Saved By Grace

Ephesians 2:8

For by grace you have been saved through faith;

and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God NASB

Ephesians 2:6-7 – 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. NASB

A.  6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus,  – Not only were we “raised up with Him,” in union with Him and “made alive together with Him,” but Paul explains that He “seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus.” This is to say that our union “with Him” extends even to that place of authority where He reigns, “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.(v-1:21)” We are “seated with Him in heavenly places, in Christ Jesus.” Notice the emphasis on our union with Him and “in Christ.” And Christ, going before us as our Forerunner, has secured for us a heavenly glory and citizenship which is already our possession because of Him. We are therefore said to be “seated with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus.” We were raised from our former state of spiritual death to the very height of heaven with Christ!  It is into “heavenly places”, that is the heavenly realm where Christ is seated with God. We now have the spiritual and divine perspective of God and the revelation of regeneration in which to view our world. We NOW see the world and everything in it from the divine perspective of God in heaven. Again this tremendous spiritual blessing of grace is granted us “IN CHRIST.” Oh dear Christian, now that your eyes have been opened, look no longer to the things of earth, but rather to the things of heaven!

Colossians 3:1-3 – 3 If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. NASB

Calvin comments “It is as if we had been brought from the deepest hell to heaven itself. And certainly, although, as respects ourselves, our salvation is still the object of hope, yet in Christ we already possess a blessed immortality and glory; and therefore, he adds, in Christ Jesus. Hitherto it does not appear in the members, but only in the head; yet, in consequence of the secret union, it belongs truly to the members.” This is to say believers are positioned spiritually in heaven, where Christ is. They are no longer mere earthlings; their citizenship is in heaven.

Philippians 3:20-21 – 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. NASB

B.   7 in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus – Here in chapter 2 we have been told of our PAST state (v-1-3), our PRESENT state (v-4-6) and now here our FUTURE state. In the ages to come speaks of our ETERNAL state of exalted glory and honor of which we will partake with Christ. We shall be united with Christ forever, enjoying and receiving all the blessings which God has bestowed on Him. The terms “ages” [aion in the Greek] are not limited to some ages, but include all the coming ages, or eternity. This is of course according to the eternal and ultimate purpose of God in salvation through Christ that we should glorify His grace, as Paul explained in chapter 1 verses 1:6, 12, 14. God predestined us to the praise of His glory forever. Destiny-end!

Ephesians 1:5-6 – 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. NASB

Ephesians 1:12-14 – 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation —  having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory. NASB

Note also here the profound words, “He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Here the purpose of our salvation may be seen, “in order that” God may lavish the “riches of His grace” upon us. God saved us to lavish all the treasures of His glory and virtue on us forever and ever, and this of course for the purpose of magnifying His glorious grace for all the eons of eternity! The “surpassing riches”, what must such expressions imply? How surpassing are the riches of God’s grace? This is a rapturous thought to be pondered and meditated on. The Father has chosen and redeemed a bride for the Son, and will now bring them together into His Kingdom to lavish all the riches of His Kingdom on them both forever and ever, world without end! Christian, do you realize what profound things have been granted you in Christ?

Matthew 25:34 – 34 "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. NASB

Ephesians 2:8-9 – 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast. NASB

A.  8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; – It is through no merit of our own that we have been saved , but is an act of God’s free mercy raising us up from the death of sin and transgression.  But here we are told that this grace comes to us “through faith.” Faith then is the medium by which we receive salvation. It is the conduit through which the graces of salvation flow to us.

Romans 3:22-26 – 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; 26 for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.  NASB

Paul goes further explaining that the grace and the faith are “not of yourselves,

it is the gift  of God.” Here any idea of man’s ability to earn or merit salvation

is annulled. It is clearly, “the gift of God” which man did not possess and that

God freely gave, which is “not of ourselves.” This is to say we didn’t make

faith, it did not originate with us, but rather it was a gracious gift from God

which came to us while we were dead in transgression and sins.

Philippians 1:29 – 29 For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, NASB

Because of the context of verses 5-8, see that grace and faith are gifts of God granted in regeneration. Prior to salvation that comes through faith, we are dead in transgression and sins. Consider that the biblical metaphor for our state before salvation is death, like a corpse that is unresponsive, inanimate and unable to even hear or see. In the act of regeneration God granted us faith, which we then employed, believing and repenting, resulting in salvation. Thus regeneration precedes faith.

B.   9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast – Here is a contrast (grace↔works) whereby Paul clarifies that salvation is an entirely free gift of grace and unmerited. It is “not the result of works” which man can do and so boast about His abilities. It is rather God granting a blessing which the poor, dead man was in desperate need of and could not furnish on his own. God has done this so “that no one should boast” but rather God gets the glory for His grace toward us. (Rom 3:27-28, 4:2-8, 9:11,16, 11:6, 2 Tim 1:9, Tit 3:5-7)

Romans 3:27-28 – 27 Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. NASB

Romans 4:2-8 – 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about; but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? "And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness." 4 Now to the one who works, his wage is not reckoned as a favor, but as what is due. 5 But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing upon the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works: 7 "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, And whose sins have been covered. 8 "Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account."

Titus 3:5-7 – 5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. NASB

Ephesians 2:10 – 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. NASB

A.  10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus – Here is another emphatic statement showing salvation as the free gift of God. He “created us in Christ.” Here not the general creation of our physical bodies but rather the special spiritual creation of regeneration. We were not, and then we were, by the creative power of God. There cannot be conceived to be a stronger expression to denote the agency of God in the conversion of people, or the fact that salvation is wholly of grace.

2 Corinthians 5:17– 17 Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. NASB

Ephesians 4:24 – 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. NASB

We are His “workmanship,” His special work “created in Christ Jesus” for

His special purposes.

B.   for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them – See here a very intentional purpose on the part of God in making us new creations, “for good works.” Having been powerfully created by God in His likeness, we are now to lead a holy life and render to God those acts of worship which properly honor Him. No longer walking after the course of the world, or after the lusts of our flesh, we are to love God with all of our being and love our neighbor as ourselves, by performing all of the commands of holy writ with diligence and zeal. These “good works” are that which Paul will lay out in Ephesians chapters 4-6 in great detail which describe the holy life of God’s holy people.

Titus 2:11-14 – 11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. NASB

And not only this, but God has “prepared beforehand” the “good works” that we shall carry out in this life. This is to say that we are so far from boasting about the supernatural life of salvation that we now possess, that even our own good works have come from God so that all the glory goes to Him, even for our own “good works,” for God has “prepared” the “beforehand.” Calvin comments, “He says, that, before we were born, the good works were prepared by God; meaning, that in our own strength we are not able to lead a holy life, but only so far as we are formed and adapted by the hand of God. Now, if the grace of God came before our performances, all ground of boasting has been taken away. Let us carefully observe the word prepared. On the simple ground of the order of events, Paul rests the proof that, with respect to good works, God owes us nothing. How so? Because they were drawn out of his treasures, in which they had long before been laid up; for whom he called, them he justifies and regenerates.” See here that even the “good works” of our holy lives are the gracious gift and “workmanship” of God to us “in Christ” and are a result of our union with Him.

Ephesians 1:4 – 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love NASB

Saved By Grace

Ephesians 2:8

For by grace you have been saved through faith;

and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God NASB

Ephesians 2:1-3 – 1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. NASB

A.   1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, –  Here Paul endeavors to show the actual former spiritual state of the believers. We know it is a spiritual state because this is not their physical state. This state he points out is that “you were dead” and this was as a result of being “in your trespasses and sins.” See here the biblical description of the state of the unregenerate unbelieving person. They are spiritually dead, unable to have any mental awareness to the things of God and unable to do anything of their own ability to move towards God or stimulate themselves into spiritual life, as dead people have no abilities of their own. This is a theme in the teaching of the Lord Jesus who frequently refers to unbelievers as “dead” and in desperate need of regeneration (Matt 8:22, Luke 15:24-32), and explains that faith is the necessary condition for life.

John 5:21, 24 – 21 "For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes…. 24 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. NASB

This is why regeneration is the necessary element in salvation v-5, there is a need for resurrection or new birth, which only God is able to do and without which “no one can SEE the kingdom of God.”(John 3:3-6, John 6:65). Here is seen the consequence of sin and transgression, DEATH! Not that they were physically dead, but in that wretched state of spiritual death which rendered them helpless to hear or understand the things of God and His kingdom. Here is the definitive statement in the bible on depravity or natural inability.

Romans – 8:5-8 – 5 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, 7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. NASB

1 Corinthians 2:14 – 14But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. NASB

B.   2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. – See here the former state of every Christian explained in terms of their life of unbelief, “in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world.” They were living and acting according to the dictates of this fallen world, steeped in transgressions and sin as followers of Satan, whom Paul describes as “the prince of the power of the air.” He further explains that Satan is that “spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience,” with deceiving influence leading all unbelievers daily into “disobedience,” that is sin and transgression. The Greek here for disobedience is 543 apeitheia, which means [disbelief (obstinate and rebellious):–disobedience, unbelief]. Paul makes it clear that this is both our former state as Christians, and therefore the actual state of all unbelievers as he repeats this idea that “Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind.”  Here he has described our disobedience which we all committed against God as living “in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind.” The flesh is defined as the “sinful nature” and here “ALL” of us formerly lived “in the lusts of the flesh” and “indulging the desires of the sinful nature.” This is the state of every person apart from REGENERATION. Because the unbeliever has not received the Spirit, he/she is in bondage to the flesh (Rom 6:17-23), they always and continually live after the flesh. Until we have been raised from our dead state, we have no communion with God and live to please the SELF, satisfy SELF, and follow and indulge in the desires of SELF, rather than the desires of God. Indeed before REGENERATION, we cannot see (John 3:3), cannot understand (1 Cor 2:14), cannot accept (John 14:17), cannot obey (Rom 8:7) and cannot hear (John 8:43) God. And this because we have no ability being enslaved by sin and Satan.

Romans 6:17-20 – 17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. NASB

Romans 8:7-8 – 7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. NASB

Titus 3:3-3 For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. NASB

Colossians 3:5-7 – 5 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. 6 For it is on account of these things that the wrath of God will come, 7 and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. NASB

He further points out that the results of such behavior makes us objects of the very wrath of God, saying that when we were in that natural state of being dead in transgressions and sin we “were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” See here that “children of wrath” is the designation of the natural state of all who are apart from Christ, being made clear by the terms “we were by nature… even as the rest.” This is the truly wretched state of all who are not in Christ! They are without hope and without God in the world (v-2:12), destined for eternal destruction in hell (2 Thess 1:8-9) and storing up wrath (Rom 2:5) for the day of judgment! Woe to one who rejects God’s free grace in Christ!

Colossians 1:21– 21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, NASB

1 John 5:19 – 19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. NASB

Ephesians 2:4-5 – 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), NASB

A.   But God, being rich in mercy – Mercy is an attribute of God, which is part of His very nature. See here God is “rich in mercy!” His mercy is complete and full, never changing and infinitely abundant. So it is said of the Lord that He is "the Father of mercies" (2 Cor 1:3), "rich in mercy" (Eph 2:4), "full of pity, and of tender mercy" (James 5:11). What a beautiful characteristic of God, He is merciful!

Exodus 34:6-7 – 6 Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; 7 who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations." NASB

Psalms 145:8 – 8 The Lord is gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.

Micah 7:18 – 18 Who is a God like Thee, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. NASB

Mercy is defined as “the active compassion of God to assist and provide for the miserable and bestow benefit on the needy.” In the grand scheme of the history of redemption, mercy presupposes sin and death. Since we, as His creatures, have “all sinned and fallen short of His Glory” (Rom 3:23), we are all in need of Divine mercy. In our miserable fallen and deadly state, God has actively come to our aid and provided for our needy souls an abundant provision of eternal life and peace through Jesus Christ. Mercy is not something that we merit or earn, but is freely given of God to the miserable.

1 Peter 1:3 – 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, NASB

Titus 3:4-7 – 4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, 5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.  NASB

B.    because of His great love with which He loved us – See here the motivation of God toward His elect people in mercifully raising them from their dead state. Here the special love of God toward His elect is described, in this context as toward “us” who “by grace have been saved.” It is because of God’s great love that he did these things, says Paul.  

1 John 3:1 – 3:1 See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. NASB

1 John 4:9-10 – 9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. NASB

C.   5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), – See here the “great love” of God held in contrast to our sin, “even when we were dead in our transgressions,” this love of God is the cause of our being “made alive together with Christ” and “raised up with Him.” These are terms describing God’s work of REGENERATION in the believer. We were “made alive together with Christ.” This is powerfully expressive of our union with Christ in the regenerative act of God.  The Greek here is 4806 suzoopoieo; [to reanimate conjointly with (figuratively):–quicken together with]. As Paul says in verse 6, God “raised us up with Him.” This is to say that were we not raised independently of Christ, but “with Him,” in the power of His resurrection, we were born again (regenerated) by “working of the strength of His might” v-1:19, by the “surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.”

Ephesians 1:18-22 – 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come. NASB

The basis of this REGENERATION is God’s free grace, this being expressed as “by grace you have been saved.” See here the act of being “saved” expressed as regeneration and Paul pointing out that this is an act of unmerited, undeserving, free grace by God. The Greek here for grace is 5485 charis, which means; [graciousness, of manner or act–acceptable, benefit, favour, gift, grace(- ious), with joy, liberality, and pleasure]. Our salvation is “by grace,” that is unmerited (we did not earn it), undeserving (we deserved wrath instead), and free, that is God was not owing to us but freely saved us because of His great love for us. This He carried out by raising us from the death of sin and transgression into eternal life “together with Christ.” Consider these profound words, “even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved.)”

In His Image

2 Corinthians 3:18

But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord,

are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. NASB

The Work of the Holy Spirit

One last point to grasp in this whole idea of being image bearers as God’s purpose in our salvation is that this is the work of the Holy Spirit in us through regeneration and our ongoing practical sanctification.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – 17 Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. NASB

Not only were we created generally like God in our human nature in the first creation with Adam, but when we were powerfully born again by the Holy Spirit in regeneration, we were created more specifically like Him as a new creation in Christ. And now being in Christ, or having union with Christ, we have been fashioned like Him in such a way that His divine life and nature have been re-created in us (re-genesis…regeneration), delivering us from the power of sin and death under which we became slaves in the fall. In this new liberty from sin and death, God is powerfully working in us by the Holy Spirit to fashion us in His likeness so that we become image bearers in much greater degree and intensity. This process in us is what we call practical or progressive sanctification. This powerful sanctification by the Spirit is an essential part of salvation and the outworking of our election and regeneration in our everyday life.

2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 – 13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. NASB

1 Peter 1:1-2 – 1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in fullest measure. NASB

Titus 3:5-7 – 5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. NASB

Consider how the New Testament describes this image bearing as God’s very purpose in saving us. It speaks of us being “conformed to the image of His Son” as the chief reason for our predestination, election and calling in salvation, that we would be a people to the “praise of the glory of His grace!”

Romans 8:28-30 – 28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren; 30 and whom He predestined, these He also called; and whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. NASB

Ephesians 1:3-7 – 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. NASB

Ephesians 1:11-12 – 11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. NASB

Here, the salvation of the saints is seen to be “predestined according to God’s purpose,” but notice that this is not God’s highest purpose. Oh no, here it says that the predestination of salvation is “to the end that we……should be to the praise of His glory!” And this purpose of God is being powerfully worked and fulfilled in us through our union with Christ by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

The New Testament explicitly connects this purpose in salvation as the work of the Holy Spirit in causing us to bear God’s image, having already, past tense, been “created like God” in regeneration. As new creations in Christ, He has created us in His image and likeness, and we are now becoming in practice what we already are in reality, children of God fashioned after the image of our Father and His Son Jesus.

1 Corinthians 15:45-49 – 45 So also it is written, "The first man, Adam, became a living soul." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. NASB

Ephesians 4:22-24 – 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. NASB

Colossians 3:10-11 – 10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him 11 — a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all. NASB

Consider how the Scripture speaks of our “being transformed” progressively into God’s image from “glory to glory” because we have been created like Him already.

2 Corinthians 3:18 – 8 But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. NASB

See in these Scriptures how the very work of the Holy Spirit in salvation is to not only powerfully re-create us in regeneration, but also to powerfully transform us in progressive sanctification, causing us to be conformed to the image of Christ practically throughout our life.

Glorification

When He is finished with the work of progressive Sanctification, the process of conforming us to His image practically, we shall ultimately take on His image in much fullness and be “like Him” at the resurrection, on the day of Glory! We call this glorification.

1 John 3:2-3 – 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. NASB

Philippians 3:20-21 – 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. NASB

1 Corinthians 15:50-54 – 50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "Death is swallowed up in victory. NASB

This is the eternal state, to experience the fullness of the glory of God (as receptors) and to sing forth the praises of His glory as an overflow of the enjoyment of His Goodness (as reflectors).

In His Image

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature;

the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. NASB

Salvation and the image of God

Now as is the case with everything God does, He created people to display His glory. He achieved this by making people in “His own image and likeness.” Here in the text of Genesis God explicitly tells us that we were made to bear His image and to show forth His likeness. See here the reason why people were created by God.

Genesis 1:26-27 – 26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." 27 And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. NASB

But what does it mean that we were created in the “image and likeness of God?” It really is a very simple concept and means that people are like God and represent Him in many divers ways. Grudem comments…. “Out of all the creatures God made, only one creature, man, is said to be made "in the image of God." What does that mean? We may use the following definition: The fact that man is in the image of God means that man is like God and represents God. When God says, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness" (Gen 1:26), the meaning is that God plans to make a creature similar to himself. Both the Hebrew word for "image" and the Hebrew word for "likeness" refer to something that is similar but not identical to the thing it represents or is an "image" of. The word image can also be used of something that represents something else…. Because "image" and "likeness" had these meanings, Scripture does not need to say something like, The fact that man is in the image of God means that man is like God in the following ways: intellectual ability, moral purity, spiritual nature, dominion over the earth, creativity, ability to make ethical choices, and immortality [or some similar statement].

Such an explanation is unnecessary, not only because the terms had clear meanings, but also because no such list could do justice to the subject: the text only needs to affirm that man is like God and the rest of Scripture fills in more details to explain this. In fact, as we read the rest of Scripture, we realize that a full understanding of man's likeness to God would require a full understanding of who God is in his being and in his actions and a full understanding of who man is and what he does. The more we know about God and man the more similarities we will recognize, and the more fully we will understand what Scripture means when it says that man is in the image of God. The expression refers to every way in which man is like God.”

(from Systematic Theology, Copyright © 1994 by Wayne Grudem)

In this idea of bearing the image of God, we see the reason and purpose for which we were created and why we exist. Here is the significance and meaning for human life, it is to be like God and bear His image. And it is for this reason that we know that mankind is the highest created order of beings and has the unique role and responsibility to bear God’s own image. And as a result, we have also been created to experience God in profound ways. We are created with a capacity to enjoy the pleasantness and beauty of the virtue and Goodness of God.

Psalm 16:11 – 11 Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; In Thy presence is fulness of joy; In Thy right hand there are pleasures forever. NASB

Psalm 17:15 – 15 As for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Thy likeness when I awake. NASB

2 Corinthians 4:17 – 17 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison NASB

Ephesians 2:4-7 – 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. NASB

Ephesians 3:16-19 – 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man; 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fulness of God. NASB

1 Timothy 6:17 – 17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. NASB

He created us to be both receptors and reflectors of His virtue and glory. Receptors so that we could be “satisfied” and “filled up to all the fullness of God” so that in our full satisfaction we would then seek after and sound forth the praise of His glory as an overflow of the enjoyment of His Goodness, the excellency of His own virtue or the pleasantness of His attributes. Reflectors so that we would then seek after and sound forth the praise of His name and worship Him for His own profound excellency, the highest and most worthy glory, the Glory of the Triune God! We were created to put on display the Glory of God and this is the great meaning and purpose of our lives, to bear His image. In this we will both glorify and enjoy God! Grudem comments… “The fact that God created us for his own glory determines the correct answer to the question, "What is our purpose in life?" Our purpose must be to fulfill the reason that God created us: to glorify him. When we are speaking with respect to God himself, that is a good summary of our purpose. But when we think of our own interests, we make the happy discovery that we are to enjoy God and take delight in him and in our relationship to him. Jesus says, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). David tells God, "In your presence there is fulness of joy in your right hand are pleasures for evermore" (Ps 16:11). He longs to dwell in the house of the Lord forever, "to behold the beauty of the LORD" (Ps 27:4)… Fullness of joy is found in knowing God and delighting in the excellence of his character. To be in his presence, to enjoy fellowship with him, is a greater blessing than anything that can be imagined. How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yea, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God….For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. (Ps 84:1-2,10).” (from Systematic Theology, Copyright © 1994 by Wayne Grudem)

Enjoying God, Worshipping and becoming like Him

God wants to make us happy and blessed in the enjoyment of Himself so that in our enjoyment of Him we would overflow with praise and worship. Then as we increase in the enjoyment of God’s nature, as we worship Him we become more like Him, displaying with even greater intensity the glory of His virtue in ourselves as we take on and participate in the very nature of God.

2 Peter 1:2-4 – 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. NASB

This cannot truly happen in us until we truly appreciate the virtue and Goodness of God’s own nature through the “true knowledge of Him.” We must come to know Him personally and intimately, to “know” Him truly in our heart. It is “through” this “true knowledge of Him” that His virtue is “multiplied” to us as Peter states, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” And this he tells us is how we become like God. We have “everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true knowledge of Him.” This is to say that we become like God or we bear His image and likeness in an increasing way, we “participate in the divine nature,” in “godliness,” through coming to know Him as His character is “multiplied” to us “in the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.” Therefore Peter tells us to “apply all diligence” in the exercise of our “faith” to become like Him and take on His wonderful virtue.

2 Peter 1:5-8 – 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge; 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness; 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. NASB

Thus the manifest glory of God is increasing in intensity through our lives as we become more like Him, because in becoming like Him we therefore bear His image, with greater intensity we manifest and display His excellent goodness as reflectors of His image. This is why we were both created and saved. Consider Jesus words in Matthew 5:16 with this in mind.

Matthew 5:16 – 16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. NASB

And so God calls us to both worship Him and to become like Him, to bear His image, so that we might put on display His glory through our lives.

The meaning of worship is to “ascribe worth or value to something.” As we worship God, if it is truly motivated from the heart, we are praising Him because in our hearts we truly value the worth of His person. We value His glory, the sum total of His Goodness, the excellency of His attributes. We value and cherish His patience and mercy, His wisdom and love, His power and knowledge. As we grow in the personal knowledge of God and experience of Him through that knowledge, we grow in our appreciation of His glory, and because in our hearts we truly valuing His Goodness, we seek therefore by default to become more like Him because we truly value His nature and want to be like that ourselves. We value His love, so we want to be loving, because we appreciate love and seek after it to possess it fully. We value His wisdom, so we seek to become wise, because we have eaten the good fruit of wisdom, and experienced the pleasantness of her who is more valuable than rubies (Prov 3:13-18)! In this way we become what we worship. We long and thirst for Him, and glory in Him, then we long for Him again, and glory in Him again. We feast on the table He has prepared for us in His Word!

Psalm 42:1-2 –  1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for Thee, O God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God? NASB

Psalm 63:1-5 – O God, Thou art my God; I shall seek Thee earnestly; My soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns for Thee, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. 2 Thus I have beheld Thee in the sanctuary, To see Thy power and Thy glory. 3 Because Thy lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise Thee. 4 So I will bless Thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Thy name. 5 My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. NASB

Psalm 84:2 – 2 My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. NASB

This process of enjoying, worshipping and becoming like God is very pleasing to God. Grudem comments… “As we glorify God and enjoy him, Scripture tells us that he rejoices in us. We read, "As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you" (Isa 62:5), and Zephaniah prophesies that the Lord "will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival" (Zeph 3:17-18).” (from Systematic Theology, Copyright © 1994 by Wayne Grudem)

But consider that even the wicked become what they worship.

Psalm 115:1-8 – 1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, But to Thy name give glory Because of Thy lovingkindness, because of Thy truth. 2 Why should the nations say, "Where, now, is their God?"

3 But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases. 4 Their idols are silver and gold,

The work of man's hands. 5 They have mouths, but they cannot speak; They have eyes, but they cannot see; 6 They have ears, but they cannot hear; They have noses, but they cannot smell; 7 They have hands, but they cannot feel; They have feet, but they cannot walk; They cannot make a sound with their throat. 8 Those who make them will become like them, Everyone who trusts in them. NASB

See here how the “nations” are described as having “god’s that are idols which are the work of man’s hands,” dead lifeless things made by men. He says in verse 8, “those who make them will become like them, everyone who trusts in them.” See here that even the wicked become like what they worship, even if it is a dead and lifeless image made with their own hands. But notice here that the prophet told us where the glory and praise properly belonged, “to thy name give glory, because of thy lovingkindness because of thy truth.” Here we are told to worship God and give Him glory because He is worthy of our devoted worship. And there is also this element of trust in God. Not only do we value and worship Him, but we earnestly trust in Him to be our God and provide for us, deliver us, heal us and meet all of our needs and even our deepest spiritual needs. We were made as receptors to experience and enjoy the Goodness of God and also as reflectors to shine forth His virtue in our own being as we become like Him. See in these things that we ultimately begin to take on the nature of what we value, worship and trust in the most. 

Jesus Must be Supreme in Our Affections

What do you love? What do you treasure? Of what can it be said about you that you long for and desire it above all other things in your life? Whatever that thing may be, it can be said that this is what you worship. That is because the word worship originates from the idea of “ascribing worth” or “value” to something. So then, that which you worship is that which you value or ascribe worth to, that which you treasure or adore. It is that which you revere or honor, that which you venerate or idolize, it is that which you glorify or consider to be highly valuable. Now if Christ is supremely valuable in reality, and there is truly nothing that even comes close to being as infinitely worthy of all glory and honor, worship and adoration as Him, it only stands to reason that to fail to give Him this proper place of honor in our hearts and affections is to be sorely mistaken and self-deceived in our value system. This is because He is the One who is worthy of Glory and honor!

Revelation 4:11 – 11 "Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created." NASB

Revelation 5:12-14 – 12 Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing." 13 And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever." 14 And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders fell down and worshiped. NASB

If we love something more than Christ, we have misplaced affections. He is altogether lovely, therefore not to love Him is to have a degraded mind, and to throw contempt on the highest manifestation of human excellence and Divine love. This is why the Scripture pronounces a curse upon those who fail to love Christ.

1 Corinthians 16:22 – 22 If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed. Maranatha. NASB

This is to say if you do not love Christ, you are accursed already! In fact, the very state of being accursed is the state of not properly valuing that which is truly valuable. If we love and adore that which is wretched and worthless, we are then by virtue of this, wretched and worthless. If we truly love what is supremely lovely and virtuous and valuable, we will then become lovely and virtuous in ourselves, because we properly value what is truly virtuous. More than this, as we trust in and rely upon Jesus, our great God and King, enjoying Him and our daily relationship with Him, it has a transforming affect that propels us with increasing intensity toward Christ’s likeness. We live out this union in Christ that we have with Him.

Knowing this, we should be all the more eager to worship the Glorious Creator, Jesus Christ! Even Jesus Himself taught us that our love for Him was to exceed all other loves and affections in our lives.

Luke 14:25-27 – 25 Now great multitudes were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, 26 "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27 "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. NASB

The word “hate” here does not suggest positive antagonism but rather "to love less". Our love for Christ must be so strong that all other love is like hatred in comparison to it. In fact, we must hate “our own lives” and be willing to lose our lives and “carry our own cross” to follow Him. We must love Him more than our own very lives because He is more valuable than our very lives themselves. When we trust Him and rely upon Him and enjoy Him, following Him in obedience to His Lordship, we show forth the genuine character of our love for Him and living for Christ becomes our main life purpose. When we do this, we have properly placed our affections on that which is worthy of our love, and our trust in that place where it properly belongs, and we will then become like Him because we value His virtue and long to possess it more than anything else. As we truly love to follow Him and obey His commandments, we begin to live out His virtues and His character which is being created in us by the Holy Spirit. If your treasure joy, you will seek to be joyful. If you honor and esteem justice, you will seek to be just in all your affairs. If you esteem love and compassion as most valuable, then you will become loving and compassionate. If you trust in, honor, esteem, venerate, treasure and glorify God more than anything else, in all of His glorious virtue, then you will become like Him, because you seek to possess Him above all other things. Consider how loving, hungering and thirsting for God takes on a new meaning in this context.

Psalm 143:5-6 – 5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Thy doings; I muse on the work of Thy hands. 6 I stretch out my hands to Thee; My soul longs for Thee, as a parched land. NASB

The most loving and beneficial thing that God can command us is to treasure, esteem and love Him more than anything. This because He is what is in reality most worthy of being loved, and this causes us to become like Him because we seek His virtue and want to possess it more than anything else. Thus we see the reason why the greatest of all commandments is to love God! In other words the highest of priorities for our lives is the love and honor of God. It is imperative to understand that He must have first place, or preeminence in our hearts and affections. We must love Him above all other things.

Matthew 6:33 – 33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you. NASB

Matthew 22:36-38 – 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" 37 And He said to him,  "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  38 "This is the great and foremost commandment. NASB

Philippians 2:12-16 – 12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. 14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing; 15 that you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may have cause to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain. NASB

Now as Christ holds first place in our affections, and as we live out the obedience of faith in Him, we will indeed become like Him, and with increasing intensity we will bear His image. We will in fact “participate in the divine nature” and godliness, or true piety will begin to define our character. In this we will be reflectors of God’s very own glory in which we will shine through us as “lights in this world,” the very purpose for which we were created.

In His Image

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature;

the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. NASB

God delights in Himself

Why has God chosen to use a creation of this planet earth, including people and angels, and a massive rebellion of both, govern it with a mighty Providence and glorious judgment in the ages of history through the rise and fall of kingdoms and powers and authorities, having worked an amazing redemption from that rebellion through His own incarnation into human flesh resulting in His own crucifixion, burial and resurrection, and through this central act to play out the great saga of salvation from sin and from death? Why does the God of all people bring everyone in judgment before His throne to give an accounting for their own life before Him, and judge each one as individual creatures He has made, according to His holy Law? The whole of redemptive history from creation to the eternal state exists to manifest His own glory and excellency as God!

But why is it so important to God to manifest His own glory? This is a profound consideration indeed. The short answer is He delights in the display of His own glory and excellency as God because He is the paragon of all that is good, the highest expression of beauty and virtue in His own nature as God. But how can we explain this. The answer can be seen in the word “glory” itself. It can mean praise or honor or even fame….and with God it certainly has that sense about it because His is the highest and most worthy praise and honor and fame. But it is more than that. The glory of God is His outshining magnificence, His radiant splendor, His effulgent brilliance and resplendence! It is seen in His nature as Light! And His glory is much like light in that is shines out, it moves out from the center, much like the sun. The sun cannot help but shine forth because of its very nature. So it is with God, His nature is “glorious,” that is it shines outward from center in brilliance and radiant splendor! Like the magnificence of jewels, refracting light in beauty and resplendence, so is God’s nature, with all the facets of His attributes, each one beaming the brightness of glory! This is seen for example with the Shekinah glory of God which was present at the Tabernacle and Temple. When God’s presence was among the people, there was an outshining of glory from His being which could be seen and felt so strongly that it would keep men from performing their duties!

Exodus 40:34-36 – 34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. NASB

2 Chronicles 5:11-14 – 11 And when the priests came forth from the holy place (for all the priests who were present had sanctified themselves, without regard to divisions), 12 and all the Levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and kinsmen, clothed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and lyres, standing east of the altar, and with them one hundred and twenty priests blowing trumpets 13 in unison when the trumpeters and the singers were to make themselves heard with one voice to praise and to glorify the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice accompanied by trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and when they praised the Lord saying,"He indeed is good for His lovingkindness is everlasting," then the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, 14 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God. NASB

But God’s glory is more than this. It is more than just the outshining radiance of His beauty, honor and fame. The reason His glory shines out is because of His entire nature as God. His nature is the sum total of all His attributes which all exist in His perfection and excellency as God which we call His Goodness! He is the paragon of all that is good or virtuous. He is in His very nature virtue, or Goodness. There is no attribute of God which is not “good,” they are all together summed up in the idea of Goodness. His love and mercy are good, His justice and wrath are good, His power and knowledge are good, and His self-existence and immutability are good, His immanence, transcendence and infinitude are good as is His eternality and personality! All of His attributes come together in His Goodness! And because this Goodness exists in its highest form in God, it must shine outward like bright Light, it must manifest, it must radiate in splendor with brilliance and brightness because it is in itself “Glorious” or full of Glory! This then is to say that God’s Glory is related to His Goodness in its very nature, or that God’s glory radiates outward because His Goodness is of such magnificent quality that it is glorious by nature, or outshining and radiant because of its overflowing Goodness! This can be seen in many places in Scripture where God’s Goodness is related to His moral perfection, or His commandments, and these are seen as glorious or even seen in manifestations of His glory.

Exodus  33:18-34:9 – 18 Then Moses said, "I pray Thee, show me Thy glory!" 19 And He said, "I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion." 20 But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!" 21 Then the Lord said, "Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand there on the rock; 22 and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. 23 Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen." 34 Now the Lord said to Moses, "Cut out for yourself two stone tablets like the former ones, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered……. 5 And the Lord descended in the cloud and stood there with him as he called upon the name of the Lord. 6 Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; 7 who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations." 8 And Moses made haste to bow low toward the earth and worship. 9 And he said, "If now I have found favor in Thy sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even though the people are so obstinate; and do Thou pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Thine own possession." NASB

See here where Moses asked God to show him His glory and God responded first by protecting Moses from the intensity of His full unveiled glory by placing him in the cleft of the rock. Moses brought the two stone tablets as God intended to repeat His commandments during the encounter. Then as God’s passes by, He recounts in a spoken “word” the glory of His person or nature saying, “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; 7 who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” But consider what it is that God reveals AS His own glory. It is a list of some of His attributes, the virtues of His own moral perfection. See here what the nature of God and His glory are intrinsically. They are the perfection and excellency of His nature, the attributes that make up the divine being. Therefore we should not think of the glory of God as separate from the moral perfection of ALL of His attributes or the beauty of His holiness [otherly character], or any other aspect of His nature. They are all intrinsically tied together. All of His attributes are equally glorious and good! For a detailed study of this encounter and the meaning of this specific “Word” from God see the appendix “The Gracious Name of God.”

So when we consider what God delights in, we need to understand that there is nothing more profound, or beautiful, our pleasant than God’s own glory and Goodness. Therefore He delights in His own glory above all other things, which are all created things and only reflect His glory partially, or veiled images of God’s own original Goodness. There are actually numerous biblical texts which explicitly state that God seeks His own glory. In fact, there are so many, it would be exhausting just to list them all much less examine them. But here are a few…..

Isaiah 48:9-11 – "For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, And for My praise I restrain it for you, In order not to cut you off. 10 "Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. 11 "For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another. NASB

Isaiah 43:7 – Everyone who is called by My name, And whom I have created for My glory, Whom I have formed, even whom I have made. " NASB

Jeremiah 13:11 – 11'For as the waistband clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole household of Israel and the whole household of Judah cling to Me,' declares the LORD,' that they might be for Me a people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they did not listen. NASB

Psalm 106:7-8 – Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Thy wonders; They did not remember Thine abundant kindnesses, But rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.  8 Nevertheless He saved them for the sake of His name, That He might make His power known. NASB

John 7:18-19 – 18 "He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. NASB

Matthew 5:16 – 16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. NASB

John 12:27-29 – 27 "Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 28 "Father, glorify Thy name." There came therefore a voice out of heaven: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again." NASB

John 17:24 – 24 "Father, I desire that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am, in order that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me; for Thou didst love Me before the foundation of the world. NASB

Romans 9:17 – 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth." NASB

1 Peter 4:11 – 11 Whoever speaks, let him speak, as it were, the utterances of God; whoever serves, let him do so as by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. NASB

Learn then, the Bible plainly declares that chief among the purposes of God is the pursuit of His own glory and the fame of His great name!

And God is the only being for who it is right and proper to delight in Himself, because He Himself is the paragon of virtue and goodness. All other beings derive their goodness from the Creator and are in their best display, only vague reflections of the source of all virtue which is God. Therefore it is improper, even sinful and blasphemous for creatures to delight in themselves above the Creator, who is far more, yes infinitely more delightful than the creature. This is what God calls idolatry and it violates the first commandment of God’s standard for worship, the Ten Commandments. This is the same reason why the second commandment forbids the creating of images or idols to represent God, because He cannot be represented by any created things for He is infinitely higher and more beautiful and profound than anything created or that the creature can conceive.

Exodus 20:2-6 – 2 "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before Me. 4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. NASB

Grudem comments…. “Someone might object that it is wrong for God to seek glory for himself in creating man. Certainly it is wrong for human beings to seek glory for themselves, as we see in the dramatic example of the death of Herod Agrippa I. When he proudly accepted the shout of the crowd, "The voice of a god, and not of man!" (Acts 12:22), "immediately an angel of the Lord smote him, because he did not give God the glory; and he was eaten by worms and died" (Acts 12:23). Herod died because he robbed God of glory, glory that God deserved and he did not….But when God takes glory to himself, from whom is he robbing glory? Is there anyone who deserves glory more than he does? Certainly not! He is the Creator, he made all things, and he deserves all glory. He is worthy of receiving glory. Man may not seek glory for himself, but in this case what is wrong for man is right for God, because he is the Creator. It is right not wrong, that he be glorified—in fact, if he did not receive glory from all creatures in the universe, that would be horribly wrong!” (from Systematic Theology, Copyright © 1994 by Wayne Grudem) Therefore, God delights in His own glory and has made the creation as a means of displaying His Goodness in all of its various attributes.

Now we have laid some ground work to understand God’s purpose in salvation, which serves the higher purpose of the display of His own glory and excellency as God. In salvation, God displays and manifests His own glory.

Ephesians 3:8-11 – 8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; 10 in order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, NASB