Chasing after His Glory

John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” The Amplified says, “And we actually saw His glory (His glory, His majesty), such glory as only the begotten Son receives from his Father, full of grace (loving kindness, favour) and truth.” 1 John 1:1 states, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life - Jesus.” The glory of God brings about intimacy!

Over the past month we have been witnessing a phenomenal increase in God’s glory. This is due mainly to God sovereignly manifesting His presence among us. However, we are now expected and obliged to respond. We have to all make up our minds, “Do we run away or go in deeper?” Frankly, our future may depend on the outlook of the church in this hour of decision.

If some of you were to say “Well, we’ve done pretty well - praise God,” and that’s it, this will probably be all that we can achieve. But the future of Cornerstone will look totally different if the majority of us were to say, “Thank you Lord, but where’s the rest? There’s got to be more! Show me more of Your glory! I’m thirsty for more!”

Two of the devil’s most effective tricks are (a) to get you to choose a false finish line, or (b), to convince you to pull out of the race. He works tirelessly to get you to stop short and say, “Well, I’ve made it.” But also, be careful that you don’t abandon the race only to find that the finish line was just a few yards ahead! Take a page out of the apostle Paul’s life and say, “I press toward the mark, forgetting those things that are behind me” (Philippians 3:13, 14). Be content with what you have but never satisfied until you get more!

As a church, we should learn from the events at Mount Sinai with the Israelites. It was there that they built the tabernacle according to the instructions that God gave to Moses, and God’s glory was seen. But it was also there that a golden calf of idolatry was created. We must be careful not to build idols or bring them into the church.

As with the Israelites, God’s glory serves to confirm that He desires to deal with each of us directly; intimately and personally. We’re in a great time for transition, a period in which God is saying, “Okay, it’s time for all of you to go in - seriously deeper into the Holy of Holies. I want to deal with you as mature sons and daughters, as joint-heirs with My beloved Son Jesus, but most of all, I want you to draw near to me. Yes, I want you to love Me - with all your heart!”

God is tired of having long distance relationships! He really wants to have intimate, close encounters with you and me. He wants to invade your life with His glory, and He wants to build a solid ongoing personal relationship. He is so weary of Christians who merely want “a date” with Him so that they can get what they want. There may be something in many of you that makes you afraid of commitment when it comes to real intimacy with God. For one thing, intimacy with God requires purity. So, if your definition of church is “low commitment and lots of thrills, spills and chills,” then all you’ve ever wanted to do is “date God.” But remember, He’s looking for a bride!

But the big question still remains, “Are you going to run away or go in much deeper? In Exodus 20:18-21 the same divine dichotomy is mentioned. Please turn there with me.... “And all the people saw thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountains smoking; and when the people saw it, they removed themselves and stood afar off...” “... And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.”

Notice, one ran in and the other ran away! God was calling his people to intimacy (to stand in His glory), and they ran the other way! They knew that only things that match perfectly the character of God can stand in His divine presence (in His glory). By running away they confirmed that they didn’t want to live according to God’s standard. They wanted to do their own thing, so they said, “Don’t let God talk to us right now” (verse. 19).

What’s also very interesting is this. They didn’t choose not to listen to God, but rather that He didn’t speak to them. They couldn't even be bothered with His divine presence at that time! Therefore, last thing they wanted was for God’s glory to come. So many believers have the same attitude today! They would rather God didn’t arrive than have to deal with His rebuke. Are you one such person? Remember, your response should be, “Please, God, speak to me even if it means part of me must die.” The thick darkness where God was, I believe, is God’s divine rebuke.

When the Israelites told Moses that they were afraid, he tried to explain to them that God just wanted them to come clean so He could talk with them - be intimate with them. But because they had witnessed the thunder and lightning (God’s awesome power) they didn’t want to die. So they stood afar off. What a picture! Moses draws near and they run away. You could imagine what was going through Moses’ head, what he might have wanted to say, “…Come on guys, its God. He only wants you to draw near to Him. When I was up the mountain He let me get really close - face to face. Now, He’s chosen to come down from the mountain because He wants all of you to experience the same. He wants us all to draw near together!”

Are you prepared to come clean and invite God to talk to you now? Are you prepared to allow some part of you to die in order that God’s glory might live – In you? If you are, then let’s go in together!

We are at Mount Sinai today, God’s glory has come down from the mountain and He is calling you into personal intimacy with Him. If you dare to answer His call, then it’s going to redefine everything you’ve ever done in life. Your decision today may even determine whether you go forward or backward in your walk with Christ.

Intimacy with God requires a certain level of brokenness because purity comes from such experiences. Could it be that many of us don’t want to get into the cloud with God because we know that He is going to look into our hearts, and we know also what He is going to find there? But God doesn’t want to reveal Himself and share His glory with a partially pure person. God is calling you to a place of transparent purity - both inside and out.

Yes, it’s you He’s chasing after! He wants you to draw near, but at the same time, if you come near, then He will have to deal with all of you. That can only mean one thing. You must be prepared to die. It is exactly as God told Moses, “No man has seen My face and lived.” Does this mean that Moses had completely died to self so that he could come face to face with his creator? Most likely!

So remember, on your way past the alter of forgiveness, through the blood of Jesus, and into the Holy of Holies, you will have to lay down your egos, crucify your will, and put aside your own agendas. Then, and only than, can you step into the “glory cloud” and have an intimate and meaningful relationship with your creator.

By manifesting His divine presence, God is calling us to a higher level of commitment. And all you need to do now is die to self. Nothing alive can enter His glory. So it’s only when you are dead, that He can make you alive! When Paul wrote, “I die daily,” he was actually saying, “I enter into the glory of God every day” (1 Cor. 15: 31). If you’re prepared to have some part of you die in order that God’s glory might live in you, come, let’s go in together!

Chris Demetriou, 17/09/2006