Unfading Glory

Bro Koay Kheng Hin

These two words, glory and unfading captures a certain essence of what our Christian faith is all about. Christ has done the work of the cross and resurrected over 2000 years ago and we await his return.

1 Peter 1:1

To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia,

Here he mentions pilgrims (strangers) and the elect. This was during a difficult period and Peter is saying even during those times, it is only for a moment, a period. It was a church when initially established went under heavy Jewish persecution. The people persevered and when things seems better they got under Roman persecution.

Today, I believe that our country, when we read epistles like that we find it difficult to identify with the circumstances the people are going through.

For most of us we have a certain religious freedom that the government has given us. I think messages like that of an epistle like 1st Peter, we may not understand. I believe that Malaysia may go through a difficult period and we may not enjoy the liberty that we are enjoying now.

As I prepare this message unfading glory, I was looking at a time if the church faces persecution like we have never experienced before or as a Christian we go through a different challenge, 1st Peter may become meaningful.

I have a friend who is doing well, better than me. I'm doing okay as a school teacher but he is much better financially. He said he don't believe in God and he said he is not doing badly. If we talk of God in the area of temporal blessing they may not appreciate it because they say they are doing better than you. But if you look at Peter you will see he sees his faith in a different light.

Peter says this is not our home when he calls us strangers. We are journeying, a pilgrim. When the church is prosperous, sometimes we may forget that this is not our home. You may say I'm 60 years old so it's okay to say this is not my home but I want to say whether young or old this is not our home. Paul says our citizenship is in heaven. That's why Matthew talks about treasures in heaven. The NT is a gospel where eternity is real and the things that matters to us must be seen in the light of eternity.

It is on that basis that we can be more than conquerors for Christ. It is on that basis we can say that the kingdom of God is expanding on this earth.

1 Peter 1:24-25

24 For, “All people are like grass,

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;

the grass withers and the flowers fall,

25 but the word of the Lord endures forever.”

And this is the word that was preached to you.

Peter writes that flowers wither and only the word of God will last forever. Peter is not talking about a concept but Peter has seen much of what is in man's heart. As we go through life, many things occupy our life. One is money. We need money but the problem is when their glory is their money. Where their security and worth is their wealth. Then we say their glory is their wealth.

Another area is beauty. I thought this is a problem only women have. But nowadays I realised these days men also have this issue. They go for facials. Sometimes God wants us to look pretty and beautiful and we are like that in God's sight. I remember an actress who could not take growing old. When the glory of her beauty fades. She secluded herself.

For some people their glory is other people's recognition. Like when they retire as boss, they no longer receive the same recognition. Some of these people lose much of the meaning of their life.

Coming to health, our health may become our pursuit and we make statements like my health is the most important thing. But no matter how well you take care of your health, you will slowly lose that glory. Recently I lost my mom and it affected me. I am very close to my mom and those that comes to my house knows that. My mom used to cycle around Lip Sin. Many knows her as the cycling auntie and I'm known as the cycling auntie's son.

In January my mom started losing weight. Esther my youngest daughter touched my mom and felt her bones. It was just skin and bones. We looked through old photos and she was very pretty when young. No offence but she is prettier than many of you here. But day by day I could see her body wasting away. You can see that the body at the end was just skin and bone.

2 Corinthians 4:16

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

Paul was talking about a fact of life. Outwardly we will waste away. But we are renewed inwardly.

2 Corinthians 4:17

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

We will one day have that glorious body that Christ will give to us. It is this that allows me to see that hope that I can capture in a real way that my mom as a spiritual soul will one day have a glorified body. But if you look at Paul, he says there are trouble. He said to the Corinthians that he suffered for the sake of the gospel and Christ but he says they are momentary. A passing moment in a journey. The momentary he compares to the eternal. Paul says these problems are light to me.

What we can capture from here is that Paul looks into the future and see the glory. That glory is not just the glorified body. This word glory has diverse meaning. When we say the glory of the Lord, that word glory has a certain sense of the favour and the perfect righteousness of God. And a God given honour imparted to us. That is why we will one day reign with God not because of our doing but his. An honour that God gives to his children.

Jesus was trying to show Peter, James and John what the glory of God was when Jesus transfigured before them. There was a certain radiance and brilliance about the glory of God. When the apostle Paul looks to eternity he is captured by the brilliance of the Lord God almighty.

This brings me to verse 18. People asked me you talk so much about heaven but we are here on earth. So which is more important?

2 Corinthians 4:18

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

The apostle Paul is telling the Corinthians that we have to fix our eyes on the unseen and eternal. I wrote it down like that, that we must see eternity as we live out our present. Not see eternity and have that kiasu attitude with that of wanting eternity now. The decisions you make in your life will be different. And things that are important to you will be different.

Even though eternity is the destination, what we do now will affect our eternity. We all have eternal glory but you can slowly sense that there are different degrees of glory. I struggled with this. I thought glory is perfection so everybody is the same. Recently I bought a book that solved this problem. Infinity is infinite but there is smaller and bigger infinity. It's mathematical and it's true. There are different degrees. Apostle Paul will have a different degree of glory to you and I.

2 Corinthians 5:9-10

9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Paul is saying we must please God and that we have to appear before God not for judgement but rewards. What we do now will affect our eternal glory. What are we supposed to do or what criteria will God look at?

Centuries back, the church had a system called indulgence, this was before the protestants. You give and your sins can be cancelled. Until one day Martin Luther wrote this, it is blasphemous to be able to buy your way to heaven. How does God judge? I look at a more practical framework. Like if you are a cell leader more marks. If you are a ministry leader you get marks or if you save how many souls. I use a simpler system. I would put it this way, all in Corinthians.

2 Corinthians 3:18

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.

God's system is easier. Not by merit. This scripture show how we get to heaven. How do we experienced having the wrath of God taken away from us to have favour of God. It is the imputed righteousness of God that is the criteria. The righteousness of Christ is where your eternity lies in. If you grow in the image or likeness of God you are on safe grounds.  But what exactly do we mean by the likeness of Jesus Christ? You have to look at the gospels.

When Jesus was being baptised by John, Jesus had done nothing but God the Father spoke that Jesus is his well pleased son, because of the life he lived even before he did any ministry.

If you want to grow in the image of Christ, it is about who you are, the spiritual character and the fruitfulness of your character. When God sees you does he sees the fruits of who Christ is. Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to empower you to Christlikeness.

In the garden of Gethsemane, he ended with that prayer not my will but your will. Christ knew his purpose, that he was faithful till the end. It's the faithfulness of his ministry.

Some people find loop holes. He said God has not called me to be a pastor, and I say thank God, or called me to be an evangelist or a prophet so I don't have to do anything. Those are positions that God has a special calling as office. Not all are called and it's true. But has God called you to preach the gospel? God has not called you to be an evangelist but called you to do evangelism. Or God has not called you to be a pastor but you are called to pastoral work and to care for another. We are all called to do the work of the ministry. The call leaders are not pastors but they do pastoral work. Faithful to the ministry where God has called you and every child of God is called.

It is just most of the time you have ignored what God has called you for. The renewal we have daily is a renewal of glory. A renewal that comes from the glory of God transforming us. In that transformation you go from glory to glory.

When the glory of God comes upon you, there is a certain joy and you feel light. That is what will carry you to eternity.

I was reading about Martin Luther who gave his last sermon the day before he was assassinated. I have been to the mountaintop. He says I have no fear of any man and what may come I am prepared for it. He had a premonition from God that God is taking him home. He said I have seen the glory of God and it's upon me. Like at the Transfiguration, they have seen the glory of God. The apostle Paul saw it. It was so brilliant and bright that it blinded him. The apostle Paul saw the glory of Christ.

As we behold him and spend time with the Lord, that glory will rub on us. We need to experience the glory of God. I am someone who uses my mind. What you experience in your mind is important but the spirit man grow when he experiences what is in the word. The logos has to become the rhema. You will see a difference.

All of us have eternal life which God the Holy Spirit promised us but how many of us have eternity in our hearts. Let's have eternity in our hearts.

I want to end with a story of two birds. One is the eagle while the other is a turkey. Can a turkey fly? I used to think no. Google say domesticated turkeys can't fly but wild turkeys can fly up to 100 feet. But they struggle to reach 100 feet. They have to accelerate hard before they can fly.

Eagles are different. They can fly to 10,000 feet. That's very high. And the eagle seldom flaps their wings, because they glide and look effortless when they soar.

If you have the temporal on earth at best you are like a turkey, struggling to fly. But if you are able to be like Peter who is a stranger on earth or like Paul whose citizenship is heaven, then you will be like the eagle that can reach 10,000 feet in your spiritual height.

Do you want to soar into the spiritual heavenly or do you want to struggle as a spiritual turkey. You should want to soar like an eagle instead of struggling like a turkey because you will end up on the dinner table on thanksgiving.

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