Conversion xii / Glorification

 

He has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

(II Pet.1:4)

Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

                       (Eph.5:25-27)

Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. 

(Rom.8:17)

 

 

One of the most incredible teachings in the Bible concerning our salvation relates to our glorification.  Indeed, it is so remarkable that were it not so plainly taught in the Scriptures, it is likely we would never dare believe it; and may struggle to even though it is.

We are by now familiar with the idea that our experience of salvation is rooted in the idea of our being united with Christ through faith and by His Spirit.  We have reflected on being buried with Him in His death through baptism (Rom.6:3), and on being raised with Him to new life (Rom.6:5 & 11).  But Christ’s journey doesn’t stop with His resurrection!   He has also ascended to glory.  And our union with Christ means that we are ascended with Him (Rom.8:30; Eph.2:6; Heb.12:23).  This is already true of us spiritually, though as we’ll see in a moment we are still waiting for the physical aspects of who we are to catch up.  Our glorification, in its fullest sense, must wait for the resurrection of the body; yet we already participate in the life and being of God through our union with Christ.

This profound reality is the basis not merely for our future hope of resurrection, but for much of the New Testament’s call to Christ-like living and being here and now (e.g. Col.3:1-4, where Paul calls us to think of ourselves in relation to this spiritual reality, rather than focussing on our earth-bound experience, and so to ‘put to death’ all that remains of our fallen nature, 3:5).  And it is also the foundation of a rich spiritual experience as the reality of our future glorification takes root in our present discipleship.  The realisation that we are immersed into the life of the Trinity, even as the Trinity dwells within us, is one of deepest mysteries of our salvation, and well worth our prayerful study and meditation.  As the worshippers of idols participate in demons and gradually conform to those idols (I Cor.10:14-22; Ps.115:4-8), so as we participate in Christ and are slowly conformed to His image (note in I Cor.10 the link with the sacramental life of the Church).  As one Eastern Orthodox scholar puts it: ‘As Christ flows into us (through Communion) and is blended with us, so He changes us and turns us into Himself’ (Cabasilas, so Gal.2:20).  This doesn’t result in the loss of our humanity or our individuality, but as Jesus’ humanity is not absorbed in His incarnation, or lost in His glorification, so our glorification is the fulfilment of our humanity and personhood as those created in the Image of God (I Cor.15:49).

We are perhaps used to thinking about this in terms of ethical / lifestyle considerations, but the Bible encourages to think also in terms of our being, what / who we are as well as what we do.  We don’t just become people who live ‘better’.  Our destiny is renewal of being as well as of behaviour.  And while the ‘centre of gravity’ of this hope is future, nevertheless we feel its pull even now.  The true nature of humanity is to be like God (i.e. Christ), and in fellowship with Him.  As a Christian, I am already ‘being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit’ (II Cor.3:18).  It is impossible for us to overestimate, or indeed to overvalue this process, and its culmination in our resurrection on the Day of Christ (I John 3:2). 

The culmination of our glorification is intrinsically linked with the glorification of Christ – not just in His Ascension, but in His Appearing in Glory (Titus 2:13; II Pet.4:13).  It is something that we will all experience simultaneously (I Thess.4:16-17; I Cor.15:51-52).  ‘When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory’ (Col.3:4).  And in this final act of redemption it is our whole being that is renewed.  And as C.S. Lewis famously quipped: ‘It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship…’  This is dangerous language, but it is language that takes seriously the teaching of the Bible.

Questions

Paul’s expectation and longing for his future glory was so deep that he was able to gladly endure significant persecution and suffering (e.g. Rom.8:18; II Cor.4:17 etc.).  Do you share his confidence? …or therefore his willingness to suffer for the sake of Christ?  Why / why not?

 

What could increase both your present awareness of glory, and your hope in the future resurrection to glory? 

 

If our future glorification incorporates our physicality in this way, why does Paul say that ‘flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God’ (I Cor.15:50), and that our future bodies will be ‘spiritual’ (I Cor.15:44)?

 

Read Rom.8:28-39

What does it mean to ‘have been called according to His purpose’ (8:28)?  How do all things work together towards that purpose and our good?  Do you think Paul means to include suffering? …persecution? … death? 

 

How does knowing that our salvation begins in God’s foreknowledge and our being predestined, and finishes in our glorification encourage and excite us about being Christians (8:29-30)?  How comfortable are you with Paul’s argument here?  Does it work?  How is it affected if you don’t agree with Paul’s thinking?

 

How does God’s giving up of Jesus ‘for us’ instil us with unshakeable confidence in God’s heart to save us (8:31-35)?  How would you help someone who didn’t share Paul’s assurance in God’s work of salvation?

 

Why does Paul cite Ps.44 in Rom.8:36?  How does this verse fit into his argument?

 

How might each of the things in vv.35 & 38-39 seek to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord?  How does our understanding of the Gospel help to convince us that their efforts are futile? 

 

Memory Passage:

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 

Eph.2:4-7

 

For further reflection:

All through our studies in the doctrine of our salvation we have felt an inner logic and compulsion towards our future and the culmination of our redemption in the return of Christ.  This is right, and locating its fullness in the Parousia guards against a number of errors, not least overly-individualising our Christianity.  Embedding our highest expectations in the future reminds us that our own glorification is bound up in the renewal of all creation as it is (and we are) delivered from all the consequences of sin and the Fall (Matt.19:28; Acts 3:21; Rom.8:20-21).  Creation itself will provide a suitable environment for the redeemed Church to dwell in an atmosphere permeated with the manifest glory of God (II Pet.3:13; Is.65:17; Rev.21:4).  All things will in that moment be united under the reign of Christ (Eph.1:10).  We are a part of that.

Amazing though our post-mortem experience of Jesus will be, even that will pale in the light of the joy of our resurrection (II Cor.5:1-10).  There is no place for any dichotomy between physical and spiritual.  Our future hope very definitely includes Christ transforming our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body (Phil.3:21).  What we know as weak and degenerating will be transformed into something so powerful that anything we long to do for love of Christ, we will have the capacity to do.  What we know as dishonourable will be raised in glory, no longer contaminated by death and polluted with sin.  And we will finally see the wisdom of God in creating humanity as the pinnacle of His creation.  What we know as so very mortal, will be transformed into immortality, as Christ’ victory is total and even death itself will be ‘swallowed up in victory’ (I Cor.15:42-57).  Only then, in the fullness of our being, will this work of glory be complete.