The Weight of Glory
When you encounter trials, ask the Spirit to give you grace to “count it all joy!”
Shaana: This is Shaana on Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope. One of the most encouraging Bible verses for any Christian who is suffering loss or pain is 2 Corinthians 4:17, and here it is: "For this light and momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison."
Well, Joni, since we've been talking all week about our sufferings on earth and how they connect us to heaven, I want to hear your thoughts on that eternal weight of glory. I'm thinking that idea alone must get you excited!
Joni Eareckson Tada: Oh my goodness, Shaana, I have thought a lot about that weight of glory in heaven. To me, it's astounding that our earthly afflictions and how we respond to them have a direct impact on that, on everything about our life for all of eternity. If when we suffer, we yield to God our selfish rebellion and in turn cultivate patience and perseverance, oh, what a weight of glory is in store for us!
I love that word "glory" because our afflictions accrue for us a massive glory. The kind of glory that is perfect holiness, unfiltered fellowship with the Triune God, being transformed by one look from Jesus, and entering into our inheritance. There's more to that weight of glory, like our resurrected bodies, having perfect communion with all the saints of God, judging fallen angels, crushing Satan beneath our feet, and reigning in majesty forever with Jesus Christ.
Best of all, beholding the beauty and worthiness of Him forever and ever. All this and more carries a lot of significance, a lot of weight, as it were. When we experience that kind of glory, we will overflow with exceeding joy, and even our joy will be profound and riddled with meaning, significance, and weight.
Jonathan Edwards described the weight of glory as an infinite density of joy, beauty, and satisfaction. Your earthly sufferings, your tears and hardships, your faithfulness in a difficult marriage, or your long years of caregiving, your chronic medical condition that you steadfastly endured—all your sufferings will seem light and momentary compared to the glory that your trials are accruing as you have a godly response.
They will seem featherweight, all because of your trust in God through Jesus Christ. As the Apostle Peter wrote in his first epistle, "We rejoice in so far as we share in Christ's sufferings that we may also rejoice and be glad when His glory is revealed." So, share in the sufferings of Jesus now, and you will share in His unspeakable joy in heaven.
To sum it up, the weight of glory is not primarily about crowns or lots of rewards. It is Jesus Christ. It is He who gives weight to the glory. John 17:24 expresses it best when Jesus prays, "Father, I want these whom You have given Me to be with Me where I am, then they can see all the glory You gave Me."
I am calling upon the Holy Spirit, and I want you, listening friend, to join me. Let's call upon the Spirit to help us in our trials to transform our temporal earthly view of them. Let's ask the Spirit to give us grace to count it all joy when we have trials because we want them to accrue for us this astounding weight of glory.
Shaana: I am definitely joining you in that, Joni. You've given us a lot to act upon. I am grateful you have put so many of these reflections in your new booklet, *The Hope of Heaven*. Listening friend, you can get your free copy today at joniradio.org.
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Drawing on decades of personal experience, including her own journey through paralysis, loss, and chronic pain, Joni speaks with both compassion and conviction. Each short reading invites reflection, prayer, and renewed trust in God’s presence even when life’s circumstances feel overwhelming.
“When life hurts, our faith can feel fragile but God’s love remains unshaken,” Joni writes. Keeping Faith When Life Hurts helps readers anchor their hearts in Scripture and discover strength not in denial of pain but in confident dependence on God.
Featured Offer
Drawing on decades of personal experience, including her own journey through paralysis, loss, and chronic pain, Joni speaks with both compassion and conviction. Each short reading invites reflection, prayer, and renewed trust in God’s presence even when life’s circumstances feel overwhelming.
“When life hurts, our faith can feel fragile but God’s love remains unshaken,” Joni writes. Keeping Faith When Life Hurts helps readers anchor their hearts in Scripture and discover strength not in denial of pain but in confident dependence on God.
About Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope
Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope is a broadcast ministry of Joni and Friends committed to bringing the Gospel and practical help to people impacted by disability around the world. Joni and Friends has been advancing disability ministry for over 40 years. Their mission to glorify God, communicate the Gospel and mobilize the global church to evangelize, disciple and serve people living with disability answers the call found in Luke 14 to “bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame… so that my house will be full.”
About Joni Eareckson Tada
Joni Eareckson Tada is an esteemed Christian stateswoman and respected global leader in disability advocacy. Although a 1967 diving accident left her a quadriplegic, she emerged from rehabilitation with a determination to help others with similar disabilities. Mrs. Tada serves as CEO of Joni and Friends, a Christian organization which provides programs and services for thousands of special-needs families around the world. President Reagan appointed Mrs. Tada to the National Council on Disability, then reappointed by President George H.W. Bush. During her tenure, the ADA was passed and signed into law. Mrs. Tada served as advisor to Condoleezza Rice on the Disability Advisory Committee to the U.S. State Department. She served as Senior Associate for Disability Concerns for the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. The Colson Center on Christian Worldview awarded Joni Tada its prestigious William Wilberforce Award, and she was also inducted into
Indiana Wesleyan University’s Society of World Changers.
Joni Eareckson Tada has been awarded several honorary degrees, including Doctor of Humanities from Gordon College and Doctor of Divinity from Westminster Theological Seminary. She is an effective communicator, sharing her inspirational message in books, through artwork, radio, and other media. Joni Tada served as General Editor of the Beyond Suffering Bible, a special edition published by Tyndale for people affected by disability. Joni and her husband Ken were married in 1982 and reside in Calabasas, California.
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