The Seven Glories

So nice to be back from the feast. And after all these years, we have a PowerPoint presentation here that's going to bring this out. This is a supplement to what we had at the feast, something additional that is called the seven glories. The seven glories in the Bible.

As we begin, I'd like to explain what this glory means. The first slide that we can go. We see here the first time that God manifested his glory to man was in the Garden of Eden. Glory here means God's presence and power. God's first glory was when he dwell physically with man in the Garden of Eden. He openly walked and talked with them as their God, but his presence did not last because of their sin and wrong decisions.

God's always been a parent to mankind. And in a sense, Adam and Eve were the pilot program. They were the ones that God was going to test because he had great potential in mind. He had a great goal. He knew, though, they were subject to fall to into sin. That was in a shock to him. But he was testing this first couple in the Garden of Eden. And they were led to listen to Satan instead of God. And God allowed that because he is not creating robots where they just mindlessly have to obey God.

They had to choose for themselves. Yes, it was a deception by Satan. But at the same time, God had already taught them. He had been with them. He had warned them. And yet he saw the propensity for sin, for yielding. And so God was no longer in their presence. Man lost that first chance to be with God, to be in the presence of God's glory, his power. And you can imagine what it would have been like to talk to a perfect being. Holy, just and perfect.

But it was not to be. And it was part of God's plan to have these two different ways that people would have to choose. And he couldn't make it so easy for them to just follow him. They were going to be tested. There were going to be temptations, just like Adam and Eve went through these temptations. So if there weren't any temptations, if we didn't have money in the world, or if we didn't have the desire for fame and glory, well, people wouldn't act like they do. But they fall into temptations. And so that first glory was ended. And then he put a carabim with a sword going every which way, so nobody would have access to that Garden of Eden, and to the Tree of Life, which symbolized eternal life.

So man would be shut off from the direct presence of God. Continuing on, we have God's second glory was seen at the tabernacle in the wilderness. There was a miraculous pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night showing his glory.

Let's go to Exodus chapter 40, verse 34. Exodus 40, verse 34. So God decided he was going to dwell with man again. He chose Israel as the guiding people. He would teach them. They were supposed to be priests of the rest of mankind, but they didn't do a good job. Exodus 40, verse 34 through 38. It says, then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle, that shining presence.

And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would go onward in their journeys.

But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up. So God guided them, led them through those 40 years of being in the wilderness. Verse 38, for the cloud of the Lord was above the tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

That's why it's so ironic that having the presence of God, they still rebelled how many times they still didn't believe that God could do what He had promised them. So that's a lesson that doesn't matter what God does. It's your conviction. It's your relationship with God that is going to make the difference, not how many times you're healed or how many times God intervenes and protects your life.

Because you're still living with that human nature that has to be overcome. And so that glory of God did not last. It also did not last after 39 years due to the first generations many acts of disobedience. So that was a temporary appearance of God, just like it had been in the Garden of Eden. And again, sin, disobedience, rebellion toward them, toward Him, alienated and separated God from man. God's the one that approaches man, and man is the one who runs away from him or defies him. That's why this carnal human nature is not something to be taken lightly. It is very powerful. Now we see the third time God's glory appears. God's third glory was at the holy temple in Jerusalem when His glory filled the temple.

Notice in 1 Kings chapter 8, 1 Kings chapter 8. When Solomon finished building that temple in Jerusalem, starting in verse 10, it says, So for the second time, God dwells in a place, first in the tabernacle, and now in the temple He inhabits it. Yet it also did not last due to the disobedient carnal nature, not having God's Holy Spirit in them. That was a key element. And so as we have said many times, we are born with three different parts to us. We have the body, and we have the Bible calls the soul, it's the activating energy that sustains us. Just like if you use a TV set, you've got to connect it to turn it on. The TV set can't turn itself on. It needs that energy. And so the body also is activated, and the Bible says that the life of the person is in their blood. And it is those red blood cells that feed the body. It has to continually, the heart pumping, and it is these red blood cells that keep the body. What happens when you drain your body of blood? You die. It's that simple. That's why people need blood transfusions and things. You don't need transfusions of other things as vital. It's the red blood cells. That's why the Bible said that it is in the blood. And that's the second thing we have. The third thing we have is called the spirit in man. That's what gives us intelligence, what gives us the ability to communicate intelligently with others, with God. We can reason. And Nebuchadnezzar, for instance, in the book of Daniel, because of his defiance and pride, God took that spirit of man in him and he became just like an animal living for seven years with no reasoning capacity. All he knew was to eat, to go around and sleep. But they said that his hair just became disheveled. Here's this man. He had all these wonderful clothing and the power of Babylon. And there he was, just like some crazy person out in the wilderness. We saw one one time, Kadi and I, when we were in Chile, some gentleman had gone down to the coast for a vacation. His car had an accident, killed his wife and two children, and he became crazy. And he'd lived in the caves and other places. Nobody could be around him. We saw him once when we were going to the coast. He was a famous person. He had lost that ability to reason. So it can happen.

So we're born with those three characteristics, but we're not born with God's spirit. That's the key element, the fourth one, which regulates and controls more of our human nature to be able to keep it, keep the lid on it, not let it get full blown. And it develops, as we're going to see here in a moment, it means having some of God's glory in you.

So you can say that this third manifestation was temporal. It was not lasting because Israel rebelled and they would talk about, like in Jeremiah, Jeremiah said, don't you think that God is not going to punish you because you have a temple? And he said, you always are saying the temple, the temple, that's where God is. So he won't do anything. And he said, no, if you rebel, if you're disobedient, God's going to destroy that temple. And this is something that even after this in First Kings eight, where God answers Solomon. And in chapter nine, it says in verse one, and it came to pass when Solomon had finished the building, the house of the Lord and the king's house and all Solomon's desire, which he wanted to do, that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. And the Lord said to him, I have heard your prayer, this dedicate dedicatory prayer that he did as the temple was inaugurated and your supplication that you have made before me. I have consecrated this house, which you have built to put my name there forever and my eyes and my heart will be there perpetually. Now, if you walk before me as your father, David, walked in integrity of heart and in uprightness to do according to all that I have commanded you. And if you keep my statutes and my judgments, talk about commandments and laws, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever. As I promised David, your father, saying you shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel. But if you are your sons, all turn from following me and do not keep my commandments and my statutes, which I have said before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them. Then I will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them and this house, which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight. It is always the same way. God wants to bless, but we have to do our part. Just as Lincoln mentioned in his first message, Israel did not repent and finally was harshly punished. The temple was destroyed. The land was laid waste for 70 years, but then God brought them back. It's interesting, though, that the glory of God did not come back to that second temple that was built until Christ's appearance. And so God's fourth glory was when Jesus Christ, quote, tabernacle with men. The term, Skina in the Greek means putting a dwelling. So when it says there in John one 14, it says, then he dwell with man. It's the term tabernacle. He lived amongst them. The angels announced it to the shepherds. And later, Jesus showed some of his disciples his glory. So, yes, this is the fourth time notice in Matthew 17. Now, he just showed that glory for a moment because he knew how easy it is to get vain and heady about that. So it says in Matthew 17, one and two, then he said to his disciples, let's see here. The wrong verse says now, after six days, Jesus took Peter and James and John, his brother, let them up on a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light. And so it was a vision, as he says in verse nine. Now, as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, tell the vision to no one until the son of man is risen from the dead. So he just showed it in a moment time, because they never forgot it. Now, in first John chapter one, let's go there real quick. First John chapter one. Notice what John brings up. It says, verse one, that which was from the beginning, talk about Jesus Christ, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon in our hands have handled concerning the word of life.

So he showed it to them because of the job that they had to do. They could not be full of doubt. They could not question what they were doing. So he showed them, here's the glory as when I come back, this is the way I'm going to look.

And so that is during Christ's life. That was a word of God amongst us. But men did not receive him. They loved darkness instead of light.

Let's go to John chapter three. John chapter three, it explains the reception when God came, became man.

It says in verse 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Notice here the term is perish. It's not burning in an everlasting hell fire. No, you're going to die a second time and that's it. You're completely extinguished by that lake of fire. You're not going to be suffering as people say, because it says here either you perish or you receive eternal life.

For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.

Verse 19, and this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.

For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light. Let lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth, in other words, practices it, which includes repentance, overcoming, comes to the light that his deeds may be clearly seen that they have been done in God. And so we are here today keeping the fourth commandment. That's one of the big ten. And that's one of our deeds. Are we going to obey God or man?

No, man doesn't want us to be here. No pressure us. They'll entertain us with some other things because that's deeds of darkness.

And so this is a matter of discipline and practice until it becomes a habit that you're able to do. God wants us to build these good habits. So this glory in presence was successful with what Jesus Christ carried out. He was the Lamb of God and he was able to fulfill that despite being rejected by man in general.

He carried out his part of the deal. So it wasn't like the last three that were just very temporary. And now we come to the most important glory because it involves us.

The fifth glory was when God sent some of his glory. Thirty three years later, remember Christ lived 33 years. So he came with that glory.

And now 33 years later, God sent some of his glory. Thirty three years later through his Holy Spirit on Pentecost to begin the New Testament church.

We now have a small portion of that glory in us, a first installment, but we can also lose it. So just because we have it, it doesn't mean it's permanent.

Notice in John 17, verse 22, in his prayer at the end of the Passover that he was keeping with his disciples.

John 17. In verse 22, he says, and the glory which you gave me, I have given them that they may be one just as we are one.

So some of that glory he's been able to share with those who follow his way of life. Notice in 2 Corinthians 1, 2 Corinthians 1, in verse 22. Starting in verse 21 of chapter one, it says, now he who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. So that word is like the first deposit. When you buy a car, sometimes you have to give a down payment. And yes, you get to use it. But if you don't finish paying it off, it'll be impounded because it's only the first down payment. So after baptism and the laying on of hands, the person receives a small portion of God's power and his spirit. That means the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, faith, goodness, meekness and self-control. You start with that, but you have to develop it. So again, like Lincoln brought up, you have to do your part to make it grow. It's not going to grow on its own. That's why there's a lot to the entrepreneur spirit in what the Bible says that it's not this sort of Christian socialism. You just sign up and the government will take care of you. You don't have to do much. We saw that in Europe in long ways that nanny states that sort of keep the people there, but they don't have that drive to go and risk and go for it and sacrifice.

See, just what Elon Musk, for instance, has done to revolutionize the rocket industry. One fellow who nobody thought he could do anything. They had Nassau, big government. They'd already sent rockets to the moon. And you had all of these federal agencies and other countries. This man, he said, I don't I'm not going to use the government. I'm going to figure out a way to have reusable rocket ships. And basically, nobody believed him, but he continued with that dream relentlessly with failures. And now just a couple weeks ago, he he was able to take a spaceship that had 33 different rockets. It's called the Starship, the biggest rocket ever. And it went up and then later it uncoupled. And then this huge rocket, bigger than the ones that sent men to the moon, came back and landed on the same place which he had taken off. And why? Because that man has incentive to risk and to try things. And that's the Christian life, too, to go ahead and do what you can with those gifts that God gives you develop them.

God will multiply the blessings in this life and in the future. But enough said about that. But it just fills me with this is not some type of socialistic church that, well, you're automatically going to go to heaven or you're automatically going to if you do your indulgences or whatever. No, this is a struggle, a lifelong struggle. And you're going to get out of it exactly how much you invested. So continuing here, let's go to the next. Well, like I said, this is the one that deals with us.

Every one who's a church member, who's faithful, has received that portion of the spirit to develop in him. Now, remember, though, as it tells us in Second Corinthians.

It says in verse six, Second Corinthians four, verse six, says, for it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

But we have these treasure, this treasure in earthen vessels. That the excellence of the power may be of God and not us. You see all that we've got spirit. We're still human. We're still subject. We still got that human nature.

And God's spirit at first is much smaller than our human nature. It's got to progress. And you know what? If you think you're doing so great, you're not because it tells us he who thinks he's doing great take heed that you don't fall because you can't get proud. You can't get full of yourself.

So let's go to the fifth. Glory. God's fifth glory was when oh, sorry, I'm in number six now. I already. Yeah, this is the sixth glory.

Will be when Jesus Christ returns with power and glory to this earth. This is the most important one for us since it will be if we are faithful to the end when we are resurrected and glorified as eternal spirit beings.

First, you get a deposit. Now it's the full.

Payment. It's the full receiving of God's spirit.

This is the most important one. Because that's our goal in our life. If we don't make it into God's kingdom, everything else cannot compensate for it. Daniel chapter twelve verse three describes how people will be at that time.

Daniel chapter twelve and verse three talking about the time of the end. Michael shall stand up.

And it says many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake. Not everybody because it's talking about the first resurrection.

Some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. That's those who awake later.

And this is talking about those who awake first. It says verse three, those who are wise, not wise in their own eyes, but wise in God's eyes.

Shall shine like the brightness of the firmament. Talking about the sky and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. Yes, they will glow. They will be glorified that way. And Jesus Christ also mentioned it in Matthew thirteen.

And verse forty three.

Matthew thirteen verse forty three. It says then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father. You will be filled with God's glory.

And there's one. Once the kingdom starts, let's go to the next slide. This is still the sixth glory, the period. What a contrast.

No, let's go back. Let's see. We need to go back one. Can we go back one? Let's see. Oh, there's a slide. Nope. I had a slide about the contrast with the world today.

Filled with violence, greed and depravity. What a difference. Christ's glory will be there for a thousand years.

And afterwards, for the period of the time during the second resurrection, pictured by the last great day, which we just kept at the feast, the world will become as a second Eden.

This state will continue into the second resurrection period where the great majority of mankind will enjoy it as well. So they're going to have a taste of the millennium.

But when they wake up in the second resurrection, your parents, your grandparents, all of the generations in the past, those who never had a chance to know God.

The Chinese, the Africans, the South American Indians, all of these people, Christ still died for them. They have a right to claim that if they obey, if they change, they will live. There it is.

So this is what I was mentioning, the contrast with the world today filled with violence, greed and depravity. And certainly that's happening more and more how these last 10 years have changed.

Parents are so alarmed. They have to rear their kids. They don't know what they're going to be taught in school many times. They have to be so aware and careful.

One of my daughters had to take out the little boy of five years old because she thought it was a very good school.

There was a school that had some of the best teachers and was very exclusive type. And she just happened to go into that classroom where the child was going to be taught.

And you had this lady, a girl with green and blue hair and all kinds of piercings and she's teaching them about how, from a book, about how this little boy wants to wear his sister's tutu, you know, the little ballet dress.

You know what she did? She immediately took them out, scared. If she hadn't been, she would have trusted what they're teaching.

This is the world we're teaching, just absolute perversion and horrible things that are happening.

So let's go to the final slide. This God's seventh and final glory will be when God the Father brings the New Jerusalem to this earth and we will all dwell together in everlasting glory with God the Father, Jesus Christ and the holy angels. Notice what it says in 1 Corinthians 15 verse 24. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 24.

See, the Bible explains the future. There's no way anybody could ever discover these things if not from the Bible.

Notice in verse 24 through 28.

He says, then, talking about the time when Christ, it says, Christ's coming, then comes the end, which is the period after that thousand year period.

When he delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when he has put an end to all rule and all authority and power, for he must reign till he has put all enemies under his feet.

That includes Satan. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. That's not going to last. Death is a temporary situation now, for he has put all things under his feet.

But when he says all things are put under him, it is evident that he who put all things under him is accepted.

Now, when all things are made subject to him, talking about God the Father, then the Son himself will also be subject to him who put all things under him.

That God, talking about God the Father, may be all in all. So that's what God wants, to have glorified children for him to dwell with us forever.

What a privilege we have. In Revelation 22, the last scripture, Revelation 22, 3 through 5, describes this very same scenario.

Revelation 22, verses 3 through 5. It says, and this is inside the New Jerusalem.

So that's the next stage. But no more human nature, no more evils in this world. All of this is going to one day disappear because of the seven glories that God had in his master plan for all of us.