GLORIOUS

I will exalt you, my God, the King. I will praise your name forever and ever. Every day I will praise you. I will extol your name forever and ever. Great is Yahweh, and greatly to be praised! His greatness is unsearchable. One generation will commend your works to another, and will declare your mighty acts. Of the glorious majesty of your honor, of your wondrous works, I will meditate.      Psalm 145:1-5 (WEB)

Glorious.  When I think of the word “glorious”, earthly things just do not come up to that indescribable word.  Brides and babies are beautiful and wondrous in their glow and perfection — but “glorious”?  No, that word doesn’t come to me. The Rocky Mountains and Niagara Falls are awesome but I do not feel “glorious” in my heart when I stand and look at them.

I think “glorious”, “reverence”, and “adoration” are exclusively God-words to me.  I can’t imagine an earthly person or object to connect with those words. They are words that I can only say with my arms lifted in praise or my head bowed in complete submission. They are words that evoke deep emotions. They remind me of precious, treasured times in my relationship with God.

Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.  For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.                Philippians 3:17-21 (NIV)

Now that really is hard for me to wrap my mind around — I am going to be “glorious”! I will not be transformed because of my great works and deeds here. It will not happen because I prayed many hours or fasted many days. It’s all about Jesus and what He did and He is doing in me, and for me.  It is Jesus’ righteousness, His blood, covering my “un-glorious-ness”! It is about what is in my heart and how my heart is given to Jesus. Totally given and that means that the ugliness of my pride and self must die.

“…the cross of Christ…” is about total and unconditional love. To be an enemy of the cross is to condemning and judgmental and full of pride. To draw the spotlight of attention to myself instead of to God is to be an enemy. The glory, the adoration and worship, belongs only to God.

In God’s glorious transformation of me, I will be a reflection of Jesus.  Laying my “glorious-ness” from Him down at the Father’s feet in adoration and reverence.