Experiencing God's Presence #314

Experiencing God's Presence #314

The devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”

Matthew 4:8-9

Satan tempted Jesus by trying to get Him to fulfill godly desires by ungodly means. His offer of the nations of the world was legitimate; they were currently under his influence, and the nations had been promised as an inheritance for Jesus by Old Testament prophecy. But Satan’s offer was a shortcut to fulfillment and would come at an unreasonable cost: the Son worshiping the enemy. That was a high price that would have subverted the order of the universe.

But hidden in Satan’s statement is a curious fact: the nations have glory. Already. Even in their brokenness, even under the enemy’s influence, glory is already in them. If God’s glory is going to cover the earth as His people take His Presence into nations, and if nations already contain some measure of glory, the mission will involve an unveiling of things already on earth. Before Jesus comes down in a visible demonstration of ultimate glory, His glory can rise up in His people and in the kingdoms of the world. He will be revealed from above and from below—a victory as resounding as He deserves.

What does that mean for us practically? It means there’s a glory to be unveiled in society, and we can be instrumental in the unveiling. We carry God’s Presence not only into our churches but into governments, businesses, arts and entertainment, schools—every social structure known to humanity. Scripture never tells us to sit in our living rooms waiting for glory to be revealed in the sky. We are called to influence our world with the glory we have been given.

Lord, I know every sphere of society is already filled with the seeds of Your Kingdom. Give me eyes to notice what others don’t see and help me reveal Your glory wherever I see it.