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CPC Sunday School | Holy Spirit #7: Order of Salvation (Ben Dunson)
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The speaker begins by praying for the group and introducing the topic of glorification. They explain that glory is closely connected to heaven and is often seen as synonymous with it. Glory means overwhelming brightness and is used to describe God's holiness, righteousness, and majesty. Humans were created to reflect God's glory, but Adam and Eve lost this glory through sin. However, Jesus came to restore glory to humanity by living a perfect life and ultimately being glorified in his resurrection. Believers in Christ have their glory restored and are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. This glorification has already happened in a veiled way and will continue to be experienced in the future. If you guys could take a seat, and I'll pray for us, and we'll get started. Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day. We thank you for the chance to come and worship you and to find rest for our souls. Pray that you would be with us this morning, that we would learn true things of you, that our hearts would be warmed as we study your word, and I pray that Christ would be lifted up and exalted in our hearts and in our speech, and I pray these things in his precious name. Amen. Okay, so this is the final lesson in the series on the Ordo Salutis, the order of salvation, and my PowerPoints are working this week, so I'm very happy about that. This week we're talking about glorification, and glorification is also closely connected to glory, probably unsurprisingly, so some words we're going to need to look at. If I was to ask you all for a volunteer to tell me what glory is, I suspect I might get a similar kind of answer. I'm not going to do it because you might know if a teacher ever asks that kind of question, it's a trap, so you shouldn't raise your hand because then you'll be embarrassed. What is glorification? Well, I suspect maybe I might get some answers that would be along these lines. This is an old hymn. I'm on the gospel highway, pressing forward to the goal, where for me a rest remaineth in the homeland of the soul. Every hour I'm moving onward, not a moment to delay. I'm going home to glory in the good old-fashioned way, and you can probably hear that melody in your head, even if you don't know the melody, it's like you can kind of get the feeling of that. The hymns that were written around that time, they all sounded kind of similar. But it's the idea that we're going to glory. And when you talk like that, I'm going to glory, then you're talking about heaven. And I think a lot of people, when they think about glory, they almost see it as a kind of synonym for heaven. The hymn here treats it as a synonym for heaven. Glory is heaven. I'm going to glory. And there were a lot of hymns written in this era in particular that would use glory in that way. What does glory itself mean? There really is two words we're going to look at, glory and glorification, because we can't talk about glorification if we don't know what glory means. To glorify something is to make it glorious, and so we first have to know what glory is. There are two words in the Bible, one in the Old Testament, one in the New Testament, that we translate as glory, primarily. And those words, really what they signify is kind of an overwhelming brightness, just an overpowering, overwhelming brightness. And there are a lot of ways to talk about God in the Bible. But this is one of the main ones, because when you try to describe who God is, eventually you reach the limits of human speech, the limits of human comprehension even. I think glory is a great word to express that. It's like staring at the sun. It's just the overpowering brightness of the sun. God overwhelms us in his holiness, his majesty, his righteousness, and that's expressed by this language of glory, which really, if you're going to use that to describe anything else, it would just be this sense of being overwhelmed by the sheer brightness of the thing that you were looking at. You see this throughout the Bible when God is described. And this is a classic example of this. This is when Moses asks God to see his glory. He says that in verse 18, please show me your glory. And God's response to Moses is that he is going to show him his glory. He's going to make his goodness pass before him. But he also says, because God is a holy God, he's a consuming fire, he says, you cannot see my face for man shall not see me and live. If we were to just be confronted with who God is in the fullness of his glory, it would destroy us. I mean, Moses would be consumed. He would be annihilated if God were to reveal himself in that way. And so what God does, the Lord does, is he places Moses in the cleft of the rock and his glory is going to pass by in front of Moses. And God says, he will cover you with my hand until I pass by. Then I will take away my hand and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen. Moses is going to get a glimpse of God's glory. But if he were to see the fullness of God's glory, he would be overwhelmed. So that's a good way of just seeing that idea of God's glory in the Bible. God is overwhelming in his righteousness, his goodness, his holiness. But it's also true that human beings were made to be glorious as well. This might be an aspect that we don't think about as much, but we are made in the image of God and we're made to reflect that glory. God is like this overwhelming brightness, and then that brightness reflects off of his image bearers. At least that's how it's supposed to be, and that's how Adam and Eve were made originally. C.S. Lewis has this quote in his essay, The Weight of Glory. He says, it's a serious thing to remember that the dullest, most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship. And what he's trying to indicate there is, if we really reflect God's glory as we should, which we will in the new creation, if we were to see ourselves now, or if we were to see any of our brothers and sisters now as they will be then, we would be overwhelmed with even the glory that they manifest, because they would be reflecting the image of God and the glory of God so powerfully and so perfectly. Now, glory, as the hymn that I showed you might make us think, and sometimes we do think this way, we think of glory as being purely a future thing. We're going to be glorified on the last day, like it's kind of the end point of salvation is being glorified, and that's it. But there is actually more to glory than that. And I've already kind of hinted at this a little bit in talking about how we were meant to be glorious. Adam, as originally created, Eve as originally created, they were made in the image of God and they reflected God's glory perfectly. There was no defilement, there was nothing to mar that image or to obscure that image. They simply reflected God's glory as created. Now, they didn't reflect God's glory in the absolute fullness, and the reason for that is because God still had more in store for them. Garden wasn't ultimate. Eventually, if Adam had been faithful, they would have been brought into the final state of things, and they would have been even more glorious as we will be in the resurrection. But glory is not just something that will happen to us in the future, it's not just that we will be glorified in the last day. I want to take you through some places in the scriptures that essentially tell us a story about glory, a story about glory as it was originally, as it was lost, as it is restored in Christ, and then as it will be seen in its fullness in the future. So, we're really going to start with this idea of glory lost, and there's some text in Romans. You can actually see this whole story laid out in Romans just by itself. Paul says in Romans 1, here he's just, he's referring to humanity after the fall. He says, "...claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." So, humanity as originally made it was glorious, or as originally created was glorious. They reflected the glory of God, and yet in the fall, what have we done? And we've exchanged that glory, that glory that we have from God, and become idolaters, is what Paul's saying. And then in Romans 3, he shows us the nature of the fall, "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." That's the essence of being a sinner in rebellion against God, is that we have fallen short of the glory of God. We no longer reflect the glory of God the way we were created to do, the way that Adam did originally in the garden. So, glory was something that was true of Adam and Eve until they fell, until Adam, as the federal head, he chose to abdicate his responsibility and sinned and fell. And the glory of God in him, the image of God in him was marred. It was defaced. But glory has been restored in Christ. How are we glorified? Well, it's through the Lord Jesus Christ. So, we have to start with Jesus first. Jesus himself was glorified. Now that's an interesting thing to say, because you think, well, he's God, and so as God, Jesus is going to perfectly reflect the glory of God. In his divine being, that's absolutely true. Jesus reflects the glory of God. He is the exact image of God, in fact. But it's also true that Jesus Christ became true man, that he took on true flesh. And so, the scriptures will talk about Jesus as being glorified in his humanity. Luke chapter 9, verse 32, this is the transfiguration, and Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Jesus Christ, his glory is being revealed in a somewhat veiled way on the Mount of Transfiguration, but they're starting to see his glory more and more. If we went back to the birth narratives in the New Testament that talk about Jesus, the Holy Spirit overshadows Mary. The Holy Spirit shines on the shepherds when they're coming to see the newborn Christ, because Jesus Christ himself, his glory is emanating out. His glory is sort of overwhelming the shepherds as they come to see him. If Adam lost glory, Adam is the one who defaced the image of God in man. Jesus Christ has come to restore that glory to humanity, and he's done that by living a perfect life as not just God, but as the God man. He's the second Adam. He does what Adam failed to do. He restores what Adam lost. This is something you see with regard to Christ throughout his life. Jesus Christ, at every single point in his life, is equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit to do everything. You might wonder, why would we even need to say that Jesus needs the Holy Spirit? Why would God need the Holy Spirit? It's not as if something that's less than God is getting help from someone who is God, but rather it is the working of the Trinity. But it's also because Jesus Christ was man. He was a true man. And so at every point in Jesus' life, you'll see the work of the Holy Spirit powerfully upon him. From his birth, he's conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. When he is baptized, the Holy Spirit descends upon him. He then goes into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. The Scriptures say that the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness. The Spirit is with him in the wilderness. In Jesus' ministry, the Holy Spirit is constantly said to be the one who gives him the power to preach faithfully. The Spirit is the one who enables Jesus Christ to carry out his miracles. The Spirit is with him throughout his entire life, even to the point of the cross. And then when Jesus dies and then is raised from the dead, it's said to be by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is Romans 6, 4, and then also Romans 8, 11. We were buried, therefore, with him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, and the reason I put Romans 8, 11 there is that in Romans 8, it says that he was raised by the Spirit, so we might, too, walk in newness of life. So, that connection there is really important, that Jesus was raised by the glory of the Father, and he was raised by the Holy Spirit. When Jesus was raised by the Spirit, we can say that that was the glory of the Father raising him. Jesus was being glorified. Jesus, as the God-man, the prime example of his glorification is in the resurrection. Think about this. Throughout his life, people could get glimpses of who he was. More and more, the disciples start to see who Jesus is. On the Transfiguration, Mount of Transfiguration, his glory is more fully revealed to them. They get that wonderful glimpse of that. But it's supremely in the resurrection that Jesus Christ can be said to have been glorified, because his glory was manifest. Now, in the ultimate sense, it's going to be when he returns. You see some of those images of Jesus Christ in the book of Revelation, like Revelation chapter 1, the blinding brightness of the sun. That's the ultimate glorification of Jesus Christ. Matthew 25, 31, when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. The more simple way of saying what I'm getting at here is that Jesus has restored glory to humanity, the glory that was lost by Adam. Adam fell, and he lost that glory with which he was created. Jesus Christ comes as the faithful second Adam, and he then, among other things, among all the other things we could say about what he did, he restores glory to humanity. Yeah, right. Do you believe that applies in a general sense to all humanity, and then, I mean, obviously it applies to Christians, but also to, you know, humanity in that way as well, too? Right. No, that's a great question. And the answer would be no. Yeah. Yeah, so I shouldn't even say he restores it to humanity in general, because the New Testament picture is that it's those who are in Christ who have that image restored. So that's a great question. You know, humanity has not completely lost the image of God, even those who are outside of Christ have not completely obscured the image of God. We'd be animals, you know, if that were the case. But they have significantly marred the image of God. Yeah. And I mean, also, if you look at, you know, the Gospel, you know, progression of Christianity throughout history, how much, you know, more, how much we've benefited at this kind of societal level before, too, right? Yeah, yeah, no, that's true. But as far as particularly the image being restored, this is talking about the reflecting the moral goodness of God. That's something that's been lost in the fall. That's something that's restored in Christ. And so that sense of reflecting the glory of God again, that's something that can only come about in Christ himself. Yeah. Well, let me just pause if there are other questions so far. Yep, all right. Yep, all right. Yep. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, I think, I think glory. And, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think, you know, I think Yeah. Right, right, yeah. I mean, I don't think the words are like lexically connected, but they're connected conceptually. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, so, so glory, the glory with which Adam was created was lost in the fall. Christ has come, and he has restored that glory for those who are in him, and that's what we need to shift to looking at with regard to believers themselves. What does glorification mean for us? It means to have glory restored. The glory with which Adam was originally created is restored in us. Romans 8 29 30, one of the classic texts about glorification, for those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined, he also called, and those whom he called, he also justified, and those whom he justified, he also glorified. Now, I'll have to say here that I take a different stance than you might sometimes hear on this particular verse, but I think the idea that people are getting at when they talk about this verse is right. It's just, it's found in other texts. What I mean by that is, this is something that has already happened to us in Christ. Those whom he called, he also justified. Those whom he justified, he also glorified. All three of those verbs are in the same tense. He called, he justified, he glorified. That's not, he's not saying those whom he called, he also justified and will glorify, but he did glorify. Which means that there is a really important sense in which glorification has already happened to the believer. You have already been glorified in Christ. You already are glorified in Christ. Now, of course, that's very veiled, right, in us, but it means that the image of God has been restored in us, in Christ. That image that was defaced in Adam, and even in our own sinful rebellion against God, that image has been gloriously restored in us already. It's already our present possession. So, we can say that glorification is not merely going to glory. It's not just something that's going to happen to us at the very end. It's something that has already happened to us. We've already been glorified. We haven't been fully glorified, though. We still live in bodies that are subject to decay. We still are sinful. We still have remaining sin, and as long as we've been glorified, we've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glorified. We've been glor If those two facts are true, then our glorification can't be said to be complete. But we can say that it has been fundamentally restored in Christ, and that's very important for us as Christians. Glorification, interestingly, is really another way of describing the transformation of the believer. You're already glorified in Christ, and yet we will continue to be glorified. This is something else that Paul says, 2 Corinthians 3.18, So you've already been glorified if you're in Christ. You've had the image of God fundamentally restored in you, which means that you've been transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. You've been given the new birth. You've been raised up to new life in Christ, and you now can reflect the image of God in a way that was impossible when you were outside of Christ. Now, it does not mean that you will do that perfectly. Just because you've been glorified doesn't mean that you're fully glorified or that you reflect the glory of God perfectly. We can see that here because when we behold the glory of the Lord, so when we're converted, when we're brought into Christ, we can then behold the glory of the Lord in Christ. We can, by faith, gaze upon His glory. And when we consider Christ's glory, it says we are transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. You're glorified, and then you're progressively glorified more and more and more. You're made more and more to reflect the true and pure image of Christ throughout the entire Christian life. Dan, did I see your hand? Yeah, he's referring to Moses. He's referring to Moses in the tabernacle, and you said it. It's the idea that those who are outside of Christ, it's as if there's a veil over their face, and he uses that to describe the Jews of his own day, that they read the Scriptures, and yet they have a veil over their face, and they can't gaze on the glory of God in Christ. When we come to Christ, that veil is removed, and we now behold the glory of the Lord truly, and are transformed in that way. Yeah, Mark? I thought that there was a huge difference between the relationship between the Jewish people and the Jewish people, and different theologians, obviously, have very different views as to the level of importance that there is in theology. But even, you know, Bobak's got this great quote, that we will one day see the Lord, but not perceptively, which is, you know, very confusing, but not perceptively. Do you have any thoughts on the importance of the relationship between the Jewish people and the Jewish people? Yeah, so the beatific vision is just the way Christians historically have talked about finally seeing Christ in the end, in heaven, being able to gaze upon Christ, and as Pastor Mark said, I mean, it kind of blows our minds to try to think about seeing the invisible God, and yet that's the image that's used in Scripture, is that we gaze upon him, we gaze upon him in his glory, eternally. Yeah, I mean, I think that's a really important teaching. I think this is essentially like an anticipation of that, you know, so we're gazing upon the glory of the Lord already, and we're being transformed from one degree of glory to another, so it's almost another way of talking about progressive sanctification. What is it? It's actually becoming more glorious. It's reflecting the image of God more and more throughout your life, and becoming more and more glorious until that final day when we will see him without any impediment, and that transformation will be complete in that day, so I think that's a really important teaching, because that's the goal of all of this, is that we would see Christ. Is that what you're thinking about, or do you have any other thoughts on that? Yeah, I mean, I'm with you. I mean, it's such a, you know, at times very speculative, at times very encouraging, but it does tell us we'll see the Lord, and I think all of us would like to know what that means, and to be able to see him in Scripture much more often than we will, and in the glory of the Lord. And you try to be really specific about what that's going to look like, or what that's going to mean, whereas, you know, we all understand what it means to see something glorious, and so we get the sense there. It's going to overwhelm us with the brightness and the glory of God, and then we just be careful that we don't maybe go too far to try to describe what that's going to exactly mean. Yeah. Okay, so we have been glorified. The image of God has been restored in Christ. As Christians, we are being glorified. We're being transformed from one degree of glory to another. Glory and image are very important to connect, Colossians 3, 9 and 10. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices, and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Because Adam was made in the image of God, and as such, he reflected the image, but he reflected the glory of God perfectly in the garden. And a fundamental aspect of conversion, of regeneration, is that we now are reflecting the image of God more and more as Christians. As the Spirit works upon our hearts throughout our lives, we reflect the image of Christ more and more. We reflect back the glory of God more and more. But that's not the end. You know, I said that verse in Romans 8, I would take that as something that's already happened to us in Christ. But it's absolutely the case that we have not yet fully arrived at the fullness of glorification. The fullness of glorification is still in the future. There's still this coming day, and this is in the same chapter, actually, as that verse that I said refers to our present glorification. This is Romans 8, 16 to 18. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. And the reason I put the Greek here is because it actually says, in us. I know that you might not be able to read that, but just take my word for it. That says, in us, the glory that is to be revealed in us. I think that's better than the glory that's going to be revealed to us. I mean, it's absolutely true that when we see Christ, his glory is going to be revealed to us. But it's also the case that it's going to be revealed in us. And what Paul means by that is that we are going to then perfectly, fully, finally reflect the glory of God. We're going to perfectly and fully and finally reflect the image of God on the last day when we see Christ face to face. He says that we will. So here he is actually saying this is a future reality. We will be glorified in Christ. Or Peter, in 1 Peter 5.1. So I exhort the elders among you as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed. That's why I said it was so important to connect glory and glorification. We're talking about glorification. We're not just looking for that word glorification. We're also looking for the word glory. And how glory has been lost, restored, and fully revealed. So this is a glory that is going to be revealed. What does that mean? That's talking about us being fully transformed into the image of God on the last day. And that's in the resurrection. I read from Romans 6 referring to Christ having been raised from the dead. And the way that he was raised by the glory of God. So as he was raised up, he was showing, among other things, he was showing the glory of humanity restored to what it should be. He was showing as the first fruits of the resurrection, he was showing the glories of the new creation. He's already raised up. He is already bodily entered into the new creation as the forerunner for his people. And he is the first fruits, which means the whole harvest. That's us who are in Christ. We are going to be gloriously raised along with Christ. And so we are partakers in glory. But that has not yet fully been revealed. That won't fully be revealed until Christ returns. Okay, so maybe just to step back here and try to kind of summarize all of this in a sort of a brief way. To kind of go back more simply and not be reading through all the scripture. We can put it this way. What is glorification? Glorification is being restored to be glorious. It means that if you need to be glorified, that means that you have lost glory. Glory has been lost. It's been obscured. It's been marred. Adam was created as a glorious being. So Adam had not yet fully enjoyed this glory yet. There was still something more for Adam. We know this because Adam was, when he fell, he was prevented from eating from the tree of life so that he would live forever. As long as Adam was capable of sin, as long as he was capable of falling, you know that he hasn't finally and fully arrived at the point that God intended for humanity. You know that because in heaven, it's not possible for us to sin. It's not possible for us to fall. So you know Adam had not yet fully arrived at what God intended for humanity. God had more in store for Adam. Now Adam was glorious. Adam was sinless as created. Adam was righteous. But he still had a task. And that task was to be faithful to God. And that task was really summed up in that prohibition. Don't eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And had Adam been faithful, he would have been able to then take of the tree of life in its fullness and live forever. And to eat from that tree of life and to live forever in a way that could never be lost. So Adam would have gone from, you could even, I mean you could say it this way really, Adam would have gone from one degree of glory to another without having to have ever passed through a state where he had to have glory restored to him because he had sinned. He would have been, he was created as glorious. And then had he been faithful, he would have been brought into the final state of things and the fullness of the glory of God. But he fell. He sinned against God. And when he did that, the glory of God was lost. All the sin and falling short of the glory of God. The glory of God was lost. The image of God in him was defaced. But Christ has come as the faithful second Adam. And what Christ has done, among all the other things that we've been saying about Jesus, about salvation, is that Jesus has restored the image of God in man by becoming the faithful and true second Adam. A true man, truly God, truly man. He has restored the image of God in man. And so when we are united to Jesus Christ by faith, that image is restored in us. The glory of God has been restored in us. We are glorified in that moment in which we are united to Jesus Christ by faith. And then as we gaze upon the glory of Christ throughout this life, the spirit changes us, transforms us from one degree of glory to another. We're made more and more glorious. We're made more and more glorious. Now, this is something that the world can't see. This is something that takes place in the heart. This is something that takes place in the way we live. But the world can't see that. But the day is coming when we will be raised from the dead on that last day, we'll behold the glory of God in its fullness, and we'll be fully and finally transformed into the image of God, fully and finally glorified on that last day in the resurrection, and we'll perfectly image God and perfectly reflect His glory forever and ever. Yes, Ryan. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, so we participate in Christ, but what we're also... We're also, in a very important sense, participants in the new creation already. This is something that Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5. He says, if anyone is in Christ, new creation. So, let's see. The old things have passed away. Behold, the new things have come. So, like, the whole old order of things has passed away, and the whole new order of things has come. If you're in Christ, you're already living in the new creation. You're participating in the new creation. Now, that's only inwardly true of us now, but it will be outwardly true of us in the resurrection, and it'll be obvious. You know, the glory, you could say, is veiled even now in us. And it will be fully manifest then. So, all of this comes to us in union with Christ, because he has restored the image and the glory of man. There's a phrase from a church father, Irenaeus, the glory of God is man fully alive, I think is the phrase. The glory of God is man fully alive. And I think it's a really great phrase, because that's what you see in Christ, is man fully alive, and the glory of God fully manifest in him. And then, because we are united to him, that's already happened to us as well. You could say, we've been definitively glorified in Christ, and then that's going to be made more and more manifest in our lives. Is that what you're asking? Yeah, beholding the glory of the Lord, being transformed from one degree of glory to another. It's essentially, meditating on who you are in Christ is going to be the means that the Spirit uses to transform you, to make you more like Christ, to more reflect what you're going to be that in the last day. Yeah, other questions, other thoughts, comments? Comments are fine too. Aaron? I mean, because you might be prone to be arrogant when you think about what you're going to be. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I would go back to what we were talking about, honor and shame, and it's the same thing. It's, for one, to be glorified means to be restored in the image of God, and it means to reflect his moral being, which arrogance, of course, would be unfitting in that, but the New Testament consistently teaches us to look forward to the reward, so that we don't become arrogant and boastful in this age. You know, it's precisely that what motivates us not to live like the world, which seeks their glory now, is that we know we have glory coming, and so we live by faith, knowing that we could be shamed, we could be humiliated in this age, and yet we will actually receive the very thing that the people of this world want, which is true glory, but we'll receive it from God then. So, I think it's actually a powerful motivator to humility in the present. Yeah, yeah, and even as we're being transformed from one degree of glory to another, that's from the Spirit. It's not something we've done by our own power. All praise would be to God for that. Yeah, yeah. So, Sadie, did you have your hand up? I'm just going to sit down, because I think there's a final word for reward, and yet God's word, can you say, is endless? Is what? Endless, because you say his word is endless. Oh, endless. Yes, sir. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah, I don't have the sense that there will be any more transformation, because we will see him as he is, you know, and when we see him as he is in the twinkling of an eye, there's always that kind of language about seeing Christ, and it's the final transformation. I mean, we have eternity to bask in the glory of God, and maybe our understanding of the glory of God will have eternity to develop, but we ourselves won't be, as far as I can see, be changed any more and more. We'll already, we'll perfectly and fully reflect that glory. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So, Ian, do you have your hand up? Or, and then Dan. I have a comment on Eric's part, but Eric already touched on it. Christ and us, we need to be glorified. We're not doing anything for that, so that's how we say, that's what we keep our humility. Yeah. We're not doing the glorifying. Yeah, yeah. It's so powerful in the New Testament that the world will shame believers, and yet we seek honor from the Lord, not from the world, which means we can be shamed to the day we die, and yet we'll be honored and glorified in the end by God. Yeah. So, yeah. Dan. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, boast in Christ. The good works that God prepared beforehand for you to walk in, Ephesians 2. Yeah, yeah. If you know your glory comes from God, to be arrogant about that would be the most obscene thing imaginable. There you go. Well, being transformed from one degree of glory to another. The first step is recognizing that you have a problem. Yeah, Brian. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Well, so the thing about revelation is a vision. It's not actually quite, it's not what we're going to see on that last day exactly. He goes into a state where he's in the Spirit, and he sees things in the Spirit in the form of visions. So, I don't think that's actual seeing in the way that we'll see on the last day, but that is certainly, it's an image of what that will be like, and the image that he is given, the vision is overwhelming brightness. You know, his face shining like the sun. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I guess, like, there's a lot of references, but is it the same word? I think so. Yeah, no, I think those would be the same words. I mean, those are just, those are, I guess, earthly, sort of an earthly approximation, or an earthly sense of glory. That it is true that there are things in this world that are more glorious and less glorious. So, it's kind of taking that concept down to the earthly level, just to reflect that, I think. But, I mean, it's the same basic idea. It's something that is good, that reflects goodness, versus something that doesn't. Yeah. Okay, well, I think I probably should close now, and I'll pray for us, and then we'll be done. Our Heavenly Father, we praise you, and we thank you for your Word, and for all these wonderful things that we see about our Savior, Jesus Christ. I pray that you would give us grace to humble ourselves before you, and to seek our glory from you. I pray that you would give us hearts full of rejoicing in the way in which you have renewed us in the image of Christ, and given us your Spirit to transform us from one degree of glory to another. I pray that we would live every second of our life in humble dependence on you, so that you alone would receive all glory, and honor, and praise. And I pray this in Christ's name. Amen.
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