Gary Wilkerson's sermon 'Renouncing Shame, Receiving Glory' emphasizes the transformative power of God's glory within us, contrasting it with the debilitating effects of shame. He explains that glory, derived from the Hebrew 'kabbad' and Greek 'doxa', signifies a weightiness and splendor that God has placed in every believer, akin to the glory seen in Joseph's life. Wilkerson encourages the congregation to renounce shame, which distorts our identity and hinders the manifestation of God's glory, and to embrace the truth that they are filled with divine glory from their creation. He highlights that true glory is not about self-promotion but about recognizing and sharing the glory of God that resides within us. The sermon concludes with a call to action, inviting individuals to step forward and receive the freedom and glory that God offers.

I want to talk a little bit about the word glory, but from a different slant, a different perspective. When we think of glory, oftentimes, at least in my Pentecostal upbringing, I think of camp meeting. You know, sometimes when I'm here it reminds me of old-fashioned camp meeting. You know, we're just kind of shouting and praising, and I used to, when I was a kid, way back in the history, we'd go, especially around this time of year, as a matter of fact, school was out and we'd head off for a weekend or a week-long camp meeting and have a revival. And a lot of times, the more Pentecostal, if you know what I mean by that, the preacher was, the more often he would say glory in his sermon. It was just a word, kind of like a throw-in word, like glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory. And I was like, and I kept, I was thinking maybe he like, he forgot his next point, he's just kind of like, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory, glory. And then hallelujah, glory, hallelujah, glory. I'm not belittling the word, I love this word, that's why I want to teach about it tonight. But it doesn't, it's not a, it's not just a statement or, it's not just a, we talk about glory sometimes as well, that was a glorious service. Sunday night was a glorious service. We had, the glory came down, and we just had the glory of the Lord, and we use glory as an event sometimes. That event was glorious, or sometimes we see it as a destination. One day we'll be going to glory, hallelujah, that's good, glory, hallelujah. I say that seriously. It's good, it's good, it's, but it's not just that, it's not just a destination or an event. The word itself in the Old Testament is kabbad, it means a weightiness. Not a mean-spirited heaviness, like somebody who comes into the room and they're grumpy, like your boss maybe, or a policeman who pulls you over, or if you're squeezed in front of somebody trying to get into the Lincoln Tunnel, which I never do, and they give you that staring look. It's not that kind of heaviness. But it's, have you ever been around somebody and they just have the spirit of Christ in them, and they walk into the room, they bring sort of a sense of the presence of God with them, there's a glorious weightiness of spirit, in people even, but particularly in God's presence. When he comes there's this thick cloud, the glory of God, the kabbad, what a beautiful word, the weightiness, it's not frivolous, it's not light or trivial, it's deep, and it's going to, you're going to know that the kabbad of God, the presence of God, the glory of God is in your midst. In the New Testament it's doxa, D-O-X-A, we get the word doxology, if you've ever heard that word before, it's a song sometimes we sing or create a statement we say. The doxology comes from that Greek word doxa, which means glory, but it's a little bit different there. In the Greek, if you look up the Greek dictionary for the word, it starts off by meaning it's an opinion, a judgment or a view resulting in praise, honor, splendor, brightness, magnificence, excellence, dignity and grace. That's a lot of good stuff packed into that one little word, doxa, a four letter word that is filled with everything you want out of life. A sense of magnificence and brightness and splendor, the praise and the honor of God being seen in your life, as you live your life the way God called you to live, your life is filled with doxa, your life can be filled with kabbad. Now there's a school of study, how to study doctrine, and it's called the theory of first mention, you probably have heard this before, and what scholars try to do is they go back into the Old Testament or the New Testament and they find out the very first time a word is mentioned, and from there they sense that they can build an understanding of where God is going with that particular word. So let's take a moment to look at Genesis chapter 45, and it's a surprising place where the first time the word kabbad is used, or this particular type of word glory is used, because it surprises me because it's not talking about God. Does that surprise you a little bit? Okay, this is going to surprise you. This is talking about Joseph. Remember Joseph's life. Man, the guy had been through trouble. I would not want to... There's a lot of Bible characters I'd like to trade places with. The ones who didn't suffer and just got all the good stuff. Not the ones like the Hebrew lemons would get sawed in half and they lived in caves. I can read their biographies and say praise God for such great saints. I want the ones who prayed a prayer and got the prayer answered. But Joseph was one who just when he thought everything was going to be good, it's like, hey, I had a dream. My brothers are going to bow before me. Boom, he's in a pit. Somebody comes and, hey, get out of that pit. Wow, I'm out of that pit. I'm taking you to be a slave. Ah, I'm a slave. He gets out of slavery into a place of leadership in the kingdom, and then he gets put in prison. Just about the time where his life seems to be going the direction he wants, something seems to happen. Well, this pressure, if you will, this squeezing of God, this maneuvering of God to pressurize his life, I believe, to squeeze out all the fleshly ambition and the selfish ambition and the desires of the flesh to where you're left with no agenda of your own. You're just saying, God, if you'll just let me breathe in your spirit, then I have life. And so he finally gets to that place, and he's been in some hardship, and now a famine's coming, and he has to bear the burden of the responsibility to feed not only all his own people. He was now called the Lord over Egypt, but he's responsible for other nations coming to him as well. His brothers who threw him in the pit come to him, and he begins to reveal himself. Have you ever revealed yourself to someone? I mean, it really, you know, you opened up your heart. I mean, beyond the normal sort of, I'm saved, sanctified, filled with the Holy Spirit, praise God, hallelujah, everything's great, glory. Well, you go beyond that, and you really share some intimate details of your heart. The good, the difficult, the struggles, the pits, the time you're lifted out of the pit, God's with you when it seems like God's not with you, and you really get honest and you share with somebody. He's revealing his heart, and it's amazing. As he reveals his heart, something seems to slip out, but it's a godly confidence. It's not an arrogance, a pride. It's not based on self-agenda. It's something he recognizes that God has done in him and worked in his heart. So, all that by introduction. Verse 13 says, Tell my father about all the glory accorded to me in Egypt. Tell my father about all my glory. Now, that's a tough statement to say, isn't it? I mean, I think we're trained in the church to sort of like put on a false humility, like we don't have any glory. But I want to tell you tonight, and I believe I can convince you through the power of the Holy Spirit and the clarity of the Word of God, that you have glory in you. You are filled with glory. From your mother's womb, even before the parts were beginning to be put together, God set something in you, even before the first part, the first click of DNA met the other click of DNA, even before that there was breathed into you glory. And Joseph understands this glory, and I want you to know tonight that you are filled with God's glory. Now, when Moses began to sing his song and leave his people a description of the tribes, the people of Israel, the leadership, he wrote about Joseph, and that's found in Deuteronomy 33. Why don't you take a look there with me as well? Because this was not just a... Joseph wasn't deceived into just thinking he had glory because he wasn't thinking here of his position. There are people who are presidents and kings and leaders, I've met some of them as we travel around the world, who have no glory in them at all. There's an emptiness, there's a selfish ambition, they're driven, they're pride-seeking, and you just don't even like being around them. They can call themselves king, president, lord, dictator, whatever they want, and they're just miserable people. But that's not Joseph's heart, he's not talking about that. And here's how we know this, because it's not just something he says about himself, it's something others recognize about him. Deuteronomy chapter 33, we'll begin reading in verse 13, about Joseph he said, May the Lord bless him and his land with precious dew from heaven above, with the deep waters that lie below, with the best the sun brings forth and the finest the moon can yield, with the choices of gifts of the ancient mountains, and of the fruitfulness of everlasting hills, with the best gifts of the earth, and with the fullness and with the favor of him who dwelt in the burning bush. That's good favor. That the God of Moses, who spoke destiny into Moses, is now speaking here and saying, On this son of mine, Joseph, I have poured out my favor. The rest, let all that rest on the hand of Joseph and on the brow of the princes among their brothers. In majesty he is the firstborn bull. This word, majesty, is the Kabbad, it's the Hebrew word glory. His glory is like the firstborn bull. Now, very often, I think the meaning has changed now. If you say somebody has bull in them, it means something different. But this is talking about strength, majesty. The Kabbad, weightiness, the glory is resident in Joseph. He has that. And look at the words that God uses to describe the glory in his life. He had the blessing of the Lord with precious things from heaven. Isn't that good? The deep things lying beneath were given to Joseph and into his heart. With precious fruits, he was blessed. With precious produce, he was blessed. With the best things, precious things, on earth and all of its fullness. With favor of him who dwelt in the bush, let the blessing come on the head of Joseph, his glory is like the firstborn bull. This is not only just a song or a prayer of Moses, this is the heart of God. This is my son, Joseph. And he is precious. I have put within my son precious things from heaven and from below and from the earth. I've put precious fruits and gifts. And not only fruits, but produce. See, the produce is different than the fruit. The fruit is the fruit and then you bring it to sell. It becomes the produce. You go to the produce store. And so it's showing the productivity of God's son. He was productive in all that he was doing. He was mightily blessed by God. But aren't you glad tonight that it's not just Old Testament saints, biblical characters, or the disciples of Jesus that are people who are blessed with the gabod, the glory of God. Aren't you glad tonight that you sitting in this auditorium have been called out uniquely by God to be filled, as I said earlier, from your mother's womb with the glory of God. You are blessed. Did you know that? With precious things from heaven and from earth. You are blessed with the best of things. You are blessed with the favor of Him who calls out from the burning bush, I have plans for your life. I have set my destiny in your soul even before you were born, even before you came forth from your mother's womb. I was already seeing plans for your glory. I've already seen plans for your blessing. I've already seen plans for this destiny that you have that is unique to you that no one else has. You have glory. You are glorious. Some Christians just have such a hard time. No, no, no, not me. Thanks, thanks, but no. You're going over the top a little too much. No, I'm not. You have glory in you. Not because you behaved well, not because you follow the list, not because you're better looking, not because you lost weight, not because you pumped up your muscles, not because you got a nose job, not because you dress nice, not because you're an elder or have a position as an usher in the church, not because you teach Sunday school, not because you drive a taxi faster than anybody else, not because you're on the city council, not because you've memorized the scripture, but because God loves you. And just as he spoke from heaven to his son, he said, this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. He hadn't done a thing yet. He was a carpenter, not outstanding in any human facet or ways or appearance, but God said, oh, my son, in him is my glory, in him I see. The heavens opened, the dove descended. Before he had preached the sermon, before he had multiplied the bread, before he had walked on water, he was the beloved. And you are not the beloved of God, and the glory doesn't reside in you because you've memorized more scriptures than other Christians or been on more missions trips than other Christians or sat in that chair that you sit in here at church week after week more times than anybody else. I have, like Paul said, if anybody brags, I shouldn't brag, but I have the right to brag. I was here at the very first service at Times Square Church, so I've been here longer than you. And that doesn't give me one ounce of glory. It won't get me a free coffee at Starbucks. It won't do a thing. But you know what? When I walk into Starbucks, I walk in there as a son of God filled with his glory. There's glory in me. It's not always what you want to see. It's not always something that... But it's there, and it's in you, and it's alive, and it's vibrant. You have glory. You have deep resources of amazing wonder and awesome dignity. You have untapped splendor in your soul, spirit. You were born and created with a vast installation of amazing power, honor, and glory. You have kabod in you. You have doxa in you. You can, at the end of your life, like Joseph, when you gather your family around, you could say, tell them about the glory in me. Now, I know you're concerned. Some of you are like looking at me, like scratching your head, and I know why, because I'm there with you as well. You're saying, well, wait a minute. You should be talking about God's glory, not my glory. I don't want any glory. Jeremiah makes it clear. Do you seek glory for yourself? Seek it not. But that's a totally different concept there. Jeremiah is talking about do you seek glory for yourself? Seek it not. In other words, do you seek the acclaim of men? Do you seek fame, fortune, prestige? Do you seek a growing ministry? Do you seek opportunities that make you look good? Then, Jeremiah says, seek it not. But that doesn't negate the fact that there's glory residing in you. You can seek the false worldly glory, but it doesn't diminish the fact that truly what God is after is that real glory that's in you. There's a deep-seated, deep-rooted glory within you, and you were born with this overwhelming reservoir. God's placed it in you. There are outstanding gifts in you. There's a unique destiny in you that no one else can fulfill. You in this church have a high calling. Not just the pastors. Not just the elders. Not just those who lay hands on the sick. Not just those who are gifted on the instruments. Not just those who can sing songs in the choir. You have a unique calling in your life. It is no higher a calling nor a lower calling than any of the pastors, leaders, elders, presidents, deacons, authorities, powers of principalities. The gift that God has given you, God sees as special and unique and divinely orchestrated as any other gift. In God's eyes, gifts aren't sort of like, I really like this gift. In the church it is. We like preaching and music. But in the kingdom of God, it might be turned upside down. He might like sweeping the carpets and cleaning out the bathrooms. But I don't really think there is that in God's economy. I think it's all just, we are just uniquely designed. And all of it, when it's done according to God's plan for our life, it creates in us a release of this glory. Your DNA contains, it's exploding with glory. You have something in you that was in Christ Jesus if you've been born again and you've been washed by the blood, you have something in you that was in Christ Jesus when He stood and some of His friends came around Him and He stood upon the mountain and all of a sudden light began to shine through Him. The Bible says that that same spirit that raised Christ from the dead, if it transformed, figured Him, that same spirit dwells in you and me. The Spirit of Christ dwells in us. There's glory just waiting. It's contained within you. It's just waiting to bubble up and overflow like a cup that runneth over. God is wanting your glory to be shared. Your soul has a vast capacity to declare the wonder of God. There are resources in you that they're often untapped, but if they are released, they will declare God's glory like no one else can. You will have a unique ability to make God glorified in your circle of influence. The vast majority of us have left this overwhelming reservoir nearly untapped. Do you understand me? God has placed this amazing glory in us. It's the glory of His Son Christ Jesus. It's the same power that raised Christ from the dead. It dwells in us. And most of us, it's a reservoir in us totally untapped. As a matter of fact, not only is it untapped, it's untouched, it's unused. Worse than that, it's hidden. It's covered. Let's go to the New Testament, to the book of 2 Corinthians, if you would please. I'd love for you to turn there with me. We're gonna start in 2 Corinthians 3 and just briefly look at 1 Corinthians 2, chapter 4 as well. You wanna do that with me? And all those who don't, say Amen. Who said that? In 2 Corinthians chapter 3, oh gosh, I wish I had more time. This whole thing is basically, it's a contrast between true glory that God wants you to have and an element that keeps you from having that glory. Paul uses the word here, a veil. It's a covering. You see, you're intended to have the glory of God. Now, as I said earlier, let me just back up one more time. Isaiah 48 says, God says, I will not share my glory with another. And some of you may be thinking, when you hear that verse, you're saying, well then, all glory goes to God. God is the only one who has any glory. So man doesn't have glory. It's all in God. It's not man's. Man shouldn't have any glory. And yes, Isaiah 48, 11 says, I will not share my glory with another. But He won't share His glory with another. That's His. But He will give His glory to us. It will be His glory still, but it will be residing in us. If you don't believe me, here's just a few verses I can throw out. If you take notes, you can certainly write these down. If not, you probably have a glorious memory, and you can just memorize them. Romans 8, 30 says, Those He justified, He glorified. Romans 9, 23 says, He has prepared our glory in advance. Even before we started doing the works, He prepared in us a glory to do those works. Romans 8, 5 says, excuse me, Psalms 8, 5 says, What is man that thou art mindful of him? You have crowned him with glory. The best one of all, John chapter 17, Jesus is praying to His Father. It's the most intimate prayer, the most glorious prayer. I'm so glad God gave us a glimpse of that unity between the Father and the Son, the intimacy, the compelling interest that they had for one another. And in the midst of that prayer, Jesus says to His Father, Father, the glory that You gave me, I gave it to them. It's like, what? What did you do with that glory I gave you? I gave it to them. But there's a vast supply. Jesus is not running out. But He said that to His Father. The glory You gave me, I gave it to them. I love Your glory so much, I want them to have some of it. So I imparted glory into them. And so that's what God's agenda for us. That's His desire for us. He longs for Christians to function in the fullness of glory. Amen, Pastor Gary. But if God has this desire, if it is in the Lord's heart, if it's on His agenda to open our eyes to the glory He places within our spirit, and to welcome us into the application, the full application of the fullness of this glory, why then, as I said earlier, is it so untapped, so unused, so diminished? And that's what Paul is saying here in this third chapter. Let me just take a few shots at a few things. Verse 4, Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves or claim anything for ourselves. It's not a glory in yourself. It's not something you created or originated, orchestrated, manipulated, learned at college, got a diploma for it. You have no Harvard degree in glory. It's just not there. It's something, the competency, the glory and feeling in you, it comes as a gift from God. It's not of ourselves. We don't claim anything for ourselves, but our competency comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now here's Paul saying, here's my ministry and here's your ministry. It's not a ministry of the letter. It's not a ministry that kills. It's a ministry of the Spirit. And he has made us competent in the ministry of the Spirit. And this ministry of the Spirit, earlier in chapter 2, he says, wherever you go, there's an aroma. It's either of death or it's of the Spirit of life. And Paul is saying here, you have been given by your glorious Father in heaven, you have been given a competency to be a minister of the new covenant, Spirit of life. It's not just the ministry of the Spirit, but it's the Spirit of life. That's what it says, the Bible says about Jesus, He was a life-giving Spirit. Wherever He went, this fragrant aroma followed Him. The glory of God was, the kabod, the doxa, was in Him, and it was becoming fragrant to others around Him. I believe it was this more than an anointing, that when Paul and Peter walked down the street, the shadow, the shadow people were healed. It was the glory of God, resonant, the weightiness of God in His life. It was like, I don't know, maybe seeping through to His shadow. I don't want to build a theology around that, please. But there's this idea that God is moving through, and it's the Spirit of life. So you're giving out the Spirit of life, and you're receiving the Spirit of life. You are, like Jesus, a life-giving Spirit. It's Jesus in you that's breathing life to you and to others. But then Paul says, now glory's been around all along. There's always been glory, but previously to what is happening right now in this present day and age, previous to that, there was a glory, but it was, here's what he says in verse 7, Now, if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters of stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily on the face of Moses because of the glory, its glory fading, though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? So when Paul, or the Holy Spirit, is speaking of glory in you, he's speaking about a ministry of the Spirit, not a ministry of the flesh, not a ministry of yourself, not a ministry of your own endeavors, not a ministry of your own confidence or competency, but it's the Spirit in you just breathing out life, it's giving life, but there's something that's difficult with this one, three difficulties, one it says that it condemns, if the ministry that condemns men is glorious, it was glorious in the fact that it showed us what sin was, it showed us God's heart for a better way for us, but it didn't fill us with the glorious capacity to live that life in fullness, so it was glorious, but there was something more glorious coming, but in itself, it was a ministry that had to some degree a condemnation, it made you feel like I'm just not living up to that, I just can't do this, nothing will rob your glory with the shame of the sense of I can't look steadfastly into the face of this thing which I desire to live out, I can't continue to press on into this glory that I have, because my life, there's so much condemnation, I feel like such a failure, I feel like I'm just, I don't fit in, I know I go to Times Square Church and there's such great saints there and wonderful preaching and powerful music, but I just don't feel like I fit because I'm not good like that, I don't have those kind of qualities within me, and that's what, Paul is saying here, this condemns the heart, and it keeps you from looking, secondly he says, it's a glory that was fading away, you see this, it's a glory that is event oriented, ooh, Sunday night was a glorious night, man the spirit fell and I was just jumping and praising God, I was hallelujah, glory to God, hallelujah, and I left the church and I was like, what happened? Sometimes I wish you could, don't you wish you could bring the choir with you everywhere you go, wouldn't that be great, like you're on the subway and people are squeezing you and stepping on your toe and you're about ready to yell at somebody and they start singing, I got the victory, hallelujah, and you're just going, yeah, come on, and it fills you, but the problem with that which is veiled, that which doesn't steadfastly look into the glory of God, is that if it's not steadfastly looking into it, what does it do? It fades away, so number one, you have believers who have a hard time being steadfast in their look towards the Lord, they look at him for a while and then they draw away, others, it emotionally fades away, it's an emotional event, it's a highlight of their week, but then it fades, the glory what? Fades away, it's still in you, but it's not persistent and it's fading away, and then number three, Paul describes it as one that it's covered, it is, it has, verse 15, even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts, there's something covering the glory, now this is important, because you understand, you have a gift of God in you, it's his glory resident in you, and I know you're like me, you want to see that glory come out, but you often times find the same difficulties that I'm sure all of us face, that sometimes that seems fleeting, I stare at it for a while, but I draw back, I get a glimpse of it, I get an emotional appeal towards it, but then I lose it, and sometimes it just seems like there's a veil covering the glory, now if you remember another part where this veil is talked about, Paul has an unusual teaching here about kind of men and women in the church, and when they pray, men shouldn't have long hair, and women shouldn't have short hair, it's an interesting statement, but part of that, and I'm not going into that, except to say this, one of the things he says is that the woman's hair is her covering over her glory, it kind of covers the glory, and that's in a sense what, maybe a little bit different, but in a sense what's happening here, there's a veil, but not in a positive way, it's not covering the beauty and the glory in a good way, it's actually hindering the glory, when you veil something, when you cover it, number one, you can't get a full glimpse of what's out there coming in, the view is obstructed of what God intends you to see, so as you're looking steadfastly on him, you're not seeing him in his fullness, so the glory is obstructed and you're only receiving into your soul partial glory, but not only that, what I want to emphasize tonight is when that veil is covering your eyes, not only there's a diminishing of the glory coming in, but there's a withholding, like a dam in a reservoir, withholding the glory getting out, and some Christians have been withholding that inside for so long, pounding it down, pouring over it, covering it with layer, after layer, after layer, after reason, after reason, after excuse, after excuse, after false humility, after false humility, getting it so covered, they no longer believe there's any glory in them, they just feel like their life is just, I'm just kind of, wait until Jesus comes, over yonder, I can't wait to get to glory land, and when I get to glory land, then I'll be filled with glory, no, you're meant to be filled with glory now, it's meant to be residing in you, but this veil is covering it, now Paul does us a favor by extending this teaching by telling us what this veil is, so that's chapter four, therefore, through God's mercy, we have this ministry, now remember what the ministry is, it's the ministry of the spirit of life, so life is operating in him, there's no veil, so in a sense he's saying, because this veil is removed, there's a spirit of life operating in me, there's glory coming in and out, and therefore I don't lose heart, isn't that great, oh man, I really, really want to live a Christian life where I don't keep losing heart, now I know I'm not supposed to, and it's like, one day I'll get the message down right, and I won't be in victory one day, and I don't want to live by my feelings, but sometimes I lose heart, can I get a witness, sometimes I just, I don't really lose it, I mean it's still in my chest beating, I don't lose my Christian faith, I'm still in covenant with God, but there's just this sense, I'm not the only one, I travel all over the world doing pastors conferences, God's given me an opportunity sometimes to be a pastor to pastors, and it's a great privilege and responsibility, because I know that sometimes where God is asking me to be an aroma of life, or speak the word of life, or to minister in this life-giving spirit, that it's life and death for some pastors, if there's a pastors conference of 3 or 4 thousand pastors, sometimes there's a thousand or more at the altar, confessing they were ready, immediately, right now, they're saying, I'm ready to give up the ministry, I'm ready to quit, and when I talk to them afterwards, sometimes I try to pray with them and talk to them, it's almost always the same thing, I'm trying so hard, it's just not working, or God's pouring out his spirit over there on other people, and other churches, but my church is struggling, and it's hard, or it's a personal difficulty, I've prayed a thousand times to overcome this habitual pattern of sin, but it's still in my heart, and God's not answering my prayer, and I'm just ready to give up, I'm ready to lose heart, I can't go on another minute, now if that's pastors, and I'm not talking about, some of these pastors aren't pastors of like, you know, they meet in a small group at home with 6 people, some of these are pastors of churches of 5, 10, 15 thousand people, and they're coming up afterwards at the altar and saying, I'm ready to quit, because it's just, I'm losing heart, now if pastors are feeling that, I wonder if that's somewhat prevalent in the church as well, of some Christians who, and there are probably not many here, but I think there are some here tonight, who are beginning to wonder, does Christianity really work? Is this thing, either I'm doing it wrong, or it's not very good, either I'm missing something, because everything I try doesn't seem to be working, I'm still failing the same way I used to fail, I still struggle the way I used to struggle, my life seems a mess just the way it used to be, yeah I have this claim now of being a Christian, but something's got to change, there's got to be a power come into my life, that sets me free from this, and Paul is speaking here to the reasons for this spiritual condition, you want to know about it? The six of you that want to, will meet me at the side stage, this is glorious stuff, you should be like, verse 2, rather we have renounced, here's the NIV, I think it says something a little different than the King James, but listen to this one, rather we have renounced the secret and shameful ways, so before Paul, and before we, and before the Holy Spirit infuses us with the ability, to walk out the glory he's put in us, we have to, if we're going to stop losing heart, we're going to have to number one, renounce the shame in our heart, what is the shame in our heart? Oh no good, others, you're calling, the burning bush comes to the glory field, but me I'm just a lowly, nothing, but that's not God's language for you, I talked about that briefly Sunday afternoon, God speaks a different word over you, he speaks to this issue of your heart, and yet so many are trapped within this shamefulness, this sense of, and a brief definition is, guilt is I did something wrong, shame is I am wrong, guilt is I made a mistake, shame is I am a mistake, it's the very core, it's an existential dread, it's just my existence I dread it, because I don't live up to anybody's standards, and I'm unworthy, and there's no glory in me, and I fail and I fail and I fail, and I'm trouble and I'm trouble and I'm trouble, and it's confirmed by my parents, and it's confirmed by my boss, and it's confirmed by my wife, and people all around me seem to speak the same word over me, and it fills me with just the sense of, I'm just not any good, and even though I'm trying to be a Christian, I just still feel unworthy, and I feel like I can't really fit in, and I don't belong, see this is the shame that Corinthians is talking about, and it causes us to move into a place of secret, and here's where shame gets magnified, here's where shame truly attacks your glory, and that when it's a secret shame, it's not out in the open, it multiplies, it festers, it's like an infection that doesn't come to the operating table, it just increases like a cancer, it grows, it has to be dealt with where? In the open light, don't have time but the fourth chapter talks about that, bringing it to the light, the light of his glory, as it's warm so to speak, under the glory of God, things are transformed on the issue of shame in your heart, shame begins to dissipate, begins to disintegrate, begins to come to the light, and it's shown for what? The lie that it is, shame is a lie from the pit of hell, guilt is something God uses for your benefit, but shame is not a tool in his bag, it's from Satan, it's caused you to feel like you can't do it, you give up, and you've cried out to God a hundred times, and you're still doing the same thing, so either you're so bad that God can't do it, or maybe God's not so good, maybe he's not good enough, or strong enough, or cares enough about me to change me, so either something's wrong with me, or something's wrong with God, boom, you're filled with shame, and that's a veil that covers your eyes, and covers our minds, and when it does that, we can't be free to live in the glory, we can't be free to feel, and express, and experience, and think with our minds in terms of glory, we're thinking in terms of shame, and Satan will bombard you constantly, I will get it today, when I'm driving home through the Lincoln Tunnel, going back to New Jersey, I will get it, that sermon was this, I should have just said that, I didn't say that, and I should have said that, and I forgot that, and that one part when I was talking about the Lincoln Tunnel, I rambled on way too long talking about the Lincoln Tunnel, and Satan constantly tries to bombard, and it's not just like weak Christians who get bombarded by shame, every Christian gets bombarded by shame, if you don't ever sense you're getting bombarded by shame, you're probably blinded, and it's probably because you're so full of pride, you don't think there's anything wrong with you, I don't say that to shame you, maybe just a little bit, but that's in my flesh, but in the spirit God is saying, that he wants you to rid that veil of all shame, because if you don't, here's problem number two, if you don't, he says, we have renounced secret and shameful ways, listen to me carefully, he says, we do not use deception, so the danger with having shame as a secret in your heart, is when it is, the next step is always deception, I don't feel good about myself, I'm worthless, I'm no good, but I'm not going to let anybody else know that, that's a secret, but since I'm so bad and so messed up, and it's a secret, I can't let anybody else know, then I have to act good, and I have to act right, and I have to act holy, and I have to act spiritual, and I have to do all these type of things, and Paul is calling it a deception, we put on a deception, it's a false view to others, of who we want them to think who we are, it's not who we really are, it's not really our real glory in us, that's been covered by shame, and so now since that shame is repressing the true glory, you're trying to create a persona, that's filled with false glory, so you cling on to things, my job is, I'm a PhD of linguistics at NYU, and I heard you preach tonight, and you just murdered the English language, oh okay, so I see you get your glory, I see where you're getting your glory, there's different ways people, if you have a degree in linguistics, please don't take that wrong, I didn't mean to insult you, there's different ways people, try to put on this sense of glory, look at me do this, look how capable I am at this, I can make a lot of money, I can dress this way, I can drive this kind of car, why do people pay 60, 70, 80 thousand dollars for a car, that's going to cost them, it gets 10 miles to a gallon, and it's almost five dollars a gallon, now why do they do that, because I have a lot of money, I can drive my car here, and look good out the window, look at me, have you ever just sat in one of those cars, it's tempting, it really does make you feel good, I sit in one of those plush cars, and I feel like I'm really rich, I would take this for a drive, and roll down the window, and put my arm out, and press the muscle of the arm up against the window, and drive, and look good, as soon as people find out you're a preacher, all the glory goes, but man, there's this sense of getting your identity from possessions, or position, or power, or who you know, or how much, it has to do with numbers, and all kinds of different things, and we build this false self, that we want other people to see, and you can always tell when it's there, because they always volunteer it, out of the blue, boom, I just made $60,000 yesterday, on a great business deal, wow, can I borrow 10, that's fantastic, boom, they're right there, here's myself, and now, there's a difference, because some people they'll speak to, and you know it, you just hear the true glory, God did this, the spirit moved this way, these people were touched that way, God, I prayed, in humility, and he reached down, and he saved me from my financial trouble, I mean there's a real sense of, being able to speak freely God's glory, but there's this, when you're covered with shame, there's this emptiness in you, that tries to fill with life, I gotta hurry on, almost done, lastly, it says, nor do we distort the word of God, someone who's filled with shame, builds a false self, and then they come to the word of God, and they're reading, and translating, through the lens of their own deception, through their own self hatred, and looking to be edified, by the things they do, rather than the resident glory in them, the spirit of God living in them, and so they distort the word of God, here's an example, a guy sitting there in his study one week, and he's feeling down, and he's miserable, and he wants to make something of his life, and he reads, he who teaches the word, is worthy of double honor, oh, I know now, what God is calling me to do with my life, I am called to be a teacher of the word, now why, is it because you really have a gift, or a calling, no, the words were like a neon over Broadway, coupon, get it while it lasts, double honor, go to the church, sign up for the teaching ministry, become a teacher, and you'll get the double honor, you're not looking to use the glorious gift, God's given you, you're looking to fill the empty places, that shame has covered down, and I just want to say to you, if the shame represses the glory, the empty spaces where the glory is supposed to fill, is not filled, so it's going to fill it with distortion, of the word of God, and with deception, and you won't be able to find out, who God's called you to be, you won't know, that you know, that you know, that there's a glory, that God has called you into, the distorting of the word of God, leaves you dry and empty, Paul in conclusion says, we renounce this shame, we renounce this distortion, we renounce this deception, and then he goes on to say, because we are jars of clay, we're all broken right, we all, if you hold the light up to us, you'll see cracks in the jars of clay, you'll see that it's rolled around a little bit in the mud, and there's some dirt on it, that's not, it's an earthen vessel, it's a jar of clay, but what does the scripture say here, we have our treasure, in these jars of clay, so inside of you there's a treasure, and God is, tonight here's his message to you, if you'll renounce the shame, if you'll understand, that's not of my spirit, it's not a haughty, flaunting, self congratulating, look how glorious I am, but it's a thankful spirit that says, hey I'm not empty, and I'm not worthless, and I'm not useless, I have God's call on my life, I have the glory of God in my life, I am like Joseph, see the works of God, see the glory of God at work in my life, my friends you are blessed of the Lord, you are precious, you have given the blessing of the precious things of heaven, you've been given the blessing of the deep things lying beneath, you've been given priceless precious fruits, you've been given precious produce, you have in you the best of things, the precious things of earth and its fullness, you have within you God's favor of him who dwelt in the bush, and let this blessing come upon the head, and you fill in the blank, let's pray, Jesus we just say, let the blessing come upon the head of Gary, use your name, let the blessing of the Lord come upon, we just fill in our name and we say Jesus that, we want your blessing in our life, we want the blessing of your spirit to pour out on us God, we wish we had a ten step program of assurances to renounce shame, but honestly we don't, we just have to say, Abba help, Father help, the veil is only removed, the same chapter says through Christ Jesus, we have no strategies, we have no systems of man, no ten step program, a counselor can't pull it out of us, we need you Jesus to remove this veil, if you can tear the veil in the holy of holies, certainly you can tear this veil that would try to cover our mind, causing us to believe we're shameful beings, when you have called us glorious beings, and Jesus I ask you to help people in this church discover the glory within them, not the human glory, but the glory of God that resides in them, the design you have for their life, the power, the blessing, this is a powerful word, Lord we just say these words again, the doxa means praise, honor, splendor, brightness, magnificence, excellence, dignity and grace, and it's so hard for us to understand that there's any kind of splendor in our heart, or brightness, excellence, magnificence, dignity or grace, but God these are words you said, you put this doxa, you have given the doxa that the father gave to you Jesus, you gave to us, we have doxa in us, we have excellence, that's great, oh God let it explode in us, let it explode in us, you know C.S. Lewis said, if you looked at the person next to you, and really could see the glory of God, you'd be surprised, at how much glory is in the person next to you, those aren't exact words, but you'd be shocked, at the magnificence of that being, you just look at them and say like, yeah they're the one who drove me here tonight, they're just a friend that I meet here at church, but no God is saying, that person next to you, and you are being the person next to them, are just filled with this wonder and glory, I want you to stand if you would, I'm going to ask the worship team to come back, can we sing that song, if it's okay with you, if it's okay with you pastor, I want to do something slightly different tonight, and just give a little bit of a different kind of invitation, I want you to deal with shame at your seats, if you are struggling, listen to me carefully, if you're struggling, you're battling the battle of a lifetime with shame, and you're not able to say, man I've got the glory in me, the glory is being free to operate as God called me to be, I'm not worried, anxious, fearful, and you want that, stay in your seat until, and just pray God break the shame, break the deception, break the lie that says I'm unworthy, and when you sense, and the Holy Spirit and faith will break that, I want you to come to the front, and by coming to the front you're saying, I am leaving the shame at my seat, and I'm coming to receive the glory, if we could sing that song, the one we were singing, oh gosh I'm going to forget it, he calls my name, I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God, let's sing I am a friend of God, and if you don't feel that way, if you're having a hard time believing that, that you've got glory all coming out your ears, but it's clogged, and you believe tonight, the Holy Spirit wants to unclog it, open it all up, just boom explodes you with glory, if you have been hindered by shame, as soon as you feel that break in the spirit, step out of your seat, and say God I am a friend, you've called me friend, you know my name, you called me, and you filled me with your glory, let's sing that song, and come if you're sensing that, spirit of transformation take place in your life. Bless you Jesus, glory is being released in this place, thank you Jesus, thank you for doxa being released, for kabod coming out, thank you Jesus, long withheld dry places, long withheld veiled, now father I pray in the name of Jesus, because I do sense in the spirit, there's people here just feeling like, well it's not breaking, I can't come to the front, because it's not breaking, Holy Spirit just invite them to come in faith, and believe that you're the one who breaks it, if they're hesitant in their seat, it's probably because of shame, feeling like they don't have the power, and they don't Lord, we don't have the power, so we come, we surrender to you, if you're feeling the tug of the Holy Spirit, it's your heart, and you're just hesitant, because you're uncertain, that you have that glory, that you could contain it, that God could let it out of you, fill you with more of it, and express it in greater forms, and that shame is coming back, just take a step of faith, let's sing a song again, and you're coming forth declaring, I am God's friend, I have all his resources, I have the glory of God, he gave it to me, in Christ Jesus. Bless you Jesus. Lord, we just thank you, for those who have come forward, we just stand in awe of your good works, and we thank you Jesus, for setting people free, to those in darkness, you have said come out, and they've come, to those in prisons, you've said come, be set free, the shackles are broken, you're free from shame, from distortion of who you are, distortion of the word of God, thank you Jesus, bless you Jesus, thank you Father, we know that there's no self-centeredness, in this glory, the glory is something, that is totally given to you, it's not for our significance, it's for you God, we say now, that we would leave this church then, excited about what you're going to be doing in us, the Lord who spoke from the burning bush, is blessing us with his voice, calling us his beloved son, telling us there's never any condemnation, for those who are in Christ Jesus, the veil has been taken away, we can see clearly, the glory of God, and we can release clearly, the glory of God in us, can you say amen, amen, God bless you, thank you so much, do you have anything to say? Praise God, I hope you're encouraged tonight in the Lord, you know the prophet Isaiah said, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, there's not one righteous, not even one, but Jesus Christ came and died, and when he died, he took away that veil, he took away that as we heard tonight, the shame of sin, and all that sin had brought into every human life, and Paul says as we behold him now, Jesus Christ, we are changed, into that same image from glory to glory, God, the weightiness of God comes into our life, and God Almighty now living within us, changes us into this image, that God so clearly showed the world of himself through his son, praise be to God, if you're going to look at anything tonight, don't look in the mirror, you're not going to find it there, look at Jesus Christ, praise be to God, you'll find the glory, you'll find the glory, bless God, praise be to God, the glory of God is that within us, which brings God to reputation, and the only thing in me that brings Christ to reputation is Christ himself, I allow him to live his life in me, he brings his own name to reputation through me, praise be to God, let this be a day of change, a day when as you heard tonight, you put away the shame of the past, the shame that sin brought into your life, put it away, because that is done away at Christ, and accept this new life that is now yours, and let this radiance of Jesus begin to come through you, and flow through you, God almighty, thank you Lord, thank you Lord that you have defeated the power of shame, you have destroyed the one who put the covering of shame on all humanity, you defeated Satan himself at the cross of Calvary, God almighty, you brought everybody who has trusted in you into the newness of life, we thank you for it with all of our hearts, give you praise, give you glory, God bless you Gary, would you give Gary a great big hand of thanks tonight for being here, thank you.