Gold for Stones

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The good news doesn’t start with people as sinners with whom God is angry. It starts in the beginning. And if we miss this, the good news will fail to be good news.

In the beginning, God made man and woman to be the Imago Dei—the image of God on the earth. By God’s design, all of creation recognized them with joyful awe. They were the ones the Creator had joyfully made like Himself. Or as John Eldredge has expressed it, man and woman were “little statues of God walking around.”

It was glorious. They were glorious.

So what happened? They were the ones created by God to be like God, but they bought the lie that they could make themselves like God. Although God’s glory radiated from them, it didn’t originate in them. It was a gift.

God didn’t revoke their glory, they gave it up, traded it for something far less.

In Paul’s words, they “exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man . . .” (Romans 1:23).

Since then, we’ve been trying to get it back. It can’t be done. (You can trade a brick of gold for a stone, but a pile of stones won’t buy you a brick of gold.)

And yet, through all history, through all we’ve done, all we’ve settled for, all we’ve lost, God’s heart has always been for us. He desires that his glory would radiate from us, that man and woman would again be the best expression of him on the earth.

This is why Jesus came—not to cover us up so the Father wouldn’t see our sin, but to clean sin from us, free us from its power, and restore the glory of God in us.

The question is, will we let him?

You can’t make yourself glorious. It can only happen as you unite your life with Christ. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27b).

Question: What would change for you if you lived daily knowing Christ rescued you because he wants you to radiate his glory? Leave a comment below.

Glorious,
Josh

Thanks For Reading.

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3 comments

  • Hi Josh,

    Great message.
    For me, to radiate HIS glory I must spend time with HIM.
    I want my life to be more about HIM and less about me.
    I want to love HIM and others the way HE loves me..unconditionally.
    I want to take all of my thoughts, words and actions and hold them captive to CHRIST. I must remind myself everyday that there is a battle against the spiritual forces of this dark world.

    Lord bless your day brother.

    In HIS love,

    Fred

  • Hi Josh, I agree with Fred. I was listening to a message from John Piper, spoke on the same subject. It astounds me why he would love us at all. What a gratious God! There is a battle for sure. He provides the way through it.
    Josh, hope you and your family had a happy 4th July. G

By Josh Glaser

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