Glory

By Connie Miller, Guest Writer


Today’s Treasure



So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.I

Corinthians 10:31

 

I was born and reared in the deep south.  Not just the deep-south, but born and reared in the Southeast Conference where every Saturday the game of football is not just a favorite pastime sport, but “the main event.” People have been known to schedule their wedding day and even women’s ministry events around college football home games. It’s a big deal. My husband played college football in the Southeast Conference. Our son played quarterback at a Division I school and began his coaching career at a top level, highly successful football program where his team celebrated the FBS National Championship in grand fashion all the way to a congratulatory visit to the nation’s capital and lunch with the president at the White House. Oh, the glory of it all!

It’s so easy to get caught up in the glory of any moment whether it’s a new relationship, a unique possession, or the excitement of game day.  We can often turn these blessings into self-erected idols when we place our joy and satisfaction in people and things more than we do God.  It’s a good reminder that God is the source of our joy, not creature-comforts or things devised by human hands. King David wrote:

Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.  Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness”

Psalm 29:1

God commands:

Have no other idols before Me.

Exodus 20:2

  • Matthew Barrett writes, “Idolatry is a lethal cut to the jugular of Divine glory.  It is the act of giving glory to the created rather than the Creator.”  

  • Paul Tripp calls idolatry, “humanity’s great spiritual dysfunction when we allow the creation to replace the Creator in our hearts.”  

  • John Calvin wrote, “Man’s nature is a perpetual factory of idols.”

God is The Supreme Being and He alone has the right to be the center of all that is.  Jesus taught that we are to “seek first His Kingdom” (Matthew 6:33) and the great and first commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind” (Matthew 22:37).  This is exactly what God had against the church at Ephesus when He admonished them for losing their first love (Revelation 2).   Paul reminds the Corinthians, “so whether you eat or drink, whatsoever you do, do all for the glory of God.” (I Corinthians 10:31).  Our Shorter Catechism asks, “What is man’s highest and chief end?  To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” In other words, we are to make much of Him, to love Him first and foremost, and to bring Him glory.  

LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT

So what?   We’re not on the sidelines as believers in Christ.  Christianity is not a spectator sport.  We are fully engaged in the game of life complete with a spiritual uniform that God has provided as Paul reminds us to “put on” in Ephesian 6 and be warrior-ready.  The great battle is between two kingdoms. As believers, we are on the winning side, for Jesus is the One who delivered the fatal death blow and crushed our adversary when He defeated death and rose from the grave.  We are victorious in Christ and “more than conquers” (Romans 8:37).  So, no matter what we face on earth’s battlefield we can bring glory to God in the way we respond to life’s challenges and victories. We can glorify God in the way we obey His Word and act as God-pleasers versus people-pleasers when faced with compromising situations.   

 John Piper put it well when he coined the statement, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.”  Faithfulness to God in the dailiness of life and being satisfied in Him in the midst of the mundane whether changing a diaper, doing a desk job, driving in traffic, or saying “Thank you, Jesus” in all things, are ways we can bring glory to God.  John, the disciple, and forerunner of Jesus said it well, “He must increase, but I must decrease."  

What now?  We may never visit the White House or glory in a national championship, but as believers, we are heirs of King Jesus and one day we will reside in the House of Zion.  Our permanent home will be in the new heavens and earth in the forever presence of our Triune God.  Beloved, as the Psalmist writes, “Glorify the Lord with me, let us exalt His name together!” (Ps 34:3)  

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, forgive us when we forget to put You first in all things.  Help us in all we do, whether we eat or drink, whatever we do, to glorify You.  Help us to live our utmost for Your highest glory and honor forever and ever. Amen.  

Are there other women in your life who could benefit from a daily dose of encouragement? Forward this email so they can click on this link to Subscribe to Daily Treasure to be better equipped to walk by faith on the pathway God has marked out for them.

Sharon W. Betters is the author of Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, co-author of Treasures of Faith. and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace, Flourishing in an Anti-Aging Culture. She is Director of Resource Development and co-founder of MARKINC.org, a non-profit organization that offers help and hope to hurting people. Sharon enjoys quality time with her husband, children, fourteen grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.

WSS Part 8Connie MillerMay 2022Comment