My fabulous wealth!
How often do we pray (Exodus 33:18) that God will show us His glory? Is our mind fixed on things above (Colossians 3:1-2) where Jesus is enthroned in the glory He had with the Father (John 17:5) before He began to create the world?
The glory of God in Creation:
God created all fruits and vegetables. Then He created humans, the know-how for milling, processing, cooking and it all adds up to the delicious food the Lord provides for us every day. Right from the Garden of Eden to our table. The Lord created plants and animals and He made some of them the source of essential medications. Then the Lord created those who would be scientists and pharmacists with the know-how to make the ingredients and mix the various chemicals together into the medications we often need for health and healing.
Has taking pills become such a habit to us that we give no thought to the process and no thanks to the Creator? Everything we have is (James 1:17) the gift of God’s goodness and we need to beware of the tendency to take thoughtlessly all the blessings of His lavish goodness and generosity for granted.
Why did God create us humans with a sense of humour? So that we could laugh at ourselves, use the pain and trials of daily life as the reality pin to prick the pathetic obnoxious bubble of pride and burst it before (Proverbs 18:12, Proverbs 29:2-3) we fall flat on our face. Also, to protect us from these seductive traps and snares of anyone who is conceited (Romans 11:25) and thinks he is wise, fools only himself. Anyone who thinks he is somebody (Galatians 6:3) is really nobody except in his own estimation. He is deceived, deluded and cheats himself out of truth.
Jesus never laid aside the glory of His Deity but while He lived on earth, He veiled His Deity and glory in the confines and limitations of His human body. The glory of God is spoken and revealed in Jesus (Hebrews 1:3) the sole representation of the glory of God, the light and radiance of the Divine nature, the very image, the perfect image of the eternal God. He created everything everywhere (John 1:3) in heaven and earth, the universe and all beyond in the far reaches of outer space. He set everything everywhere in excellent running order. He always existed, long before He (Genesis 1:1) began the beginning of His creation and now, throughout all Creation His powerful Word (Colossians 1:17) is (Chip Ingram) “the invisible glue that holds all things together”. In Jesus, God is manifested in human flesh. If we are fully surrendered to the Lord, we have (Colossians 1:27) the sure hope that the indwelling Christ Jesus will manifest the glory of Himself in us by the outshining of His Life in and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit. The Life of Jesus lived in and through us is our only hope (Colossians 1:27) of reflecting, manifesting the glory of His Person.
The Gospel is (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was crucified, buried and rose from the dead on the third day. (The miracle of the third morning). So often in Scripture we see that the N.T. is concealed in the O.T. and the O.T. is revealed in the N.T. In (1 Corinthians 15:17-20) we see that Jesus is the ‘firstfruits’ of the believers who have died. In Israel (Leviticus 23:9-11) at the beginning of harvest, a sheaf of wheat was cut as the ‘firstfruits’ of the harvest. It was taken to the priest on the day after the Sabbath and he would wave it, a wave sheaf before the Lord. This was to offer thanks to the Lord for the harvest and to acknowledge their dependence on Him to provide for them.
We can see the Glory of God as we bring together the wave sheaf on Sunday and the Resurrection of Jesus on Sunday. The wave sheaf and the Resurrection of Jesus are the promise of more to come. If we Christians die before the Rapture, we know that we will be raised from the dead just as Jesus was because He is the ‘firstfruits’ of Resurrection. When Jesus triumphantly rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:55) He trampled on and defeated its victory and pulled out by the roots its stinger and Jesus put death to death. Because He lives (John 14:19) we shall live also.
I think of the details and circumstances of my life as the ingredients of a superb cake. The Master Chef knows exactly the masterpiece he wants to achieve and exactly how to accomplish it. He selects the perfect ingredients. By itself each ingredient would not taste good, but when blended together in perfect quantity and baked at just the right temperature – the Chef knows what he is doing – the result is a delicious masterpiece cake.
God’s goal for my life (and for yours) is to make me a masterpiece for the kingdom of heaven. He personally selects the ingredients of my life and He knows exactly the right amount, how much, how many and how often. Some of them are painful and it feels like the oven is too hot. Some are comforting and I wonder why difficult ingredients are included. But God will not be thwarted in what He is determined to use to accomplish His purpose to make me one of His eternal masterpieces for the kingdom of heaven. So I have learned to anticipate the outcome and trust Him absolutely as He controls every detail, selects every ingredient and engineers every circumstance of my life. Because He is in control I can thank the Master for everything just as it is in my life. It will culminate in causing me to shine eternally for God’s glory in the kingdom of heaven. I am still learning to accept and trust because I know to-day what Nehemiah knew thousands of years ago (Nehemiah 2:8) that the good hand of my God is upon me. The fact that the Transcendent God chooses all the ingredients of my life should fill me with such gratitude that there is no room for complaint or concern. As my weakness increases, accordingly the perfection of God’s strength is displayed. As my need increases, accordingly the supply of His provision is abundant. All this makes each day the day that the Lord has made (Psalms 118:24).
In this fallen world, my aging body of crumbling dust is still (1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 6:19) the temple of God and in God’s temple, God must be glorified. God’s purpose for me is that in His temple, my body, I will live (Ephesians 1:12) to the praise of His glory. God requires me to be a wise steward of my body, neither indulging it or neglecting it.
I am so thankful for God’s gift of prayer. We are to be (Romans 12:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:17) constant and unceasing in prayer. Do we grasp what prayer really is? Prayer is my golden connection to heaven in unbroken communion 24/7 with the Almighty Sovereign of the universe, Who is my loving heavenly Father. Isn’t that incredible!!!!
Precious Lord, show me Your glory that I may (Psalms 27:4) look upon the fair beauty of the Lord. Please continually increase my capacity to love You more. The deepest prayer and longing of my heart is that my love for You will be the supreme and strongest emotion within me and that I will love You more and more every day. I don’t always thank the Lord for the way it feels but I always thank Him for His purpose in choosing each and every ingredient.
I own a bottomless treasure chest and a bottomless goldmine. Just between you and me, I will tell you the Source of my fabulous wealth. - -
I call it My Bible
The Glory of God was displayed when (John 13:5) God on His knees washed the disciples’ feet. This is the secret of (Colossians 1:27) Christ in us, our only hope of realizing the glory of living to (Ephesians 1:12) the praise of His glory. Christ in us makes us (John 8:29) God’s will in action