The Glory of Living by Myles Munroe

Author:Myles Munroe
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Anthropology, Conduct of Life, Christian Ministry, Christian Life, General, Glory of God, Religion, Discipleship, Christian Theology
ISBN: 9781458761231
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant
Published: 2012-06-12T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Squeezing the Glory Out

Mine be the travail, and Thine be the glory!13Embracing the Pleasure of Pressure

More often than not, the full glory of a thing is not readily apparent at first glance. It is hidden beneath the surface. Glory comes out through a process that inevitably and permanently alters its container. Consider an orange, for example. What is the true glory of an orange? Its bright orange color? Its roundness? The texture of its peel? Although each of these characteristics helps us distinguish an orange from other kinds of fruit, none of them reveals its full essence. The true glory of an orange is its juice.

How do we get juice from an orange? The only way is to cut open the orange and squeeze the juice out. That process permanently alters the qualities and appearance of the orange. It is impossible to get orange juice without changing the orange. There is no way to bring out the glory of an orange without squeezing it.

In a similar way, God’s glory in us is not always readily apparent because it is hidden inside these “jars of clay” that we call our bodies. Bringing out that glory will permanently change the jars containing it.

God’s purpose for us is that we become what He created us to be so that His glory hidden in our “jars of clay” can shine forth and bring the light of His true nature to a blind and dark world. In Matthew 5:48 Jesus charged us to “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” You will remember from Chapter Four that the word perfect in this verse means “complete” or “mature.” We are to be complete and mature just like our heavenly Father: “like Father, like son (or daughter).” The challenge we face is knowing how to become complete. How do we grow to maturity in Christ?

Part of the answer comes in learning simply to trust God to finish what He started. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul encourages us to “[be] confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). What God has begun, He will complete. Having called us to salvation in Christ, God will bring us to full maturity in our faith, provided we learn to yield, follow, and obey Him. This is part of what it means to humble ourselves before the Lord. God’s part is to bring us to maturity in Christ; that’s why He gave us the Holy Spirit. Our part is to listen, trust, and obey. In the rich environment of this relationship, God will bring out His glory that resides within us.

One important principle of maturity that we need to understand is that growth occurs only as we overcome resistance and obstacles. Tests and trials will come—they are an inescapable part of life—and they will make us or break us depending on our attitude toward them. We tend to complain about our trials, but God wants to use them to strengthen us and bring us to maturity.

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