“And they glorified God in me.” (Galatians 1:24)
It is amazing to read in the Scriptures that the God of glory can actually receive yet more glory through His people. But that is what happened in Paul. When he became a Christian, his life changed completely, and those who saw the change glorified God in Paul.
Jesus prayed that this would be so, not only in Paul, but in all His followers. In the upper room before His crucifixion, He prayed: “I pray for them . . . which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them” (John 17:9-10).
He is glorified when we, like Paul, become His. But then He is further glorified as we grow in Him. Paul himself prayed for those whom he had seen come to Christ: “Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power: That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him . . .” (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12).
Finally, He shall be glorified when He comes again. “When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven. . . . he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe . . .” (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10).
As we give glory to Christ in word and deed, He truly was, and is, and will be, glorified in His saints. This is a privilege greater than can be measured, which more than compensates for any opposition this generates from the world. “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified” (1 Peter 4:14). Therefore, “let your light so shine before men, that they may . . . glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). HMM
