God’s children ought to be glory seekers. To this end they ought to desire glory. Yet if they seek glory from men, they are not His children. They must seek it from God. Seeking glory from God is like a test. It determines their calling. When they seek the glory that comes from God, they will know they are of belief. They will have the perfect belief to understand His purpose, desire and nature. It is true that God calls men and women so that He could encase them with His glory. His glory in them will keep the glory of sin and of the world at a mighty distance from them. It will reveal to men the God of heaven and earth, His judgments and His works. It is not pompous or boastful, but of power, truth and righteousness. To seek it is the only way to believe in His will. And Jesus said, “How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?” (John 5:44).
Many fell apart from this wisdom. Huge places filled with people do not necessarily indicate seeking glory from God; neither does the tithe they gather. Furthermore, claiming miracles in Jesus’ name or performing works does not make them seekers of glory from God. Then, what does seeking glory from God mean? It means seeking His will. Churches that continually seek His will always flourish. For it is not they that perform the works but the glory of God; He will never let them off His paths. Remember, at all times Jesus sought glory from God. Thus, He fulfilled everything God gave Him and received glory. To seek glory from God has an eternal outcome. It is belief. We receive His will. This is sufficient for eternal life. For everything that is necessary for intimacy with God is in it.
Christians should not approach God to make themselves known; this is not what they are called for. Instead, they ought to approach God to let Him glorify them. This indicates their calling is with pure obedience. When they seek glory from Him, they are indeed calling on Him to supply them His will. And so, there are many works performed by the church. For not all have the same gift. Or, to put in different terms, not all are given the same measure. What is the benefit? It is to let God display His power and might. In it we obtain the glory that no man can give. Hence, a man in the Spirit at one place said, ‘let the Lord be glad in His works.’
That His works are many is characterized by His power and might. So, Christians can continually seek glory from Him. For we do not have to know how He performs His will except to know that He is willing to give it to us. When something is His will toward us and we obtain it, it is sufficient for us. He takes the responsibility to bring it to fulfillment. This is the audacity in seeking glory from Him. Yet, if this is not our Christianity, we have a judgment prepared. “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20).
How many have known this? Yet, do Christians fully acknowledge this about Him? Not once did He exercise His will without a cause. From the beginning of time up to the present His works toward His people have been many. Not all of them of are of the same manner and no one can say he knew them beforehand. For this reason alone, we Christians are to seek the glory that is from Him; seek His will than ours; then, we shall surely possess belief for all that He promised in His Son. Why are many still sojourning in intellectual faith? It is because they have not sought the glory that produces realistic faith in them. When they could not take to heart His invisible attributes, eternal power and divine nature, they did not have His glory working in them; they are yet to be saved. They have accepted them intellectually, but not for a personal relationship with Him. If this is not so, they would be seeking His will and not their own.
Do not fear in seeking His will. For in it there exists no loss. If we imagine seeking His will is wasting ourselves and losing our resources, think twice. Look at His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature that have been made known to us. We will realize that seeking His will is to lose only the worthless things of life. Such realization will permit us to sacrifice ourselves for the glory that comes from Him. In it He provides everything – all good things, family, friends, possessions, etc. God knows that as people in the flesh we carry plenty of worthless things. We have all obtained them by the works of the flesh. They hinder our walk with Him. Therefore, He desires we first seek His will and find His path. Is it not better to have everything or anything by the will of God than by striving in the flesh? For the things obtained in the flesh are through sin; but those obtained from God are His will. This makes us glory seekers. “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him” (Col. 2:6).
Since we have received Christ Jesus according to the will of God, i.e. belief, let us also walk in Him by it. And we can only do it when we seek glory from God. Each time we ask God to show His will for our thoughts and endeavors, God is pleased to give us His glory. He is pleased with our belief that claims His power. He will give us the right path, i.e. truth, to walk; supply us His power to overcome any hurdle and give us His righteousness that we should not make a wrong turn. To have received Jesus by the will of God should automatically set a man or woman on the path that seeks glory from Him. This is the essence of being called by God. So, the apostle said, “For they went out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles” (3 John 1:7).
See the power in the calling of God. See it in those who have received Jesus according to the will of God. Since they had His will, they considered all things insignificant for His sake. This is known by the fact that they did not accept anything from the gentiles or unbelievers. The glory of God was working in them. Have they lacked anything? No! God provided them everything. Was He glorified? Absolutely! Or else, He would not have mentioned them to us. What spectacular work did they do? They simply sought the glory that comes from Him and not from one another or their own. There is so much available for us in the power of God, His attributes and divine nature, if only we look to His will. We have believed Him as the Supreme Power. Now, we have to seek glory from Him. He will make us into much more than we could have ever imagined. We will love Him more than we ever thought we could. This is how God works in His children.
So, let us lay confidence in Him. “Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life’” (John 8:12). What more can anyone say concerning the help that God availed to those who seek glory from Him? He not only calls them and calls them to give His will, but also promises the Light that they never fail. If God was Light of the world only for a period of time, we have no confidence; we have none to follow. But He came to establish that He is the Light forever to all who seek glory from Him. His word cannot be broken. Where then is the fear of walking in darkness? Wherever we go and whatever we do or say, we bring and offer the Light. Our presence amongst people will bring the glory of God. So much is connected with seeking God’s will and many are they that neglect it. They fail to see the Light and the result is quite evident.
“If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness” (Rom. 8:10). This is the advantage of having the will of God. We no longer work with the body, but with the spirit through righteousness. This is the reason for our intimacy with Him. We do not plan works in the body to glorify God, but in the spirit. The body that we have is useless to God, because of sin. Christ did not suffer and die for the perishable. And, God Himself has determined that flesh and blood cannot enter His kingdom. Christ came in the flesh to renew our spirits with righteousness.
As our spirits are with righteousness, we will not be controlled by sin. We become seekers of glory. The righteousness that is in us no longer seeks glory from the flesh, but from God. For it does not oppose God. Whatever is of God seeks that which is from God. And since our spirits are alive in righteousness, we seek the glory that is from God. We believe in everything He speaks to us. We take His will at His word. So, they said in the Spirit, “To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power” (2 Thess. 1:11).