Did you know you are specially made for God’s glory? The glory of God was a gift to mankind in creation, and it is also the inheritance of every child of God.
Jesus prayed to the heavenly Father on the eve of His crucifixion, “I have given them the glory which You gave Me, that they may be one even as We are one” (John 17:22).
Jesus has given believers the same glory the Father gave Him.
When we enter into God’s glory, we dwell in His very presence, receive His love and grace, understand His heart, learn His will and experience His divine power. That power transforms lives—saving, healing and delivering—and enacts miracles and wonders that reveal God’s majesty.
The questions we must therefore answer for ourselves are: What will we do with this revelation? How can we live according to the glory we’ve received from Jesus?
Entering into God’s glory requires revelation, and receiving revelation requires an understanding of the interrelationship between three dimensions of the supernatural: faith, anointing and glory.
- Faith – Romans 12:3 tells us that everyone has been given a “measure of faith” by God. He gave us this measure of faith to enable us to interact with the spiritual realm while physically living on earth. Faith is the believer’s spiritual antenna to “hear” beyond the natural dimension; it “is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1).
Just before raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus said to Martha, Lazarus’ sister, “Did I not say to you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” (John 11:40). Faith is a prerequisite for seeing the glory because having faith means you believe in what God can do. It is the ability to believe the “unreasonable” or “impossible.”
There is a difference between believing for something with the measure of faith that God has given us and God exercising His own faith. The realm of “glory” is the latter—God Himself in faith and action—what He believes and does on His own, compared to what we believe based on our faith and what we are able to do based on our anointing. But there’s a prerequisite to seeing God Himself in the dimension of glory, and that is our faith.
2. Anointing – There are several aspects of the anointing for us to consider. First, just as each believer has been given a measure of faith, he or she has been given a measure of anointing, or a particular gift or gifts to fulfill God’s purposes. The anointing is the power of God, provided to enable believers to carry out the work of the ministry. It is also used to send men and women into the ministry. (See Eph. 4:11–13, Acts 13:1–3.) In the Old Testament, the glory of God fell on the tabernacle after the priests, the altar and the utensils had been anointed. So the anointing is God’s power working through us to do what He wants done on earth. He may say to one person, “You are called to be a missionary, so I will give you a portion of My power, as well as the necessary faith to enable you to fulfill this calling.”
It has been my experience that each measure of anointing given to a believer is made up of various levels. One level is equivalent to a “step” that must be taken or ascended as we progress in our ability to move in that anointing and grow spiritually in relation to it. No step can be skipped, because each step represents an essential aspect of maturity in spiritual matters. We must go from step to step, or from level to level, without missing one, until we reach the level at which we have fully developed the measure of the anointing we have received. When we reach the last level, we can do nothing further in terms of our anointing—we have reached the fullness of that measure. At this point, the only option available to us is to enter into the glory.
Having the anointing is not the same thing as moving in the glory, which includes all of God’s attributes. The anointing is a part of God, operating through us. Also, it is only one aspect of His power because there are many aspects to the power of God. For example, God’s power in the area of ministry is called the “anointing,” the power of God in the area of law is called “authority,” and the power of God in the area of spiritual warfare is called “might.” The power of God in the area of territory is called “dominion,” which is the highest level of power. Therefore, we can’t really refer to “the power of God” as if it were all the same.
In 2 Corinthians 5:4–5, we learn that God has given us the Spirit as a “guarantee,” “deposit” (NIV), or down payment for the glory. It is the mark of our destiny. The anointing (as well as faith) prepares us to receive the glory, which is God’s manifest presence. In short, faith calls the anointing, but the anointing calls the glory.
3. Glory – We can operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit by faith and the anointing if we know how the principles that activate them operate. However, the glory of God is different. The glory is the manifest presence—shekinah—of God. It testifies of heaven and the “powers of the age to come” (Heb. 6:5b). The manifest presence operates according to God’s sovereignty. He does what He wants, when He wants and in the way He wants, without depending on our faith, gifts or anointing. It is God doing His works without bringing in the participation of human beings. I strongly believe that the last move of God upon the earth will not come through a man or woman but directly from God.
The presence of God cannot be provoked, stirred up or manufactured. Yet His presence can be attracted through worship. God has often healed, delivered and transformed people during a church service without the use of my faith or anointing; these were sovereign acts of our heavenly Father. When the glory of God is present, we don’t think about the person who may be imparting to us an aspect of that glory. God takes the initiative and works according to His will. The glory or presence of God supersedes all gifts, anointing, faith or ministerial functions—though, of course, all these things come from Him and are used by Him to build up His church.
Are you experiencing the glory of God in your own life? You need to have a revelation of God’s glory so you can experience its manifestation. Then, as you encounter the presence of God, you will be changed, transformed and ignited by spiritual passion. Don’t stay in the same place—there’s more for you in God than what you are now experiencing. {eoa}
Edited excerpt from The Glory of God, © 2012 by Guillermo Maldonado, published by Whitaker House. Used with permission.
Active in ministry for over 20 years, best-selling author Apostle Guillermo Maldonado is the founder of King Jesus International Ministry—one of the fastest-growing multicultural churches in the United States—which has been recognized for its visible manifestations of God´s supernatural power. He is a spiritual father to 400 churches in 70 countries, which form the Supernatural Global Network. He is also the founder of the University of the Supernatural Ministry (USM). Apostle Maldonado has a doctorate in Christian counseling and a master’s degree in practical theology.
Stephen Strang 
Charisma Media Staff 
CBN News