Friday, September 21, 2012

Whose Glory?


John 12:36b-43
Why did some of the leaders of the people refrain from opening confessing their faith in Jesus? According to John’s gospel it was because “…they loved human glory more than the glory that comes from God” (John 12:43). This is a sad commentary but it is one that deserves careful consideration in our daily living, for we, too, run the risk of being swayed by our own need for approval or even praise. I think of dogs in particular who can be trained to act in certain ways with the use of praise. Human beings are a ways up the ladder from dogs, of course, but we sometimes find ourselves responding to the same forms of motivation.

God offers a form of glory that is not easy to appreciate in purely human terms. For one thing it calls for patience and hope because God’s glory does not come in the form of instant gratification. For another thing God’s glory is impossible for us to manipulate. By saying certain things or excelling in certain activities, humans can attract significant adulation. God cannot be swayed and certainly cannot be fooled by what we do or who we say we are.

Given the choice between human glory and the glory that comes from God, many will be led astray and choose what they can see and feel in the present life while disregarding the promises of the life of come. Even those who come to recognize the truth in Jesus may fall away when faced with the challenges of discipleship as opposed to what the world offers as normative. The choice is there to be made. Whose glory do we choose?

Prayer: Lord, guide us in our living that we may serve you and seek the glory you offer instead of falling prey to our own egos and our own sinfulness

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