There Is No Glory Without Suffering
- Nadeana Reece (Guest Writer)
- Jul 8, 2015
- 3 min read
Moses said, “Show me your glory, I pray.” Exodus 33:18
If I were to ask a congregation of Christian believers “who wants to see God’s glory?” I’d expect all hands to be raised. My hand certainly would be. Why is it that we crave this glory - or any glory for that matter?
‘Glory’ can be defined as ‘high renown or honour for notable achievements’. It can be viewed as ‘magnificence’ or ‘great beauty’. No wonder we want all the glory to go to God! Frankly, He more than deserves it. His achievements are vast and highly notable (Psalm 19:1) and He is all that is beautiful and magnificent.
As humans, we also want to be honoured or recognised for our achievements. There’s a part of us that longs to be seen as beautiful, magnificent, even worthy. But this same word 'glory' that we want to experience or see, is derived in the Old Testament from the Hebrew word ‘kabod’ which also means heavy, weighty, burdensome. Glory does not come without weight and weight usually implies suffering. You usually have to go through something to get glory.
In John 17, Jesus tells of the glory He had with the Father before the world existed (John 17:5). He then bestows on His disciples this same glory; a glory they only came to understand after the sufferings of Jesus on the cross. A glory they only experienced in their subsequent sufferings for the gospel of Christ (Acts 5:41). To share in His glory, we must be willing to share in His suffering (Philippians 3:10).
I wonder then, how many of us who want to see God’s glory even know what’s associated with that ‘seeing’. In Exodus 33, Moses asked the Lord “Please, show me Your glory.” Basically, he was taking the next step in their relationship. He wanted to know more about God and to know that, he had found grace in God’s sight. Bear in mind that Moses was a man the Lord spoke to face to face – in the same way a person speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). He was one of the few human beings that had a tangibly close relationship with God. Yet listen to God’s response. He said that He would let His glory pass by but Moses wouldn’t be able to see the face of God because no can see God and still live (Exodus 34:20). The weight associated with fully experiencing God in all His glory was death, something that the people of Israel knew well (Deuteronomy 5:24-28). God knew that His glory was heavy and was shielding Moses from the brunt of it. After the encounter, Moses’ face shown so radiantly that he had to wear a veil because the people of Israel were afraid to come near him (Exodus 34:29). And he hadn’t even seen all of God’s glory!
Desiring to experience the glory of God, is a rewarding and notable thing; sharing in His sufferings – even more so. So ask yourself: Do you truly want to experience the glory of God and all that comes with it? For then you’d have to be prepared to experience the weight of suffering associated with knowing God. Thankfully, God still shields us. Every burden associated with Him is light and so this weight, this glory, is both easy and honourable.
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About The Blogger
My name is Nadeana Reece and I am 23 years old. I no longer worry about what I want to be when I grow up because I know that God has purposed me to help others and has thus equipped me with abilities to accomplish this. With a Bachelors of Science in Maths with Stats under my belt, I am currently finishing my Research Masters in Mathematics and will soon commence a Taught Masters in the same field. My goal right now is to get the PhD! More importantly, along the way I aim to “do all the good I can; by all the means I can; in all the ways I can; in all the places I can; at all the times I can; to all the people I can; as long as ever I can” (John Wesley). After all, I can do all things through Christ! To round it all up, I am passionate about dance, specifically as a ministry. I am a soprano who sometimes gets to sing tenor. My heart still compels me to pull out the paint brushes and pencils once a year and I am always doodling, jotting down poems and recording 4-line songs. Maybe I will write a book one day or start a blog.
Further Reading
Exodus 33 & 34
Deuteronomy 5
Psalm 19
John 17
Acts 5
Philippians 3
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