"Bringing Many Sons Unto Glory"   

Hebrews 2:10

 

     The ultimate destination of God's elect is glory, eternal glory! Not one of the chosen shall fail to attain it. Not one true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ shall fail to obtain perfect, complete salvation at the right hand of the Majesty on high. This glory, which is the consummate perfection of eternal life, is the gift of God. "The LORD will give grace and glory" (Psa. 84:11). All to whom he gives grace, to them he shall also give glory. As he does not give grace by degrees, neither will he give glory by degrees.

     The teaching that there will be degrees in glory is utter nonsense. It is a doctrine totally without foundation in Holy Scripture and altogether opposed to the message of salvation by grace alone. There are no back settlements in the heavenly Canaan, where "second class citizens" live! There are no slums in the New Jerusalem! God is bringing his people into glory, not degrees of glory! John Blanchard was exactly right when he wrote, "Heaven is not a conditional reward, but a consummated relationship.

     Those who teach that there will be degrees in glory teach that believers will suffer for their sins, their lack of faithfulness, and their failures in the world to come. They are careful to say, "they will not suffer the wrath of God, but will suffer great loss." That doctrine still sounds a whole lot like the Roman doctrine of purgatory to me. It makes the greatest part of salvation, heavenly glory,a matter of works! Whoever devised that abominable doctrine, (the doctrine that there will be degrees of heavenly rewards given to the saints,depending upon their earthly works),knew nothing of the gospel of the free grace of God in Christ.

     It is written in the Scriptures that we who believe are "joint-heirs with Christ" (Rom. 8:17). That means, all that Christ has obtained as the reward of his obedience to God as our Mediator, we shall possess with him. All spiritual blessings belong to God's elect forever (Eph. 1:3). The very glory that God the Father gave his Son, the God-man, upon his return to heaven, Christ has given to us (John 17:5, 22). Our salvation will be finished when God has brought us unto and given us the possession of glory.

 

 

Don Fortner