Whose Glory? Yours or His?
(NKJ) Philippians 3:18 “For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: (19) whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame.”
The first thing I want to point out is that Paul is writing to Christians not unbelievers. We can be saved believers eternally and still be enemies of what the Cross has to offer us here on earth. The Cross is much more than salvation.
The last part of the scripture is actually what I want to break down, so that we have a better understanding of what Paul is writing for us today. “whose glory is in their shame”, the word glory in the Greek is doxa meaning opinion, praise, and honor. Doxa derives from dokeo meaning, exercising personal opinion which determines value. Wow, you may want to read that definition again and let it sink in. Shame in the Greek is aischune meaning shamefacedness which comes from aioxuvn meaning the confusion of one who is ashamed of anything.
Let’s look at two scenarios around parenting.
I don’t know what to do with my son. He is disrespectful and arrogant, mostly to me. However, I see it sometimes towards others and I feel embarrassed. I talk to him about his behavior when I can catch him in the “right mood” to hear my concern, because if I don’t I am hit with his wrath. I always feel better after these brief talks because at least I am trying to make him aware that you shouldn’t treat people that way, even though nothing changes.
I know my children are out of control and I should discipline them, but I missed the first half of their lives due to drugs, and now I want to be there for them no matter what. I want to make up for all I missed and all they lost.
Here we have two mama’s that love their kids and genuinely want to do what’s best for them, but because of their guilt and shame we can hear both of them justify away correct discipline for the betterment of the kids.
Now let’s apply dokeo which is glory (exercise personal opinion which determines value) and aioxuvn which is shame (confusion of one who is ashamed) to our scenarios. Both mothers have a devalued opinion towards their godly role as parent/discipler/teacher in their children’s lives because of the confusion that a particular shame has caused.
Obviously, we can use many real life scenarios where our shame has confused us away from the Truth, made us believe lies about who we are, and furthermore about how we are supposed to act. Those false opinions of ourselves devalue our confidence in the roles we play in others’ lives.
By forming an opinion of ourselves based on shame as our identity instead of what the Word of God says about us, we become enemies of the cross. What shame areas come to your mind that have kept you from God’s plan and have untimely stolen His glory from your walk?
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