Revealing His Glory, a sermon by Colin Dye

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Moses did it his way but God revealed to him HIS way. Today, would you pray the prayer: “God, show me your Glory!”
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Your rewards in Heaven…have you ever wondered what they will be?

Our rewards are closely related to our good works. “For the Son of Man is going to come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will reward each person according to what he has done.” Matthew 16:27 Our reward, however, is not salvation because we cannot earn salvation. “For it is by grace you are saved, through faith, and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 What then is our reward?

I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.” Revelation 3:11

The Five Crowns

The Bible says that are five different crowns that believers can win as they pass through this life.

The Crown of Life

“Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Revelation 2:10

“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.” James 1:12

This crown is promised to those who love the Lord. It is won by enduring in trials and temptations. Our love for God gives us the strength to endure. The writer to the Hebrews reminds us of Jesus’ endurance under the supreme test, and exhorts us not to lose heart in our personal struggles.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12: 2,3

The Incorruptible Crown

“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last: but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly: I do not fight like a man beating the air. No I beat my body and make it slave so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” 1 Corinthians 9: 25,27

Personal discipleship and self-denial secure the incorruptible crown. Today people are taught: “Don’t let anyone tell you it’s wrong, deny yourself nothing.” “If it gives you meaning, purpose or pleasure, do it!” Contrast such sayings with Jesus’ challenge: “Then He said to them all, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23

Self-denial is at the heart of personal discipleship. If we discipline our lives and deny ourselves the pleasures of sin in this life, the incorruptible crown will be ours.

The Crown of Joy

The soul winner’s reward is a crown of joy. Jesus said: “I will make you fishers of men.” When Jesus teaches you to fish, men and women will be brought into the Kingdom because of the testimony of your life and lips. Paul said that the Thessalonians, whom he had led to Christ, would be His crown of joy at the last day in Christ’s presence. “For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when He comes? Is it not you?” 1 Thessalonians 2:19 If you are faithful to proclaim Christ to others during this life, then this crown will belong to you at that last day.

The Crown of Glory

“Be shepherd’s of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers, not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be: not greedy for money, but eager to serve: not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” 1 Peter 5:24

Caring for God’s flock will earn you the crown of glory. It is not reserved specially for pastors; every Christian can win it. It has to do with helping believers grow in Christ so they can serve in God’s kingdom, in other words, disciple making. Jesus said: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19 (NASV) Jesus’ last command should be our first. We are charged with the responsibility of discipling the nations. Jesus commands us to be disciples and make disciples.

The Crown of Righteousness

“Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on the Day, and not to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:8

Those who live expecting the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will receive this crown. Many Christians have hopes, dreams and desires that have nothing to do with God. Jesus said: “It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, we will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.” Luke 12:37 Jesus wants us to live watching and waiting for His return, dedicating our lives to building His kingdom. If we do, we will receive the crown of righteousness.

It is important to note that these crowns are not won for great heroic deeds of faith, but for obeying the simple commands of Scripture. The word of God encourages us to take this matter seriously, seeking those things that will count for eternity, rather than temporal things.

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Learning how to live humbly before the King of Kings

The seventh mark of revival in your life is humility. This is, after all, perhaps the clearest sign of Christian life. The original sin was pride, and God’s plan of redemption was to undo sin’s consequences, restore relationship between Himself and mankind, and birth a new creation. Jesus himself said that unless we become like children, we would be unable to enter into his kingdom.

Philippians 2:7 tells us that Christ’s mission was to “humble himself taking the very nature of a servant”. To follow Jesus is to be like him – to be humble.

In times of Revival, God will restore what the church has lost. He will bring to the surface things, which have been neglected. It will sometimes come with a velocity and a force that is uncomfortable, but that is what happens when God shakes and refines. He will convict us of areas of our lives where we know we have been proud. But He will also expose and demonstrate how even our well-intentioned motives are sometimes selfish, too.

To be humble is to serve

To be humble is not to be weak or passive – it is to seek aggressively the nature of Jesus, and to serve radically those around you. You cannot genuinely serve Christ if your heart is proud, for your real motives will soon find you out. You cannot serve others if your secret desire is to be honoured, to be flattered or to be praised. And you cannot serve properly if you want your service to be recognised! Jesus urged us to act in such a way that even “our left hand does not know what our right hand Is doing” that is certain to remove all chance of seeking our own glory!

No place for pride

There is no room for arrogance or boasting in revival. We will find that the giftings God has given us will not pull us away from the Giver. The more God uses you, the more you will want to point to Him, and so protect His glory. There is no place for the assertion of self. Revival brings meekness and brokenness and a broken soul can find no pleasure in its own glory. Jesus said that a seed that falls to the ground and dies will bring forth much fruit. As we die to self and embrace the humility of Christ, we will discover the secret of life and godly joy.

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The Glory of God in Christ Jesus

The third mark ol revival to look for in your life is this: you will experience the presence of Christ and His glory.

In Ephesians 5:14 Paul writes “Awake, you who sleep arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light. Those who are dead or asleep do not have the light God. Or to put it another way, we need His light if there is any part of our lives that is “sleepy” or lukewarm. God’s presence will drive out all spiritual laziness. His glory will ignite the coldest heart.

Convicter and Friend

Jesus told us that it is the pure in heart that will see God. All through scripture, the closest encounters with God seem to be reserved for those either in total rebellion against him or for those with real hunger. God revealed Himself as judge to Saul on the Damascus road, as he was in complete rebellion. And He revealed Himself as an intimate friend with Moses on Mount Sinai, who was hungry for that intimacy. In times of revival. He reveals both. He highlights the severity of sin and convicts us. And He shows His desire for close fellowship with us. The two go hand-in-hand. We cannot know His presence until we have responded to His conviction.

Christ’s glory is there for all to see. Paul tells us in Romans that the created world tells us enough about God for us to want to seek Him. As Christians, we can probably remember times in our lives when we have been particularly aware of God’s presence. But there are levels of His glory that we will only see when we get to heaven. Revival brings a stronger sense of His presence.

Do you have a deep awareness of God? Have you had a profound revelation of His presence? If you are not, then it is something He is making available! Our faith does not rest upon our feelings, but we must never forget that in the bible, God shows more emotion than the rest of us! He is revealed as a God who wants to interact with us. Ask Him now to increase His light in your life.

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Hark! The Herald Angels Sing...

Why was Jesus born?

Jesus was born for a mission; he didn’t stay in the cradle. He was born to die on the cross for the sins of the world. Little baby Jesus would grow to become the berated, battered, and bruised Messiah, taking the punishment that we deserve so that by faith in him we can have peace with God. In this carol Wesley gives us three reasons why Jesus was born.

Born that man no more may die

Just as Jesus taught about two births – one physical and one spiritual – so there are two deaths that are taught in the New Testament, and again one is physical and one spiritual. God never intended man to die and it was, in fact, Adam who brought death into the world and not God. When Adam rebelled against God he fell from grace and took the whole world down with him. His sin brought both physical and spiritual death to all mankind. No matter how long a person lives they will eventually die physically, but the Bible also declares that physical death is not the end, there is also a second spiritual death or conscious eternal punishment that waits for all who die in their sins.
Christ was born to conquer with the greatest enemy to Mankind – death! Christ was born of a virgin and he was born free from Adam’s sin. Jesus lived the perfect life, and he did it all for us. He was born for us, he lived for us, he died for us and he was raised from the dead for us. On the cross Christ died physically and spiritually carrying all the punishment due to the world. Now whoever believes in him shall never taste spiritual death.

Born to raise the sons of earth

Without Jesus we are spiritually dead and in our sins, “And you who were dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). But the moment we believe the gospel we are spiritually raised from the dead; we are born again. “But God who is rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) and raised us up together … with Christ.” (Ephesians 2:4-6).
We are now no longer spiritually dead and will not taste spiritual death after we die. But Jesus died physically too and on the third day His body was raised from the dead. At the centre of the Christian faith is the truth of the physical bodily resurrection of Christ. Because Jesus was raised from the dead we know that when the believer dies and goes to heaven he will also be reunited with his body on the day of resurrection when Christ returns. We have been raised spiritually and one day we shall also be raised physically. Jesus Christ was born to give us resurrection.

Born to give them second birth

Jesus said to Nicodemus “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John3:3). Jesus was born to give us a second birth that is spiritual in nature and necessary for salvation, indeed He said that we must be born again.
When you become born again you receive a totally new nature, you are a new creation and the old person you were has passed away. You are born again into a totally new realm of grace and have been delivered from the realm of Sin, Satan and condemnation. Your life now consists in discovering the liberty and freedom of being born again and inviting others to also receive newness of life. As you celebrate the birth of Christ this Christmas make sure you are born again, and if you are already then celebrate the fact that his birth was to give you new birth. Now is it any wonder the herald Angels sang! Hark then to their message. Hark! the Herald Angels Sing is one of the more than 6,500 hymns from the pen of Charles Wesley that have enriched Christian hymnody. It is thought to have been written one year after his dramatic, Aldersgate conversion experience of 1738 and is generally considered to be one of Wesley’s finest.
According to John Julian, noted hymnologist, this is one of the four most popular hymns in the English language. It certainly has become one of the classic Christmas carols and is sung thousands of times every year all around the world.
You can listen to the song in the video below

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Painting by Beth Larsen entitled "Heavenly Worship"

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