In this New Year, it is God's desire to invade our homes, our children, and our church with His glory. He wants His manifested presence to take over our lives.
What must we do to prepare for this glorious invasion? First, we must understand what the glory of God is.
Glory of This Latter House
In the Old Testament scriptures, the glory of God manifested in the form of a cloud or fire, and when it appeared, people were healed, delivered, protected, and set free (Ex. 16:10, Ex. 24:16-17).
The children of Israel described the glory of God as a heavenly substance, or a supernatural manifestation of His presence.
In the Hebrew language, the word "glory" means, "weighty, heavy, abundance, wealth, splendor, and honor." It was used in the Old Testament to describe a person's possessions, wealth, and abundance (Gen. 45:13).
So, what does this mean for us today? An invasion of wealth, abundance, and favor is in store for us this year!
Let's look at Haggai 2:9 where a prophecy was given to the church for the day and hour we are living in: "The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts."
According to this scripture, the glory on us today is greater than the glory on the Old Testament church. Yes, God's glory manifested in a mighty way in the book of Acts, but God will pour out His glory upon us in a greater way today than He did then.
We are the end-time church, the latter house, and the manifestations will be greater and stronger today, because His glory will be stronger.
New Testament Glory
Throughout the Gospels of the New Testament, the glory of God manifested through Jesus (Matt. 16:27, Mark 13:26, John 11). New Testament glory embraces everything that is excellent in the Divine nature (John 2:11; 17:5).
Furthermore, it is everything that God is and all of His fullness. Everything He offers us is wrapped up in His glory—salvation, righteousness, prosperity, and healing.
The Glory of God in You
Since Jesus dwells in the believer, the glory of God also dwells in the believer! Notice Colossians 1:27, "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory...."
If you are a believer, the glory is living in you and can manifest in your life. When the glory is manifested, healing, deliverance, and miracles happen. It is important to understand that the glory will only manifest to certain levels in your life according to the way you live.
Yes, as a believer, you've got the glory of God dwelling in you, but God will not put His stamp of approval on your life by manifesting His glory if you are living wrong. We must strive to live a life pleasing to God, if we want His glory to show up.
There is preparation that needs to take place in our lives before the glory will manifest at full level. What kind of preparation? We need to prepare for holiness.
How to Prepare for Holiness
In the Old Testament, before the glory of God manifested, God always sent fire first (Gen. 19:24, Ex. 9:23). The fire burned out the unholy things in a nation, city, or people's lives.
We can learn from these lessons in the Old Testament; sins of the flesh and the mind will keep the glory from manifesting at a full level. In the New Testament, notice what Paul said in Romans:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.Other scriptures that can help us in this area are Romans 6:4 and Romans 8:11. Romans 6:4 tells us,
(Rom. 12:1-2)
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.Romans 8:11 goes on to say,
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.From these scriptures, we can see that the Spirit of God and the glory of God are one in the same; and God's Spirit, or His glory, lives in you.
Just because the glory of God abides in you, doesn't mean that His glory is manifesting in you in a strong or a great way; your flesh and your mind have to live in God's realm also.
When you think wrong thoughts, or act out in wrong ways, you grieve the Spirit of God living in you. If you are grieving the Spirit of God, you must make some adjustments before His glory will manifest in your life.
Notice 1 Corinthians chapter six:
What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.This scripture is telling us to let the glory of God reign in our lives; to keep our minds, our bodies, and our flesh in line with the Word of God. Our body does not belong to us because Jesus redeemed us with His blood (1 Peter 1:18:19).
(1 Cor. 6:19-20)
Our responsibility is to saturate ourselves in God's Word so there is no room for wrong thoughts or wrong living. The Word of God is powerful and will quicken us to live the right way. Hebrews 4:12 says,
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.As we begin this new year, it's time for the church to develop an intensity for God and His Word. We all need an invasion of the glory of God in our lives, and should be hungry to see His power.
But we must prepare for His glory with holy living. He will manifest His presence if we do our part by living holy. Don't wake up one year from now having not experienced His glory.
Are you willing to make the adjustments that are necessary for God to invade your life with His glory? Start to take these steps today!
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