-28 he contrasts his experience to the false apostles who were influencing the church in Corinth and says: ‘Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one — I am talking like a madman — with far greater labours, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.’ He was familiar with suffering to a great extent.
Further, Paul did not minimise the value of suffering for Christ’s sake. He realised that it was an honour given from heaven (Philippians 1:29: ‘For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake). He knew it was a means of having fellowship with Christ (Phil. 3:10) and of increasing the profile of Christians in a community if they showed loyalty to Jesus in this way (Phil. 1:13-14). He was not a lover of pain, but he knew it had side benefits that helped in sanctification and anticipation of heaven. Suffering was an important part of Christian living.
The solution to Paul’s statement is found by engaging in spiritual arithmetic, by reckoning or calculating the value of something by contrasting it with something else. If he had contrasted the life of a suffering Christian with one who compromised his faith in order to avoid suffering, then he would have reckoned that the sufferings of the first Christian were of more value than the easy life of the second Christian.
A second aspect of spiritual arithmetic concerns the length of the alternative options. The sufferings may be in intense, but they were only for the present time. Although a Christian may spend many weary years suffering in a prison for his faith, in comparison to the length of the glory ahead, the period of suffering is short. Even if his suffering is arduous and stretches him to his limits and beyond, its intensity does not come near the amount of glory that he will have. The compensation for suffering far outweighs the pain. God will see to that. The disgrace experienced by persecuted believers will be outweighed infinitely by the glory they will be given. ‘One draught of the river of pleasure at God’s right hand, one breath of Paradise, one hour amid the blood-washed around the throne, shall more than compensate for all the tears and groans of earth’ (Arthur W. Pink).
It is possible to have different responses to suffering. One response is to be stoical, to grit our teeth in order to make it through. This is an outlook for which British people are known. Obviously we need perseverance, but not stoical perseverance. Another possible response is to become cynical, to question if there is a God. Connected to this is the possibility of thinking that God no longer cares. There is a difference between the questionings of faith, such as those expressed by Job when he admitted he did not understand why God allowed him to be reduced to almost nothing, and the questioning of unbelief which alleges that God has turned against us. Job’s outlook was, ‘Though he slay me, I will trust him.’ Job knew that he had no-one else to go to.
But Job also gives us the appropriate outlook to have through these difficult circumstances, which is to think of the glory ahead. We know so well his wonderful words in Job 19:23-27: ‘Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!’
This attitude is not only similar to what Paul says in Romans 8:18; it is the same outlook as Jesus had in his sufferings. In Hebrews 12:1-2, the writer not only reminds us of the stance of the Old Testament believers, he also indicates how Jesus responded to his sufferings: ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.’
The best way to respond to sufferings is to think of the glory to come. This is not escapism from reality, rather it is entering now the eternal reality to come as the Spirit, who is the earnest of our inheritance, conveys to us foretastes of the world of glory.
The glory that will be experienced
In order for this to take place, the barriers to glory will have to be removed. The main obstacle to enjoying glory is our personal sins. Today we enjoy the forgiveness of sins, of being made right with God, of being members of his family. Although we are not satisfied with our Christian progress, we know that we are not the people we once were. God has been at work within us, dealing with our sins. But we have not yet tasted full salvation, we have not entered the promised land. We have got a glimpse of the sun rising, but we are still in the land of shadows. Much of the darkness we possess is due to our sins. And each time, we ask for cleansing from God, it is a reminder that we are not yet glorified. But the day is coming when we will never sin again, when we will no longer need cleansing from sin. On that day we will be perfect in holiness.
But our personal sin is not the only obstacle that has to be removed. The second obstacle is that we live in an environment that has been affected by our sins. Jesus, although he was sinless, did not experience the fullness of glory when he lived in this world. I think he had a foretaste of it on the Mount of Transfiguration. Some think that the glory that was revealed there was his divine glory, but I’m not sure about that. His divine glory is invisible, no creature can behold its splendour. On that mountain his face shone like the sun, but he said elsewhere that in the world of glory his people would know the same kind of experience: ‘Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father’ (Matt. 13:43). I suspect that the glory that was displayed on that occasion is the glory that we are to see in Jesus in heaven.
I think God judged it would be inappropriate for the glory of Jesus to be revealed continually in a sinful world. As long there is pain and distress in the experience of his people, his glory will not be seen here. But it will be seen when all the trials of his church are over and each member is fully conformed to his image, which will take place in a renewed world, as Paul goes on to describe in subsequent verses in Romans 8.
Paul is not merely saying that we are going to see glory. We’ve experienced occasions when we turn a corner on a long journey and suddenly see a beautiful sight, such as a lake surrounded by mountains or a beautiful sunset. We see it and enjoy it, but we are not part of it. It is true that at the end of life’s journey, when we cross the river, we will see the amazing glory of heaven. It will be beautiful beyond comparison and will give great joy. But Paul is saying more than that. We will not only see the glory, we will not only share the glory, but we will be part of the glory, for it will be revealed in us as well as to us. What does this mean?
It does not necessarily mean that each believer will have the same capacity for glory. I think the Bible does indicate that there will be degrees of glory, which are linked to the behaviour and obedience of believers while on earth. It does not suggest that our behaviour merits glory, rather that the Lord is pleased to reward his people far above what they deserve. The heavenly experience of each believer has been likened to a cup full of glory. Each cup will be a different size, but each will be continually full, which means that each believer will be permanently satisfied. But it should be a sobering thought that a wrong response to the Lord’s providence could deprive us of a higher appreciation or insight into his glory in heaven.
First, each Christian will have an increased capacity for understanding the things of God. In this life, there are some things about God we cannot fully grasp, for example, how he is a Trinity or the how Jesus is both God and man in one person. It is told of Philip Melanchthon that he said on his deathbed that one of the things he was looking forward to in heaven would be the greater insight he would have into the person of Christ. Our teacher will be the great Prophet, Jesus Christ.
Second, each believer will have a greater capacity for responding to the God who continually reveals himself to him. I am sure that one of the many things in life that disappoints us is our failure to adequately respond to the things of God. We regret our lack of love, our failure to rejoice in his goodness. In the heavenly world we will praise God as we should and as we would; there he will be our chiefest joy. Our example there will be Jesus. As we consider his leading of the praise of heaven, as we see his joy in focussing on God, something of his experience will be reduplicated within us by the Holy Spirit.
Third, each believer will have a glorified body in which to live in a glorified environment. In this world we have physical limitations, not all caused by sin. For example, we get tired. Our bodies are not yet suitable for living in the presence of God. But one day they will be. ‘For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality’ (1 Cor. 15:53). When Jesus returns, he ‘will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body’ (Phil. 3:21). ‘Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven’ (1 Cor. 15:49).
So we will have a glorified mind, glorified emotions and a glorified body. The way in which we will be enabled to have this will be because we will no longer only have the first fruits of the Spirit but we will have his fullness. I think it may happen in this way. In heaven, Jesus will communicate to us by the Spirit what God is like. We will not so much discover by ourselves what he is like as we shall understand and enter into what Jesus, in his human nature, discovers God to be like. Our Spirit-expanded minds and hearts will continue to increase in capacity as we experience lives of glory in the new heavens and new earth.
To whom will the glory be displayed?
Paul wrote to the Thessalonians concerning this reality: ‘When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day’ (2 Thess. 1:10). This glory will be admired by the angels, it will be admired by fellow-Christians, and it will be admired by the whole of creation. As Paul goes on to say in the following verse, ‘For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.’
Further, Paul did not minimise the value of suffering for Christ’s sake. He realised that it was an honour given from heaven (Philippians 1:29: ‘For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake). He knew it was a means of having fellowship with Christ (Phil. 3:10) and of increasing the profile of Christians in a community if they showed loyalty to Jesus in this way (Phil. 1:13-14). He was not a lover of pain, but he knew it had side benefits that helped in sanctification and anticipation of heaven. Suffering was an important part of Christian living.
The solution to Paul’s statement is found by engaging in spiritual arithmetic, by reckoning or calculating the value of something by contrasting it with something else. If he had contrasted the life of a suffering Christian with one who compromised his faith in order to avoid suffering, then he would have reckoned that the sufferings of the first Christian were of more value than the easy life of the second Christian.
A second aspect of spiritual arithmetic concerns the length of the alternative options. The sufferings may be in intense, but they were only for the present time. Although a Christian may spend many weary years suffering in a prison for his faith, in comparison to the length of the glory ahead, the period of suffering is short. Even if his suffering is arduous and stretches him to his limits and beyond, its intensity does not come near the amount of glory that he will have. The compensation for suffering far outweighs the pain. God will see to that. The disgrace experienced by persecuted believers will be outweighed infinitely by the glory they will be given. ‘One draught of the river of pleasure at God’s right hand, one breath of Paradise, one hour amid the blood-washed around the throne, shall more than compensate for all the tears and groans of earth’ (Arthur W. Pink).
It is possible to have different responses to suffering. One response is to be stoical, to grit our teeth in order to make it through. This is an outlook for which British people are known. Obviously we need perseverance, but not stoical perseverance. Another possible response is to become cynical, to question if there is a God. Connected to this is the possibility of thinking that God no longer cares. There is a difference between the questionings of faith, such as those expressed by Job when he admitted he did not understand why God allowed him to be reduced to almost nothing, and the questioning of unbelief which alleges that God has turned against us. Job’s outlook was, ‘Though he slay me, I will trust him.’ Job knew that he had no-one else to go to.
But Job also gives us the appropriate outlook to have through these difficult circumstances, which is to think of the glory ahead. We know so well his wonderful words in Job 19:23-27: ‘Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!’
This attitude is not only similar to what Paul says in Romans 8:18; it is the same outlook as Jesus had in his sufferings. In Hebrews 12:1-2, the writer not only reminds us of the stance of the Old Testament believers, he also indicates how Jesus responded to his sufferings: ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.’
The best way to respond to sufferings is to think of the glory to come. This is not escapism from reality, rather it is entering now the eternal reality to come as the Spirit, who is the earnest of our inheritance, conveys to us foretastes of the world of glory.
The glory that will be experienced
In order for this to take place, the barriers to glory will have to be removed. The main obstacle to enjoying glory is our personal sins. Today we enjoy the forgiveness of sins, of being made right with God, of being members of his family. Although we are not satisfied with our Christian progress, we know that we are not the people we once were. God has been at work within us, dealing with our sins. But we have not yet tasted full salvation, we have not entered the promised land. We have got a glimpse of the sun rising, but we are still in the land of shadows. Much of the darkness we possess is due to our sins. And each time, we ask for cleansing from God, it is a reminder that we are not yet glorified. But the day is coming when we will never sin again, when we will no longer need cleansing from sin. On that day we will be perfect in holiness.
But our personal sin is not the only obstacle that has to be removed. The second obstacle is that we live in an environment that has been affected by our sins. Jesus, although he was sinless, did not experience the fullness of glory when he lived in this world. I think he had a foretaste of it on the Mount of Transfiguration. Some think that the glory that was revealed there was his divine glory, but I’m not sure about that. His divine glory is invisible, no creature can behold its splendour. On that mountain his face shone like the sun, but he said elsewhere that in the world of glory his people would know the same kind of experience: ‘Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father’ (Matt. 13:43). I suspect that the glory that was displayed on that occasion is the glory that we are to see in Jesus in heaven.
I think God judged it would be inappropriate for the glory of Jesus to be revealed continually in a sinful world. As long there is pain and distress in the experience of his people, his glory will not be seen here. But it will be seen when all the trials of his church are over and each member is fully conformed to his image, which will take place in a renewed world, as Paul goes on to describe in subsequent verses in Romans 8.
Paul is not merely saying that we are going to see glory. We’ve experienced occasions when we turn a corner on a long journey and suddenly see a beautiful sight, such as a lake surrounded by mountains or a beautiful sunset. We see it and enjoy it, but we are not part of it. It is true that at the end of life’s journey, when we cross the river, we will see the amazing glory of heaven. It will be beautiful beyond comparison and will give great joy. But Paul is saying more than that. We will not only see the glory, we will not only share the glory, but we will be part of the glory, for it will be revealed in us as well as to us. What does this mean?
It does not necessarily mean that each believer will have the same capacity for glory. I think the Bible does indicate that there will be degrees of glory, which are linked to the behaviour and obedience of believers while on earth. It does not suggest that our behaviour merits glory, rather that the Lord is pleased to reward his people far above what they deserve. The heavenly experience of each believer has been likened to a cup full of glory. Each cup will be a different size, but each will be continually full, which means that each believer will be permanently satisfied. But it should be a sobering thought that a wrong response to the Lord’s providence could deprive us of a higher appreciation or insight into his glory in heaven.
First, each Christian will have an increased capacity for understanding the things of God. In this life, there are some things about God we cannot fully grasp, for example, how he is a Trinity or the how Jesus is both God and man in one person. It is told of Philip Melanchthon that he said on his deathbed that one of the things he was looking forward to in heaven would be the greater insight he would have into the person of Christ. Our teacher will be the great Prophet, Jesus Christ.
Second, each believer will have a greater capacity for responding to the God who continually reveals himself to him. I am sure that one of the many things in life that disappoints us is our failure to adequately respond to the things of God. We regret our lack of love, our failure to rejoice in his goodness. In the heavenly world we will praise God as we should and as we would; there he will be our chiefest joy. Our example there will be Jesus. As we consider his leading of the praise of heaven, as we see his joy in focussing on God, something of his experience will be reduplicated within us by the Holy Spirit.
Third, each believer will have a glorified body in which to live in a glorified environment. In this world we have physical limitations, not all caused by sin. For example, we get tired. Our bodies are not yet suitable for living in the presence of God. But one day they will be. ‘For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality’ (1 Cor. 15:53). When Jesus returns, he ‘will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body’ (Phil. 3:21). ‘Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven’ (1 Cor. 15:49).
So we will have a glorified mind, glorified emotions and a glorified body. The way in which we will be enabled to have this will be because we will no longer only have the first fruits of the Spirit but we will have his fullness. I think it may happen in this way. In heaven, Jesus will communicate to us by the Spirit what God is like. We will not so much discover by ourselves what he is like as we shall understand and enter into what Jesus, in his human nature, discovers God to be like. Our Spirit-expanded minds and hearts will continue to increase in capacity as we experience lives of glory in the new heavens and new earth.
To whom will the glory be displayed?
Paul wrote to the Thessalonians concerning this reality: ‘When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day’ (2 Thess. 1:10). This glory will be admired by the angels, it will be admired by fellow-Christians, and it will be admired by the whole of creation. As Paul goes on to say in the following verse, ‘For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.’
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