Focus: The Divine Glory

Text: Ps.72:19

"Let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen."

What a prayer! Our world needs to feel the weight of God's glory. The glory of God, when displayed in judgment, strikes men with utter fear. When God shows up in a place, He makes His presence heavily felt in men's hearts.

The psalmist tells us that when the presence of God escorted Israel to the promise land, that "the mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs" (Ps.114:4). He goes on to say, "Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob" (Ps.114:7). The presence of God makes the hills to skip and the earth to tremble. God's glory is heavy.

Here is another example of the power of God's presence and glory. The Word says, "When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again" (1Sam.5:2,3). Dagon was the national or local idol or god of the Philistines. They worshipped and held it in high esteem. They brought the ark of God into the house of their deity, and in a matter of few hours they discovered that their god had collapsed before the ark of God, which was the symbol of God's presence and glory. They quickly repositioned Dagon, thinking it was just happenstance. 

The Word says, "And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him" (1Sam.5:4). This time around the power of the divine presence broke Dagon into pieces. Dagon's head and hands were ripped off, leaving only the lump. Fear came on the people, and the Scripture says, "Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day" (1Sam.5:5). God's glory is heavy. The impact of God's glory is always huge and remarkable. 

No idol or deity can survive the glory of God, and God is not ready to share platforms with man-made gods.

God says through Isaiah, "I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images" (Isa.42:12). God guards His glory jealously.

The psalmist prays, "Let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen." I earnestly pray and yearn for this prayer to be answered, and I believe that this prayer will be answered if all of us do our part both as individuals and as a believing community.

God wants to manifest His glory through us, both corporately and individually. The world needs to see the glory of God through us. Habakkuk says, "For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea" (Hab.2:4). He continues, "God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise" (Hab.3:3). Isaiah says, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory" (Isa.6:3). He goes on to say, "And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it" (Isa.40:5). 

Let's prayerfully wait on the revelation of God's glory, for it holds the keys to local and global revival in the church of Jesus Christ and the evangelization of the world. Lord, show us your glory, and use us to show Your glory to the world around us!

by Bishop Moses E. Peter