How To Glorify God ~ 20170122 ~ Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org
01/22 How to Glorify God; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20170122_how-to-glorify-god.mp3
Last week we looked at the primary purpose of the church and of each of us as followers of Jesus. We exist, according to Ephesians 1, to the praise of his glorious grace, to the praise of his glory, to the praise of his glory (Eph.1:6, 12, 14). As the Westminster Shorter Catechism begins "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever" (1647). Romans 15 tells us that we are 'to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,' so
Romans 15:6 that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Angelic beings in Isaiah 6 declare
Isaiah 6:3 ... “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
The Psalmist declares
Psalm 86:12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.
In Psalm 106 as in Romans 1, sinners are condemned because:
Psalm 106:19 They made a calf in Horeb and worshiped a metal image. 20 They exchanged the glory of God for the image of an ox that eats grass. 21 They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt, 22 wondrous works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
Philippians tells us that one day
Philippians 2:10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Peter tells us to so use our gifts, in dependence on God,
1 Peter 4:11 ...—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
1 Cornithians tells us
1 Corinthians 6:20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Jesus tells us to
Matthew 5:16 ...let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
We exist for the glory of God. We are meant to glorify God. The glory of God is to be our chief aim, our primary purpose. If this is true then some questions must follow. What is the glory of God? And how do I glorify God?
The Glory of God and Spiritual Blindness
First, what is the glory of God? If my primary purpose is to glorify God, then I need to understand what I am aiming for. If we don't have a grasp of a biblical definition of God's glory, then we won't have a clue how to live for the glory of God. We must perceive the glory of God in order to live for the glory of God. And this is spiritual work that requires supernatural help. We are told in 2 Corinthians 4 that
2 Corinthians 4:4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
So there is a spiritual blindness upon unbelievers to prevent them from seeing God's glory in Christ. This blindness requires a sovereign act of God to overcome.
2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Sovereign God, open our eyes that we may behold your glory in the face of Jesus!
The Glory of God; Light and Weight
I see in scripture, mainly two aspects to the glory of God; light and weight. This passage in 2 Corinthians speaks of the light of the good news of the glory of Christ; the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. The book of Revelation tells us that
Revelation 21:23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
God's glory is compared to light, radiance, brightness, shining, brilliance, display. God's glory is the shining forth of who he is, the brilliant display of his character and nature, the radiant brightness of his being. It is an outward appearance or making known of his invisible being and personality.
In the Old Testament, we see another aspect of God's glory. The Hebrew word for glory is 'kabod', and it literally means heaviness or weightiness. Remember back to Leviticus 9, when the tabernacle was complete, the priests were set apart, the people were gathered, and Aaron the first high priest was to offer the first sacrifices to God in the holy tabernacle. At the end of chapter 9, Aaron had offered the sacrifices,
Leviticus 9:23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. 24 And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.
And then we read in chapter 10, that in the midst of this awesome moment, two of Aaron's sons did something God had not commanded and offered strange fire before the Lord. And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them.
Leviticus 10:3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” And Aaron held his peace.
God is to be taken seriously. God is not to be trifled with. God is sanctified, holy, set apart, in a class by himself, utterly unique and unparalleled. The weightiness of God's character must be revered.
In the Exodus, Moses and Aaron went to the Pharaoh of Egypt declaring 'thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Let my people go...' (Ex.5:1),
Exodus 5:2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”
Back in Exodus 3, from the burning bush, God had told Moses,
Exodus 3:19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.
After God wrecked Egypt, after the Pharaoh had commanded them to leave, but before they crossed the Red Sea, God gave Moses instruction and said:
Exodus 14:4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.” ... (also 14:17,18)
'Who is YHWH, that I shold obey his voice?' 'I will get glory over Pharaoh... all shall know that I am the LORD." God will be taken seriously. God will be seen as significant. He will be feared and respected, seen as weighty. He will be glorified in all the earth.
Glory is light and weight; God's glory is the brilliant display of the weightiness of his character.
How We Glorify God; Drink and Do
So
if we are meant to glorify God, and glory is the brilliant display
of the weightiness of his awesome being, how do we glorify God? How
do we promote and advance the glory of God? How do we live lives
that glorify him? We understand what we are to be about, both as
individuals and as the church. How do we go about it?
I'm
going to give you a simple, easy to remember way to glorify God in
your life. Drink and Do. It's that simple. Drink and Do. What do I
mean by that?
The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever." in his book Desiring God, John Piper points out that we glorify God by enjoying him forever.
Think of a pristine mountain spring, high in the alps, untouched, perfect. Its water is clear and cool. It bubbles up of its own and will never run dry. How do you glorify the spring? By taking your ten cent grocery store bottle of water you carried on the hike and pouring what is left of it into the spring, to contribute to it? Or do you glorify the spring by getting down on your knees beside the spring, putting your parched lips to the water and drinking deeply? Do you glorify the spring by laying down in the grass and listening to the melody of its babbling? To glorify the spring is to enjoy the spring. Allow the spring to satisfy your thirst. Be envigorated by the cool water. Regain strength to hike back down the mountain and tell others what a treasure you discovered. To glorify God is to enjoy God, to drink deeply of God, to allow him to satisfy your deepest longings, to receive strength from him for the journey, to tell others about the pleasure you receive from him.
Listen to the prophet Isaiah
Isaiah 12:1 You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me. 2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORDGOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” 3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. 4 And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. 5 “Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth. 6 Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”
Glorify God in thanksgiving. Glorify God that because of Jesus, his anger is turned away. Glorify God by depending on him, trusting in him, allowing him to free you from all fear. Draw sustenance with joy from his limitless supply of salvation. Glorify God by calling on his name for help in times of trouble. Make his name known. Sing his praises. Shout! Sing! Publish abroad his all satisfying greatness.
Listen to the Psalms:
Psalm 63:1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Psalm 36:8 They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
Psalm 34:8 Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
There is a warning here. If you are filled up with other things, you won't enjoy the life giving water. When my kids aren't hungry for the home-cooked meal on the table, we begin to diagnose the cause. When did you last eat? What did you eat? When they have been snacking all afternoon on chips and candy and soda, they are not going to be hungry for real food. We cram our lives full of activity and media and amusement and general busyness and stuff, and we wonder why we don't have an appetite for spiritual things. We can stuff our souls so full of things that don't fulfill us, that there is no room for the only one who can satisfy.
Listen to Jesus:
Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
John 6:35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
Glorifying God means drinking deeply of God, going to him with your thirst, with your longings, finding enough, more than enough to satisfy in him. Glorifying God means to drink from him with joy.
Doing and Not Doing
I said glorifying God means drinking and doing. Let me clarify what I mean by 'do' and what I do not mean by 'do'.
Allow me to switch analogies. The vacuum cleaner salesman comes to your door. He's selling the latest model of Kirby, and he is out to convince you that it is the best vacuum ever made. If you were able to go to his house, you had better find two things. First, you'd better find a clean carpet, and second, you'd better find a Kirby in his closed. If you found a Hoover, you'd call him a hypocrite. That's the first point. Don't try to sell a product you haven't tried or don't believe in. Drink first.
But this is to clarify the second point, what I don't mean by 'do'. If the vacuum salesman comes to your door with his Kirby, and he shows you how great it is, but then he begins to tell you that he has actually made some modifications to his vacuum, that he has shortened the hose to increase the suction, that he has replaced the motor with a more powerful and longer lasting one, and that he took a grinder to the metal casing to make it lighter, you would not say he is glorifying the vacuum by his improvements and modifications. Instead he is pointing out the flaws in the design and trying to fix them.
Or back to the mountain spring. You do not glorify the spring by taking pilgrimages carrying gallons of tap water on your back to contribute to the spring. That is not what I mean by 'do'. We cannot contribute anything to God except our need, and an opportunity for him to show himself strong.
What I do mean by 'do' is this. If you are not thirsty you will not enjoy the refreshing water. You must come thirsty, come needy, come desperate. The depth of your appreciation for the fountain will be directly proportionate to your awareness of your own need. Many of us need to do. Do something. Go on a hike. Get thirsty. Many of us need to do. Try to live a holy life. Try to love your neighbor as yourself. Try to put the needs of others ahead of your own. Try to convince others of their need for Christ. As you do, you will become acutely aware of your desperate need, your inability, and it will drive you back to the only source of life giving water, and you will drink more deeply.
Prayer, Bible, Sermons
Let me connect this to prayer. Prayer is an expression of need and dependence on God. If you are not aware of your need, you will not pray. Desperate people pray. Even those who say they do not believe in God will pray when they sense the sheer hopelessness of their situation. Many Christians seek to improve their prayer life. Instead, attempt to raise children that want to love and follow Jesus. Seek to be content with what you have. Pursue unity with someone you disagree with. Attempt to proclaim God's word every week. Live with character and integrity. Give biblical counsel to someone who is struggling. Love your wife like Christ loved the church. Refrain from speaking poorly of others. Seek to be a blessing to a person in need. Be a good employee and don't grumble or complain. Have your neighbor over for dinner. Walk on water. As you do, you will begin to perceive more acutely your desperate need for God. You can't do it on your own. “Apart from me you can do nothing” Jesus said (Jn.15:5). Begin to do, and it will drive you to drink deeply of the limitless resources in God.
We can connect this to listening to sermons and bible reading. If there is a lecture offered on the relationship of diet to the growth of cancer cells you may be curious and listen. You may have a general sense of the importance of healthy eating, and you may not have anything better to do at that time. You may enjoy the delivery of the presenter, or be mildly annoyed by his accent, or think that his visual aids are not very well done. You may lose interest and begin to think about what's for dinner and wonder if it will give you cancer, and wonder if this will make you late for it. Would it be rude to get up and leave before it is over? But if your child has been diagnosed with cancer, you will be listening in a whole new way. Your desperation will create in you an attentiveness that nothing else can. As we become aware of the devastating disease of our spiritual need, our spiritual helplessness and hopelessness, our ears will be eager to hear from God.
Expect Great Things; Attempt Great Things
William Carey, a missionary to India, known as the father of modern missions, preached a sermon in Nottingham England in 1792, encouraging involvement in foreign missions. His points were "Expect great things from God; Attempt great things for God." God is glorified when we expect him to do great things, because we see that he is great, and believe that he is able to do great things. God is glorified when we come to him as the all satisfying source and expect him to be more than enough to slake our own thirst and give us the strength to carry water down the mountain for others. God is glorified when we attempt great things for him, things that are beyond us, things that require him to show up in awesome and glorious ways so that it is evident to all that he alone deserves the praise for the great thing he has done.
Attempt great things for God. In the attempt, you will see acutely your need. Develop a spiritual appetite - by doing. Drink, and do, and drink some more.
Allow your need, your thirst, your lack to demonstrate and display the weightiness of God, the rock solid substantial-ness of God; let God be glorified as you drink deeply from him and attempt great things for him.
1 Peter 4:11 ...—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org