Sermon Notes

29 Jan

Ever-Increasing Glory - Pr Anish Mano Stephen - Sunday Sermon Note - 7th January 2024

EVER-INCREASING GLORY Part-1

Sunday – 7th January, 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overview

  1. Introduction
  2. God’s glory answers our prayers in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  3. Imperfect becomes perfect in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  4. Moses – a person who entered the glory realm
  5. Grace in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  6. God Himself and genuine worship in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  7. Transformation in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  8. Goodness of God and abundant blessings in the realm of ever-increasing glory
  9. Conclusion

 

Introduction

And 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.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (NIV)

 

In the Bible, all the promises are relational and the promises get executed based on how we contemplate God’s amazing works. Apostle Paul is asking to contemplate the glory of God. To contemplate is to view, consider, place continued attention, or to meditate. God never fails to fulfil His promises, but generally people contemplate on what is visible to their physical eyes instead of contemplating on what the glory of God can do. The physical eyes reveal limitations that are most likely impossible for man to overcome. However, the Bible says that in order to grow and enter into a realm of ever-increasing glory, one must contemplate on the glory of God rather than focusing on challenges that are likely beyond human ability to overcome.

 

Viewing, considering the glory of God, placing continued attention, and meditating on it will draw our focus away from things happening around us and direct it towards God. In this world, there is a physical and a spiritual side to everything. The devil always wants us to focus on the difficult things in life in order to make us suspect the power and glory of God. However, Paul instructs the Corinthian church to shift their focus from things in the physical realm to God's glory, which will eventually lead to ever-increasing glory.

 

God’s glory answers our prayers in the realm of ever-increasing glory

And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.

Luke 13:17 (NKJV)

 

Lord Jesus Christ did many glorious things during His earthly ministry. In the physical realm, we also have many prayer requests to be answered. However, in the ever-increasing glory, it is not just the power of God, or the move of God, but God's glory that answers our prayers. When God's power answers our prayer requests, it will be according to what we believe. On the other hand, God’s glory answers our prayers according to what God can do in our lives, as per God’s glorious standards.

When we step into the realm of understanding and contemplating the glory of God, the prayers will be answered not in the way we would like them to be, but prayers will be answered in a way that God determines.

 

Imperfect becomes perfect in the realm of ever-increasing glory

But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.” And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

Luke 13:12-13 (NKJV)

 

Luke 13 describes how Jesus’ presence in a synagogue healed and made an eighteen long year’s infirmity perfect. The Bible calls her a woman, suggesting that she is older to Jesus. The glory of God is being revealed even in seemingly impossible situation, and the imperfection—regardless of the person's age, gender, or the prayers they are offering - is being made perfect in the name of Jesus.

Ever increasing glory is limitless glory. The deeper we contemplate it, more gloriously it will be manifested above human wisdom and human understanding. In this realm, our thoughts and focus matters. If we are contemplating on problems and limitations, we will miss the glory of God. Instead, if we focus on the glory of God, the problems will start to miss us.

 

Moses – a person who entered the glory realm

Moses was the first person in the Bible to understand the revelation of the powerful glory of God. He prayed, “Lord, show me your glory.” Exodus 32 contains a serious background about Moses' delayed descent from the mountain because he was conversing with God while in His presence. The Israelites who were freed from slavery, had seen God's glory, and were leading supernatural lives on a daily basis. However, they were unable to comprehend the season in which they had to pause and rest in God's presence. Desperate to outrun God and Moses, the Israelites carved an image of an animal, believing it to be God, and began to worship it. But Moses, in this pause, decides to go deeper into the presence of God and asks God to reveal His glory to him

Even today there are people who behave in a manner similar to that of the Israelites. They allow God to deliver them out of their sickness, bondage, and financial troubles, and on the path of reaching the glorious promises, when there is a pause, or a delay, they will find another god to lead them. That god is their ‘self’. In such situations, the Bible instructs us to adopt an attitude that allows God to increase in our lives while we decrease, allowing us to follow the desires of God's heart. If we follow the “self” in us, it will take us out of the protection hedge and also out of the glorious church, i.e. the Body of Christ. However, contemplating the glory of God, as Moses and Joshua did, will take us more into the ever-increasing glory of God. And just as God spoke to Moses and Joshua face to face (Exodus 33:11), so too will God speak to us, and a similar degree of intimacy will develop.

 

Grace in the Realm of Ever-Increasing Glory

‘So, the Lord said to Moses, “I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.’

Exodus 33:17 (NKJV)

 

Grace, the unmerited favor of God, is actually a gift. Moses never misused the grace of God. Many times, we fail to move into the realms of glory of God because we misuse the grace of God. It is by grace that we have been saved through faith. Through this salvation, our past has been forgiven and forgotten by God. So let's move forward into the glorious sanctification that God has given us - as opposed to going back to our former lives, thinking about our past transgressions and taking God’s grace for granted.

 

God Himself and genuine worship in the realm of ever-increasing glory

And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”

Exodus 33:18 (NKJV)

 

The realization of the grace of God and increasing level of intimacy will take us into the realms of genuine worship. The more we contemplate our past, the more we will feel condemned and miss the glory of God. But when we experience the grace of God and the presence of God, gratitude will pour out from our hearts as genuine worship and we will experience the fullness of God in the person, Jesus. This is exactly what Apostle Paul writes to the church of Rome.

 

Beloved friends, what should be our proper response to God’s marvellous mercies? To surrender yourselves to God to be his sacred, living sacrifices. And live in holiness, experiencing all that delights his heart. For this becomes your genuine expression of worship.

Romans 12:1 (TPT)

 

According to the above verse, a genuine worship is:

  1. a) understanding God’s grace
  2. b) surrendering to God to be His sacred living sacrifice
  3. c) living in holiness
  4. d) standing away from the world’s culture and getting inwardly transformed in our mind, thoughts, and desires

 

Transformation in the realm of ever-increasing glory

Genuine expression of worship is to understand the value of God's grace in our lives which will prepare us to surrender ourselves to be His sacred living sacrifice and continue to live in holiness. This surrendered life will inwardly transform us by the power of the Holy Spirit and we will be empowered to discern God's will as we live a beautiful, satisfying and a perfect life. This perfection comes only from the realms of glory. The devil can stop this transformation by working in our minds by making us speak negative, or by making us compare ourselves with others. When our eyes turn away from contemplating the glory of God, we will begin to fail, but Moses, who always genuinely worshipped God and contemplated His glory, was able to see the glory of God.

‘…and I know you by name.’

Exodus 33:17(b) (NKJV)

 

Furthermore, God says that He knows Moses by name. In addition to the fact that God is all-knowing, He is conveying to Moses that he is the son according to the desire and destiny that God had for Moses. This is true in the New Covenant where it states that contemplating God's glory will transform us into the image of God (2 Corinthians 3:18).

 

The Glory of God manifests in our lives when we -

  • contemplate the glory of God
  • allow the Holy Spirit to take control of our lives and work according to His plan
  • endure the sufferings without questioning or complaining

The sufferings we have now are nothing compared to the great glory that will be revealed to us.

 

Goodness of God and Abundant Blesssings in the Realm of Ever-Increasing Glory

And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”

Exodus 33:18-19 (NKJV)

 

The most beautiful part of living in the realms of ever-increasing glory is that we will be completely blessed. There will be no lack because the entire dependency of life will be on the person, Holy Spirit. Moses was completely dependent on God for everything and he wanted to see the God who brought him thus far. Therefore, he prayed, “God, show me your Glory” to which God replied, “my glory will go before you as my goodness.” The glory of God opens the physical realm blessings. We often fail to recognize God’s powerful goodness because, although we seek to see God in the physical realm, our hearts are filled with discouragement and list of things we have failed to accomplish in life. However, if our hearts choose to contemplate God's glory, then there will be no lack of good things in our lives, even if we forget to pray one day. And God will set His name before us, so wherever we go, it will be Jesus going.

 

Conclusion

The realm of ever-increasing glory is real. The moment we surrender ourselves completely into the hands of the Holy Spirit, He will transform our earthly life into a life which manifests the glory of God in which perfection, peace, grace, holiness, and the goodness of God will be our daily portion.