Change Your World | Chapter 2 | "Glory to God"

In 1971, Coca-Cola released a popular commercial with a catchy tune and the unforgettable slogan, “It’s The Real Thing.” It was in concert with the messaging of the times that we should all give peace and love a chance. Here are the words to that Coca-Cola tune:

“I'd like to buy the world a home and furnish it with love. Grow apple trees and honey bees and snow-white turtle doves. I'd like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. I'd like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company. That’s the real thing. I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. I’d like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company. It’s the real thing. What the world wants today. It’s the real thing.”

This classic commercial portrays Coca-Cola as — “The Real Thing”, the genuine article, an original — that has the power to bring the world together in perfect harmony. Madison Avenue will say just about anything to sell a product won’t they? You and I both know better. This is nothing more than fairy tale thinking, but there is a compelling truth to this thinking. And here it is! Everyone is looking for — real things, genuine things, and original things. I suggest to you that everyone is looking for an original. An original God of Creation, an original belief system, and an original version of you and me. I am certain that those in your sphere of influence are done with cheap imitations. Fools gold is not real gold, a cubic zirconia is not a real diamond, and David Koresh was not Jesus.

Did you know there was a time in the history of the world where things were genuine? It was during the genesis of the world. The word “Genesis” literally means “beginning.” For those of you that have never read the first three chapters of the Bible, Genesis 1-3, or never grew up hearing this Bible story, like I did, let me give you a brief summary. One God was in the beginning and he was Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This loving God had the idea of the ages, one day. “Let us make man in our image.” He wanted a family, he wanted children, he wanted someone to love and bless. So he made Adam and Eve, the first human beings and the first family. But before that, he took five days to create a perfect wonderful place for the first family to enjoy.

On day one, God created the heavens and the earth, he created light and darkness, and separated the light calling it “day” and the darkness calling it “night.” On day two, God separated the waters from the heavens and he called the space “sky.” On day three, God created the dry ground and called it “land” and he caused the waters to flow together and called them “seas.” At the same time, God created trees and plants that were seed bearing with the ability to reproduce after their kind. And all along the way God spoke to bring these things into being and once he beheld their glory he would remark, “it is good.” On day four, God created lights in the heavens to mark day and night and the seasons, days, and years. God made the great light of the Sun to govern the day and the lesser light of the Moon to govern the night. He sprinkled stars in the heavens to go along with that light. On day five, God created the fish of the sea and the birds of the air to multiply after their kind. On day six, God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And again, as every other day of creation, God saw that it was good. Finally, the crowning achievement of creation is recorded in Genesis 1:26-31 as follows:

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

27 So God created human beings in his own image.
    In the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

28 Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”

29 Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. 30 And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.

31 Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!

I love how God repeatedly said that everything he created was good, but when it came to his crowning achievement in all of creation, human beings, he thought you and I were “very good.” So imagine that! A God who creates things “good” and people “very good.” Can it get any better than that? Isn’t everyone alive looking for good things and good people to attach themself to? Well, from the beginning of the Bible and all throughout the Word of God we come to know a God of the universes that is good. That word “good” connects real nicely with the word “genuine” that I began this chapter with. With this being said, it’s important that you understand that in the very beginning when God lovingly created Adam and Eve as his first children, and heirs of the gift of life, in the Garden of Eden everything was “very good.” How could that be, you may be wondering? It’s simple! If “God is love” and God is good, then everything he thinks, says, and does is always good toward you and me and all humanity. With that eternal principle established, it gets even better than that. Another “G” word that describes God really well is the word “Glory.” Scripture says in ___ that, “God lives in unapproachable light.” God is so good and so pure and so perfect that he radiates light in his very being that mere human beings like us can’t even withstand. In Revelation 20___ it says, “In heaven Jesus will be the light.” In another place in scripture is says that Moses, “Hid himself in a cleft in a rock for the glory of God to go pass so that he could see just the back side of God.” This was because God’s glory was too much for Moses to see and handle. In fact, on another occasion when Moses would go up to Mount Sinai to meet with God and return with His word for His people, Moses’ face would shine with the after glow of the Presence of God.

The reason why I mention the glory of God is because it is what I experienced at 9 years old when I decided to follow Christ. His glory felt weighty in my body and brought unstoppable tears. And God’s glory is what I’ve experienced many times more since then. In fact, I’d love to feel that sensation everyday, several times a day. However, His glory doesn’t seem to come as often as I’d like.

The second song on the “Change Your World” album expresses exactly what I’m speaking about. Here are the words to the song “Glory to God”:

I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be in my mouth. I look to Him for all things. Creator and Sustainer of my life. The hope and peace for all creation. Glory to God. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain. To receive all praise. We sing worthy, we sing holy, we sing Almighty God.

This song is a vibrant response to experiencing the goodness and glory of God. I always want to praise him and let him know I appreciate that he’s the one that created me in His image and likeness. That he’s the one who sustains me daily in my health, my mind, and even deep within my spirit. I’ve found that if I live from — spirit (heart), to soul (mind, will, emotions), to body — everything is empowered by the Holy Spirit of God and not my limited strength. I find that I’m more hopeful and peaceful. Living a life that flows from the — glory of God, presence of God, or Spirit of God — is the only life worth living. In Psalm ___ King David the great Psalmist (songwriter) said, “In the presence of the Lord is fulness of joy and at His right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Are you lacking joy? Are you lacking pleasure in this life that God longs to give you? Let me tell you, we’ve all been at those low places in life a time or two. But God has an answer for your lack and your desire for more happiness and it’s only found in His Glory.

Have you ever been around someone special or been to a special event that made you feel very happy? I remember coming back from a R.O.C.K. Youth Summer Camp when I was a teenager and feeling down because I felt so good being there. Being on a college campus in Sherman, Texas before my time. Being around other Christians having fun. Being encouraged by loving leaders. Sports, great music, worship, invigorating messages of hope, good looking girls, and much more. When it was time to go home to mommy and daddy, although they loved me more than anyone or anything in the world, I would cry. I missed the atmosphere of R.O.C.K. Youth Camp. It’s amazing how great pastors like Rick and Jeanne Shearouse could create such an invigorating atmosphere. Maybe for you it was a rock concert, a date, a movie, or a party. Whatever the case, you felt fulfilled and happy. And that’s a good thing!

Just imagine your best experiences in the world and then multiply those by 100. That’s what the glory of God feels like. In one burst, when God comes into the room, you become undone for a while and then all filled and overflowing by the time he leaves the room. It’s incredible! It’s more than an ittlilectual ascent, although it can begin with a deep thought. It’s more than a deep objective Bible study of truth, although those are helpful and necessary. Far beyond all that, it’s an encounter with the living God, the God of all Creation, your Heavenly Father who loves you even more than your own parents.

I want to really dig into the importance of having an encounter with God that you can feel. For a season, my wife and I, were a part of a church and movement that added a lot of value to our lives relationally and biblically. However, looking back, I feel like they may have unwittingly elevated the written Word of God higher than the person of Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit he sent when he ascended to heaven after his resurrection. I say that because messages were spoken regularly, for a season, about objective truth being more dependable than subjective truth. Personally, after 35 years of following Christ, I feel like the subjective emotional experiences with the Holy Spirit have moved me more than anything. Now, don’t misunderstand me. I believe the subjective truth of God’s Word, or the stories of the saints that have gone before, should work in tandem with our subjective experiences with the glory of God. The Word of God should actually serve as a guide and way to test the genuineness of our experiences. However, we must be careful not to elevate the written Word of God above the person and work of the Holy Spirit, who is God. The Word of God and the Holy Spirit points to a person and that eternal powerful and good person is non other than Jesus, your Lord and Savior. Ultimately our experiences with the glory of God should bring forth the goodness and glory of God within us. That’s why Paul said in Colossians ___, “Christ in me the hope of glory.”

So to sum up the glory of God, in you, is simply — his love, his goodness, and his spiritual fruit — flowing out of you toward others. Maybe you’re wondering what spiritual fruit is? In Galatians 5:22 it says,

“22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”

You can live the fruit of the Spirit all day long, every day and never go wrong. “There is no law against these things!” (Galatians 5:22) However, you and I both know, there is another way of living, a wide-path, a way of destruction that produces rotten fruit in our lives. Right before the Galatians 5:22-23 passage I just shared, the Apostle Paul shares this,

13 For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. 14 For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another.

16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

So my friend, now that you’ve made the choice to follow Christ completely by saying and believing the salvation prayer from the previous chapter “Alive”, you are no longer dead in your sin and bound by your sinful nature. You’re a new creation in Christ, born-again into the family of God, with the power to live for the glory of God. When your life is overflowing with the good and glorious fruit of the Spirit, that’s what you and others enjoy. It’s as if, when people interact with you they are picking and enjoying a fruit from your Tree of Life. You are now empowered, as a person that is a container for the glory of God, to give them, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23)

If you’ll read a little further in Genesis after creation, in Genesis 2-3, you’ll see where Moses writes about the Tree of Life that God put in the Garden of Eden to reward Adam and Eve and to guarantee eternal life. Unfortunately, the first family chose in a moment of temptation, unbelief, and fear to mistrust God. Satan, a fallen arch-angel, promised them wisdom beyond God’s and in a moment they chose pride and self-reliance rather than humility and dependence upon the God of all creation. They mistakenly ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and were immediately tainted by the curse of sin and death. In that moment, God didn’t abandon them, but rather came looking for them because they did what we all do when we sin, they hid from God. In his Loving and gracious way, God asked them why they disobeyed him and of course they did what we all do, Adam and Eve played the blame game and blamed each other. God leveled with them in love and laid out the consequences of their sin, which was, banishment from the Garden of Eden with the benefit of living forever. He limited their days, which has now landed somewhere below 100 years old in our day and age. He let Eve know that childbirth would be painful for the first time and that her husband would rule over her, thus much marital conflict to this day. He let Adam know that work would now be like toil rather than enjoyable, and you can attest that your boss and work environment is no walk in the Garden of Eden either. It’s interesting the effect mistrust, disobedience, and sin had on the first human beings. I can personally say that the process I’ve gone through when I sin is almost exactly the same. So what do we do?

We do exactly what God showed Adam and Eve to do. Before God leveled with them in love, he gave them animal skins as clothing because they realized for the first time that they were naked. Let me ask you. Where do you think God found animal skins? I suggest to you that he killed an animal, cleaned it, and made them garments of animal skin. Even though the Bible doesn’t give us this much detail in the historical account of the fall of mankind, I believe the rest of the Bible story of redemption shows us the priority and necessity of a sacrifice to atone or pay for sin. Isn’t it kind of God to show Adam and Eve how to repent (turn away from their sins) and then to receive his free payment of sin (grace). The first family didn’t provide the sacrifice, they didn’t even know how to sacrifice. They didn’t even know that the blood of a spotless lamb, without blemish, would satisfy God’s punishment of sin. They didn't know a prayer saying, “I was wrong (acknowledge sin), I sinned (missed the mark), I repent (change and go the opposite direction), please forgive me (I’m sorry)” worked to come back into a peaceful relationship with God or anyone for that matter.

God was showing Adam and Eve what I learned to do with my children as I realized it’s the only way to help them make peace. I brought them together and made them say, “I’m sorry for what I did to you, I was wrong, please forgive me.” I discovered if the offender said that genuinely with a bit of remorse, then the offended one would actually believe them and would reconcile. What I find shocking about sin is that it doesn’t hurt God in a physical way, it only hurts him because we’re hurting ourselves and others. Sin just doesn’t work! It’s not right!

Real quick as we close, here’s the definition of sin. It means “missing the mark.” If you can imagine a marksman aiming at a target, with the goal of hitting the bullseye, and he misses, that’s sin. He missed the mark. Everything God is, says, and does is always in the bullseye because he’s good, he’s love, he’s pure, and he’s perfect. So God is not primarily asking you to try with all of your effort, intellect, or power to be like him. But rather, on the contrary, he’s asking you to chose to let him inside of your being — spirit, soul, and body — to empower you to hit the mark. I believe when the Heavenly Father chased Adam and Eve down, while they were ashamed of their sin, he was saying to them, “your sin, guilt, and shame is not too bad for my presence.” I don’t like it because it hurts you, but I can handle it. I’m not going to shame you any more, I’m not going to distance myself from you, and I’m not going to be ashamed to call you my son and daughter. The loving Heavenly Father was saying, “I miss our walks in the Garden. Did you think I was going to just let you walk away from me? Did you think I was just going to let you leave without a fight?” We know this because when God spoke of the consequences of the Serpents sin he said, “he (Jesus) will crush your (Serpent) head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15) This was a prophetic picture of the ultimate and final sacrifice where Jesus would defeat death, hell, and the grave once and for all at the Cross.

Listen, God’s not mad at you or angry with you. God’s mad and angry at the same Devil that tempted and tainted the first family. He’s been at war with him since he cast him from heaven with a third of the fallen angels. When your loving Heavenly Father sent his one and only Son Jesus, he did it as a love letter to you. A message and a moment to win your heart back from sin, back from the world, back from the devil, and back from all those choices that are hurting you.

So here’s what’s amazing! Now that you’ve surrendered to Jesus, by praying the salvation prayer, now the glory of God resides in you at increasing levels as you spend time with the Holy Spirit through prayer, Bible study, worship, and Christian friendship. My belief is that you’re going to receive wave after wave of your loving Heavenly Father’s presence, power, and glory. You too are going to have a Jesus Story similar to mine, but with all your own stories of experiences with the glory of God. Then we can all sing together as the family of God, “Glory to God, worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive all praise, we sing worthy, we sing holy, we sing Almighty God.” I encourage you to take a listen now, or real soon, to the “Glory to God” song from the “Change Your World” album. Praise God for his unfailing love and all he’s done for you and receive a fresh wave of His Glory.