“…the Father of glory…”
I began studying the Apostolic Prayer found in Ephesians 1:17-19 in the prayer room today. It starts out, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory…” Well, I stopped on “the Father of glory,” which was the first clue that God was wanting to let this prayer become a part of my heart. The chord that was struck was, of course, the otherness of God, but also the “glory.” Now in the greek the word for glory used here is: “doxa” (dox’-ah), and is a wider application of the concept meaning: dignity, glory(-ious), praise, honor, worship. Maybe that’s where we get “Doxology.” Usually when I hear “glory,” I think bright light, hosts of angels, more powerful than a waterfall, and more overwhelming than an atomic bomb. But in this context (while God is still all of the above) it is a more subtle otherness in this case. I’m drawn to my knees out of the pure fact that God being my “Father of glory” means that He is in fact the one thing in my life that is truely worthy to receive all dignity, glory, praise, honor, and worship. All other things will pass away. My family, my career, my body, my earthly possessions, all things will pass away. Today when I pray the prayer from Ephesians 1, I’m praying to the constant one who is all I have, when all is stripped away.
“Father of glory, here I come stripped of all things. I bow to You and Your ways, desiring only Your gaze. You alone are worthy. While the world rages in the whirlwind of history and of the present, I bow to You, thirsty to hear You and You alone speak “Peace” into the whirlwind of my life. Glory to You…and just You. Amen.”