FOR GOD'S GLORY
Series: Vision Month
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 21st November 2015
Passage: Isaiah 6:1-13
00:00:00 --> 00:00:07 It was nearly 10 years ago since I met the most famous person that I've ever met.
00:00:08 --> 00:00:14 And when I say met them, they waved at me.
00:00:15 --> 00:00:20 And when I say me, it was potentially the guy beside me, but most likely me.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:25 I was in Sacramento, California, for the National Youth Work Convention.
00:00:25 --> 00:00:33 And at the end of a small group, I decided to go and grab some lunch before catching a flight home.
00:00:34 --> 00:00:42 As we walked out of the convention center and down into the mall, I noticed just to my left,
00:00:42 --> 00:00:49 a couple of black cars parked in the mall, SUVs with blacked out windows and all that.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:58 And it was at that point that I noticed that one had a submachine gun and the other one had a shotgun poking up just above the dash.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:06 Each car had a couple of guys in them wearing black suits, wearing white shirts with black ties and black sunglasses.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:14 And so it was either a remake of Men in Black or potentially, my hope was that it was the Secret Service.
00:01:14 --> 00:01:27 Given that the shotgun was a Remington 870 12 gauge and the machine gun was a Heckler-Kosh MP5 9mm, chosen weapons of the Secret Service,
00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 I figured it was in fact the Secret Service.
00:01:30 --> 00:01:36 And the fact that they also had an earpiece and were talking into their hands kind of gave it away as well.
00:01:37 --> 00:01:42 I noticed in that moment, quickly looking around, that there were various Secret Service guys in the mall.
00:01:42 --> 00:01:50 So, it's either they're on protection duty or something pretty crazy is about to go down.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:53 So, either way, I figured I'm going to get a front row seat to see what happens.
00:01:54 --> 00:02:01 And so, grabbed a spot right near this barricade and started chomping on a burger.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:10 And what I'd been hoping for the whole time that I was in Sacramento was to run into the governor of California,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:16 one of the greatest actors and philosophical thinkers of all time, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
00:02:18 --> 00:02:20 And I wasn't disappointed.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:32 I was chomping on my burger when all of a sudden, he appeared from a restaurant about 50 metres from where I was seated.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:39 And a friend and I, in that moment, who were both chomping and almost choking at this point,
00:02:39 --> 00:02:47 we both jumped up onto our chairs and over the tops of the screams of the adoring fans,
00:02:47 --> 00:02:51 we called out like a couple of teenagers at a Bieber concert,
00:02:52 --> 00:02:54 Hey, Arnie!
00:02:54 --> 00:02:54 Arnie!
00:02:54 --> 00:02:55 Arnie!
00:02:57 --> 00:03:04 And he turned and he waved at me.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:12 As did the Secret Service, turn and not wave but look at us.
00:03:12 --> 00:03:15 And in that moment, you've got his attention.
00:03:16 --> 00:03:22 Arnold Schwarzenegger, you know, have you watched Kindergarten Cop?
00:03:22 --> 00:03:25 I mean, come on!
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 The guy's a comedy actor as well.
00:03:28 --> 00:03:29 And there he is.
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32 And he's looking at me and we're waving.
00:03:32 --> 00:03:36 And the only thing that I could think of in that moment was,
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 We'll be back!
00:03:42 --> 00:03:44 He looked as if he'd heard it before.
00:03:44 --> 00:03:51 Now, to mark this personal milestone, I quickly took a couple of shots,
00:03:51 --> 00:03:53 which I'm hoping to pass on to my children.
00:03:54 --> 00:03:56 So up here, that's him right there.
00:03:59 --> 00:04:01 The next one's a bit clearer.
00:04:02 --> 00:04:02 Next one, Tim.
00:04:03 --> 00:04:04 That's his nose!
00:04:05 --> 00:04:10 That's him just appearing from behind there, the pole.
00:04:10 --> 00:04:15 Well, they are treasured memories of mine, those two photos,
00:04:15 --> 00:04:20 of the moment that I met Arnold Schwarzenegger, kind of.
00:04:22 --> 00:04:25 Now, if you could be famous for one thing, what would it be?
00:04:27 --> 00:04:32 You see, there's a weird fascination in our world with celebrity.
00:04:32 --> 00:04:40 A recent study in the United States revealed that 54% of teenagers want to be famous.
00:04:41 --> 00:04:46 Of those that crave fame, 68% said they weren't sure how on earth it was ever going to happen.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:55 But 21% of them said that they would audition for reality TV shows in hope to become famous.
00:04:55 --> 00:04:59 Things like Britain's Got Talent and The X Factor in order to reach the masses.
00:04:59 --> 00:05:04 You see, reality TV has become enormously popular.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:07 It drives me nuts.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:11 I hate any form of reality TV.
00:05:13 --> 00:05:17 Except for maybe Escape to the Country, if that's reality TV.
00:05:17 --> 00:05:18 I'm not really sure.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:22 You see, what it does, what reality TV does,
00:05:22 --> 00:05:28 it holds out the promise that any average smuck might be able to become famous for some ridiculous talent.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:33 They might have that one shot at fame.
00:05:34 --> 00:05:37 Now, fame is a major goal in life.
00:05:37 --> 00:05:47 Apparently, Alexander the Great was the first person to have a celebrity culture in the modern sense of the word.
00:05:47 --> 00:05:56 That's according to an English professor who authored a book called The Frenzy of Renown.
00:05:57 --> 00:06:04 And he wrote, not only did he want to be unique, but he wanted to tell everyone about it.
00:06:04 --> 00:06:07 And he had an apparatus for telling everyone about it.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:11 He had techniques for doing famous things.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:22 He had historians, painters, sculptors, and gem carvers, bringing him along as entourage for every one of his battles.
00:06:24 --> 00:06:30 He wanted them to record that Alexander was famous.
00:06:30 --> 00:06:36 Now, we don't need historians and painters and sculptors and gem carvers.
00:06:36 --> 00:06:42 We've got Instagram and Facebook and selfie sticks,
00:06:43 --> 00:06:51 recording every meal that we eat, every place that we visit.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:55 Self-obsession.
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 We want to leave our mark.
00:06:59 --> 00:07:04 We want to be known for something significant or to be regarded highly as an expert in a field.
00:07:04 --> 00:07:08 We want to be, may not necessarily to be worldwide fame.
00:07:08 --> 00:07:09 If we could get that, that would be awesome.
00:07:09 --> 00:07:19 It may be just famous in Australia or even in a country or in a city or have a street named after you.
00:07:22 --> 00:07:28 Someone in Nat's family has had a park named after them.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:39 They've got an album this thick of all the photos, of all the articles about them, about this park.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:48 Maybe it's just want to be the best in your family or something or even to have a park on the wall at church
00:07:48 --> 00:07:54 or just simply ensuring that I am remembered.
00:07:57 --> 00:08:02 We live life to make our name great, to make it remembered.
00:08:02 --> 00:08:10 My kids won't give a rip about those photos or the moment that I, Arnold Schwarzenegger,
00:08:11 --> 00:08:15 they won't even know who he is by the time they grow up.
00:08:15 --> 00:08:22 Our mission statement says that we exist for a different purpose than making ourselves great and famous.
00:08:22 --> 00:08:29 St. Paul's exists to know Jesus, to treasure Jesus, to represent Jesus for God's glory,
00:08:29 --> 00:08:34 to make his name great and for the joy of all people.
00:08:34 --> 00:08:40 We exist to make much of Jesus in order that we might make much of God.
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 And that's what I want to look at today.
00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 What it means to exist for God's glory.
00:08:46 --> 00:08:52 In Isaiah 6, which Wendy just read out to us, if you've got your Bibles, I'd love you to open up there, Isaiah 6.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:57 What we notice, first of all, is that God is not like us.
00:08:57 --> 00:09:00 He is, in fact, worthy of fame.
00:09:00 --> 00:09:04 He is, in fact, worthy of glory and honor and praise.
00:09:04 --> 00:09:11 There are at least seven glimpses of God in these first four verses of Isaiah 6.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:14 Firstly, we notice that God is alive.
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 In the year, it says,
00:09:16 --> 00:09:28 That is, King Uzziah, the most powerful man in the world at that time, has just died, but God lives on.
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 Psalm 90, verse 2 says,
00:09:30 --> 00:09:44 God was the living God when this universe banged into existence.
00:09:44 --> 00:09:48 He was the living God when the Great Wall of China was built.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:54 He was the living God in 1966 when Time magazine put on its title page,
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 God is dead.
00:09:56 --> 00:10:01 He will be living 10 trillion ages from now.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:08 There is not a single head of state currently ruling in the world who will still be doing that in 90 years' time.
00:10:08 --> 00:10:19 In a brief 120 years, this planet will be populated by more than 10 billion brand new people who currently do not exist.
00:10:19 --> 00:10:26 All of us alive today will vanish and be gone, just like Uzziah, but not God.
00:10:28 --> 00:10:34 He never had a beginning and therefore depends on nothing for his existence.
00:10:35 --> 00:10:38 He always has and always will be alive.
00:10:38 --> 00:10:40 Secondly, we notice that God is authoritative.
00:10:41 --> 00:10:41 Verse 2,
00:10:41 --> 00:10:46 When he saw the law, he saw him seated on a throne.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:51 You see, no vision of heaven, goes throughout the Bible, will ever,
00:10:52 --> 00:10:58 you ever catch a glimpse of God plowing a field or cutting the grass or shining shoes or loading a truck
00:10:58 --> 00:11:00 or filling out papers and reports.
00:11:00 --> 00:11:04 He sits and he sits on a throne.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 All is at peace and all is in control.
00:11:08 --> 00:11:12 The throne is his right to rule that which he has made.
00:11:12 --> 00:11:17 You see, we do not give God authority over our lives.
00:11:17 --> 00:11:20 He has it whether we like it or not.
00:11:22 --> 00:11:23 Few things are more humbling.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:29 Few things give us that sense of raw majesty
00:11:29 --> 00:11:35 as the truth that God is utterly, totally authoritative.
00:11:35 --> 00:11:41 After him, there is no other court of appeal.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:46 Thirdly, we see that God is all-powerful.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:50 The throne of his authority is not just one amongst many.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:54 He doesn't hold the bench with a bunch of other like-minded people.
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 His throne is high and exalted.
00:11:57 --> 00:12:03 The throne that is God's throne is higher than every other throne
00:12:03 --> 00:12:08 and it signifies God's superior power to exercise his authority.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:14 That means that no opposing authority can nullify the decrees of God.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:19 What he purposes, he always accomplishes.
00:12:19 --> 00:12:24 As God says a little bit further in Isaiah 46, verse 10, he says,
00:12:24 --> 00:12:29 I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come.
00:12:29 --> 00:12:35 I say, my purpose will stand and I will do all that I please.
00:12:36 --> 00:12:40 Or again, in Daniel chapter 4, speaking about God, says,
00:12:40 --> 00:12:45 he does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth.
00:12:45 --> 00:12:54 You see, to be gripped by the all-powerful sovereignty of God
00:12:54 --> 00:12:59 is either marvelous because he is for you
00:12:59 --> 00:13:05 or it is terrifying because he is against you.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:10 Indifference, to sit here and to be indifferent
00:13:10 --> 00:13:16 to his all-encompassing power and sovereignty
00:13:16 --> 00:13:20 simply means that you just have not seen it.
00:13:24 --> 00:13:26 The sovereign authority, the living God,
00:13:26 --> 00:13:31 is a refuge full of joy and power for those who are his
00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 and it's terrifying for those who are not.
00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 Fourthly, we see that God is magnificent.
00:13:36 --> 00:13:40 I saw the Lord seated on the throne, highly exalted,
00:13:40 --> 00:13:42 and the train of his robe filled the temple.
00:13:43 --> 00:13:47 The best image I have of this one is back in 1981
00:13:47 --> 00:13:50 when Diana, Princess of Wales, married,
00:13:50 --> 00:13:53 or Diana married Prince Charles, became the Princess of Wales.
00:13:53 --> 00:13:57 And I remember as a little kid,
00:13:57 --> 00:13:59 I might have been 11 or something like that,
00:13:59 --> 00:14:04 staying up to the wee hours to see this on TV.
00:14:04 --> 00:14:06 I had no idea what we were doing.
00:14:07 --> 00:14:10 And when it came on, I remember the women in the room going,
00:14:10 --> 00:14:13 as she got out of the carriage and walked up
00:14:13 --> 00:14:16 and the train of her wedding dress just kept coming
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 and coming and coming and it was like eight metres long
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 and then going,
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 what?
00:14:23 --> 00:14:25 You know, for me it was no big deal,
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 but it seemed to cover,
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 and you look at the images of it,
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 it seemed to cover the steps of St Paul's Cathedral.
00:14:29 --> 00:14:34 What would it mean if the train of her robe just kept coming
00:14:34 --> 00:14:37 and it filled the aisles and it covered the seats
00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 and the choir loft and the pulpit
00:14:39 --> 00:14:42 and it was all made out of one fabric,
00:14:42 --> 00:14:44 woven together into one piece?
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 What would that mean?
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 It would mean a little bit more than...
00:14:49 --> 00:14:56 That God's robe fills the entire heavenly temple
00:14:56 --> 00:14:59 means that God is incomparable in splendour.
00:15:01 --> 00:15:06 The fullness of God's splendour shows itself in millions of ways.
00:15:06 --> 00:15:10 The magnificence spills over in excessive beauty
00:15:10 --> 00:15:17 as God the creator expresses himself in what he has made.
00:15:19 --> 00:15:22 We see it in the wonder of creation all through this universe,
00:15:22 --> 00:15:25 from the tiniest of atoms to the depths of the oceans
00:15:25 --> 00:15:27 to the furthest reaches of the universe.
00:15:28 --> 00:15:33 It all displays his splendour, his character.
00:15:36 --> 00:15:39 Fifthly, God is revered.
00:15:39 --> 00:15:43 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings,
00:15:43 --> 00:15:45 with two wings they covered their faces,
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 with two they covered their feet,
00:15:46 --> 00:15:47 with two they were flying.
00:15:47 --> 00:15:54 Now no one actually knows what these strange six-winged creatures are
00:15:54 --> 00:15:56 with feet and eyes and they've obviously got intelligence.
00:15:57 --> 00:16:00 One thing is for sure, given the grandeur of the scene
00:16:00 --> 00:16:04 and the power of the angelic hosts,
00:16:04 --> 00:16:08 we had best not picture fat little babies
00:16:08 --> 00:16:12 with wings fluttering around the head of God.
00:16:13 --> 00:16:15 That's not the picture of angels in the Bible.
00:16:16 --> 00:16:18 According to verse 4,
00:16:18 --> 00:16:21 when one of these creatures speaks,
00:16:21 --> 00:16:26 the foundations of the temple shake.
00:16:26 --> 00:16:32 And Jason could not turn this microphone up enough right now
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 in order for me to shake this building.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:41 There are no puny or silly creatures in heaven,
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 only magnificent ones.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 And the point is this,
00:16:45 --> 00:16:47 even these creatures,
00:16:47 --> 00:16:49 as magnificent as they are,
00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 not even they look upon the Lord,
00:16:53 --> 00:16:55 nor do they feel worthy
00:16:55 --> 00:16:58 even to leave their feet exposed in his presence.
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 As good and as great as they are,
00:17:00 --> 00:17:04 as untainted by human sin as they are,
00:17:04 --> 00:17:07 they revere their maker with great humility.
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 So just think of that
00:17:10 --> 00:17:13 in terms of escalation of scale.
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 See, one of these creatures appeared to us.
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 What they generally do,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 according to the Bible,
00:17:18 --> 00:17:20 is one of the first things they say is fear not
00:17:20 --> 00:17:22 when they appear to a human being.
00:17:22 --> 00:17:24 Because that's exactly what you do
00:17:24 --> 00:17:26 if one of these things appeared to you.
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 You would fear.
00:17:27 --> 00:17:29 You would think you were going to be dead.
00:17:31 --> 00:17:34 And yet even they hide in holy fear and reverence
00:17:34 --> 00:17:36 before this God.
00:17:37 --> 00:17:39 The sixth thing we find is that God is holy.
00:17:40 --> 00:17:42 And they were calling to one another,
00:17:42 --> 00:17:45 holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty.
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 The whole earth is full of his glory.
00:17:49 --> 00:17:52 The possibilities of language
00:17:52 --> 00:17:55 to carry the meaning of God actually run out.
00:17:55 --> 00:17:59 The word holy carries us to the brink.
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 And from there on,
00:18:01 --> 00:18:05 the experience of God is beyond articulation.
00:18:05 --> 00:18:08 And the reason I say that
00:18:08 --> 00:18:11 is that every effort to define
00:18:11 --> 00:18:15 what the holiness of God actually means
00:18:15 --> 00:18:19 just winds up with you saying that
00:18:19 --> 00:18:23 God is holy means that God is God.
00:18:23 --> 00:18:28 The meaning of the word holy is to cut or separate.
00:18:29 --> 00:18:34 A holy thing is cut off or separated from common use.
00:18:35 --> 00:18:37 Earthly things and persons are holy
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 as they are distinct from the world
00:18:38 --> 00:18:40 and they are devoted to God.
00:18:40 --> 00:18:44 But what happens if this definition is applied to God himself?
00:18:45 --> 00:18:48 From what can you separate God
00:18:48 --> 00:18:50 in order to make him holy?
00:18:51 --> 00:18:54 The very godness of God means that he is in fact
00:18:54 --> 00:18:58 already separated from all that is not God.
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 He exists.
00:19:03 --> 00:19:06 He exists in a different way than we exist.
00:19:06 --> 00:19:11 We, his creatures, exist in dependent,
00:19:12 --> 00:19:17 derived, finite, fragile ways.
00:19:17 --> 00:19:22 But our creator exists in an eternal,
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 self-sustaining, necessary way.
00:19:28 --> 00:19:34 Necessary in the sense that God does not have it in him
00:19:34 --> 00:19:37 to go out of existence.
00:19:38 --> 00:19:42 In the same way that we do not have it in us
00:19:42 --> 00:19:45 to keep living on forever.
00:19:48 --> 00:19:52 We necessarily age and die
00:19:52 --> 00:19:56 because it is our present nature in order to do that.
00:19:56 --> 00:20:00 And God necessarily continues forever
00:20:00 --> 00:20:03 unchanged in his being.
00:20:04 --> 00:20:09 The God of the Bible needs no support system.
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 God is one of a kind.
00:20:13 --> 00:20:15 In that sense, he is utterly holy.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:18 But then you have said no more than he is God.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:20 God has life in himself
00:20:20 --> 00:20:24 and he draws his unending energy from himself.
00:20:25 --> 00:20:28 He is the absolute reality beyond which
00:20:28 --> 00:20:31 there is only just simply more of God.
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 God is not holy.
00:20:32 --> 00:20:43 He is not holy because he keeps the rules.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 He wrote the rules.
00:20:44 --> 00:20:48 He is not holy because he keeps the law.
00:20:48 --> 00:20:50 The law is holy because it reveals him.
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 God is absolute.
00:20:53 --> 00:20:55 Everything else is derived from him.
00:20:56 --> 00:21:00 In the end, God is holy in that he is God
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 and he's not us.
00:21:02 --> 00:21:04 He is incomparable.
00:21:06 --> 00:21:10 His holiness determines all that he is and that he does
00:21:10 --> 00:21:12 and is determined by no one.
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 You can call it his majesty.
00:21:14 --> 00:21:16 You can call it his divinity.
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 You can call it his greatness.
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 You can call it his value.
00:21:21 --> 00:21:24 In the end, language runs out.
00:21:27 --> 00:21:30 There may be yet to know, more to know of God,
00:21:31 --> 00:21:33 but it is beyond words.
00:21:33 --> 00:21:35 And so as Habakkuk chapter 2 verse 20 says,
00:21:35 --> 00:21:50 There is a seventh and a final thing about God
00:21:50 --> 00:21:53 and that is that God is glorious.
00:21:54 --> 00:21:56 Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.
00:21:57 --> 00:21:59 The whole earth is full of his glory.
00:21:59 --> 00:22:06 And I've been wrestling with this bit all week
00:22:06 --> 00:22:10 and Sam communicates it in 30 seconds.
00:22:12 --> 00:22:14 Thank you for that.
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 I'll take a little bit longer.
00:22:18 --> 00:22:23 God's glory is the revealing of his holiness.
00:22:23 --> 00:22:30 God is glorious means that God's holiness
00:22:30 --> 00:22:33 has gone public.
00:22:35 --> 00:22:39 That is, his divine being, his character,
00:22:39 --> 00:22:41 who he is, has gone public.
00:22:41 --> 00:22:44 Unless he reveals who he is,
00:22:44 --> 00:22:46 unless he reveals himself,
00:22:46 --> 00:22:49 we cannot see him for who he is.
00:22:49 --> 00:22:51 But when he does,
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 we see glory.
00:22:58 --> 00:23:00 And there's only one response to glory.
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 Leviticus 10 verse 3,
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 God says,
00:23:03 --> 00:23:05 Among those who approach me,
00:23:06 --> 00:23:09 I will show myself holy.
00:23:10 --> 00:23:14 That is, I will reveal my character, my being.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:18 I will go public.
00:23:19 --> 00:23:22 In the sight of all people,
00:23:22 --> 00:23:24 I will be honored.
00:23:25 --> 00:23:28 Or another word for honored is glorified.
00:23:28 --> 00:23:32 When God reveals his glory to his creatures,
00:23:32 --> 00:23:36 the response of his creatures is to glorify God.
00:23:37 --> 00:23:39 To give glory to God.
00:23:40 --> 00:23:42 That is what we were created and redeemed for.
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 What it means to glorify God
00:23:44 --> 00:23:46 is in fact to respond to his glory.
00:23:46 --> 00:23:52 We cannot glorify God without engaging with his glory.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:56 You see, God wants to be praised for his praiseworthiness
00:23:56 --> 00:23:59 and exalted for his greatness and his goodness.
00:23:59 --> 00:24:03 He wants to be appreciated for who and what he is.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:11 But the glory that is his goal is in fact a two-sided thing,
00:24:11 --> 00:24:13 a two-stage relationship.
00:24:14 --> 00:24:19 It is this process of to-ing and fro-ing
00:24:19 --> 00:24:23 where God reveals his glory to people and to angels
00:24:23 --> 00:24:26 in a free and radically generous way.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:29 And at the same time,
00:24:29 --> 00:24:35 there is a response of adoration on the part of people and of angels
00:24:35 --> 00:24:40 where they give glory to God out of gratitude for what they have seen
00:24:40 --> 00:24:43 and what they have received from him.
00:24:43 --> 00:24:52 The glory of God is received by us.
00:24:53 --> 00:24:57 And so the way to glorify God is to be engaging with God.
00:24:57 --> 00:25:00 You cannot glorify him without engaging with his glory.
00:25:01 --> 00:25:07 God's glory showing requires glory giving.
00:25:07 --> 00:25:13 And this is the heart of the true fulfillment of God's creatures.
00:25:13 --> 00:25:16 It brings joy to people as it does to God.
00:25:17 --> 00:25:21 Notice Isaiah's response in seeing God's glory in verse 5.
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 Woe to me!
00:25:24 --> 00:25:26 I cried, I am ruined,
00:25:26 --> 00:25:28 for I am a man of unclean lips
00:25:28 --> 00:25:31 and I live among a people of unclean lips.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 And my eyes have seen the King,
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 the Lord Almighty.
00:25:35 --> 00:25:39 You see, Isaiah responds appropriately
00:25:39 --> 00:25:42 to seeing the magnificence and the perfection
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 and the splendor of God.
00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 He understands himself.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:51 He understands that he is not God.
00:25:53 --> 00:25:55 He sees his limitation,
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 his finiteness,
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 his unworthiness,
00:25:59 --> 00:25:59 his failure,
00:25:59 --> 00:26:02 his lack of praiseworthiness.
00:26:02 --> 00:26:06 He understands his true self,
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 that he in fact is not worthy
00:26:08 --> 00:26:11 of the praise and the honor
00:26:11 --> 00:26:13 and the fame of the nations.
00:26:13 --> 00:26:17 In seeing God,
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 he sees himself.
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 He is humbled
00:26:20 --> 00:26:22 and he confesses his sin.
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 And what's God's reaction?
00:26:24 --> 00:26:26 One of the seraphs comes to Isaiah
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 and says,
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 he places a colon,
00:26:27 --> 00:26:29 he's from the altar in the temple,
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 places a colon in his lips
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 and he says,
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 your guilt is taken away
00:26:32 --> 00:26:34 and your sin is atoned for.
00:26:34 --> 00:26:37 At least one major purpose
00:26:37 --> 00:26:40 in God revealing his glory
00:26:40 --> 00:26:43 is for us to experience
00:26:43 --> 00:26:45 his compassion and his mercy
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 and his forgiveness.
00:26:48 --> 00:26:51 Now, the New Testament writers
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 proclaim that the public display
00:26:53 --> 00:26:56 of God's nature and character
00:26:56 --> 00:26:58 and power and purpose
00:26:58 --> 00:27:00 is now open to view
00:27:00 --> 00:27:03 in the person and the role
00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 of the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:27:07 --> 00:27:08 In fact,
00:27:08 --> 00:27:10 John chapter 12, verse 41
00:27:10 --> 00:27:12 is pretty explicit.
00:27:14 --> 00:27:16 John chapter 12, verse 41 says this,
00:27:17 --> 00:27:19 Isaiah said this
00:27:19 --> 00:27:22 because he saw Jesus' glory
00:27:22 --> 00:27:25 and spoke about him.
00:27:25 --> 00:27:30 What John 12 is saying
00:27:30 --> 00:27:33 is that what Isaiah saw
00:27:33 --> 00:27:35 in Isaiah 6
00:27:35 --> 00:27:39 was in fact the enthroned Jesus Christ.
00:27:43 --> 00:27:45 Jesus is the one who radiates,
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 reflects, mirrors, displays
00:27:47 --> 00:27:49 the character and purpose
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 and power of God
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 and the magnificence
00:27:51 --> 00:27:53 of what went public in Jesus
00:27:53 --> 00:27:55 was the plan and the work
00:27:55 --> 00:27:58 and grace whereby he saved sinners.
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 And so as a church,
00:28:01 --> 00:28:03 we want to make much,
00:28:04 --> 00:28:06 much of Jesus.
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 To know Jesus,
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 to treasure Jesus,
00:28:09 --> 00:28:11 to represent Jesus
00:28:11 --> 00:28:13 is in fact to bring glory to God.
00:28:13 --> 00:28:18 Now it probably shocks us
00:28:18 --> 00:28:18 to think
00:28:18 --> 00:28:20 that God's goal
00:28:20 --> 00:28:22 is in fact
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 his glory.
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 His goal
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 is to make much
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 of himself.
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 Probably shocks us
00:28:30 --> 00:28:30 to that
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 because if I stood up here
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 and I said,
00:28:32 --> 00:28:34 well my goal in life
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 is to make much
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 of Steve Jeffery.
00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 In fact,
00:28:37 --> 00:28:37 your goal
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 is to make much
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 of Steve Jeffery.
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 At that point,
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 you would go,
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 right,
00:28:43 --> 00:28:43 time to look
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 for another church.
00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 Because it's
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 just pure
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 ego driven.
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 No one
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 can say
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 you exist
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 for my glory
00:28:55 --> 00:28:58 except God.
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 But
00:29:02 --> 00:29:04 unlike God
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 where I would say
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 you exist
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 for my glory,
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 it's about my ego.
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 To exist
00:29:10 --> 00:29:12 for God's glory
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 and for God
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 to exist
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 for his glory
00:29:14 --> 00:29:16 does not
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 point to
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 divine ego
00:29:18 --> 00:29:20 but is the
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 very foundation
00:29:21 --> 00:29:21 of his love
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 for us.
00:29:25 --> 00:29:25 God
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 doing
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 everything
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 for his glory
00:29:27 --> 00:29:29 is the
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 foundation
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 of his
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 love for us.
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 Listen to what
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 the Bible says.
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 Let me just ask
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 a few questions
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 and I'll look at
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 some Bible passages.
00:29:36 --> 00:29:36 Why did God
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 forgive our sins
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 and make us
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 his children
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 through Jesus?
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 According to
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 Ephesians 1
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 that the glory
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 of his grace
00:29:44 --> 00:29:46 might be praised.
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 Why did God
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 create a people
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 for himself?
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 According to God
00:29:50 --> 00:29:52 in Isaiah 43
00:29:52 --> 00:29:54 I created them
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 for my glory.
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 Why did God
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 spare
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 rebellious Israel
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 in the wilderness
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 and finally
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 bring them
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 into the promised land?
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 According to God
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 in Ezekiel 20
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 I acted
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 for the sake
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 of my name
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 that it
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 should not
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 be profaned
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 in the sight
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 of the nations.
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 And according
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 to Isaiah 66
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 the reason
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 why God
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 sends messengers
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 out to tell
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 the far reaches
00:30:19 --> 00:30:19 of the world
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 about his fame
00:30:20 --> 00:30:22 and his glory
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 is that those
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 people might
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 be gathered
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 to him
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 and verse
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 22 says
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 as the new
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 heavens
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 and the new
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 earth
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 that I make
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 will endure
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 before me
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 so will
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 your name
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 and your
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 descendants
00:30:34 --> 00:30:34 endure
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 forever
00:30:35 --> 00:30:37 go to the
00:30:37 --> 00:30:37 far reach
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 of the earth
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 declare
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 my name
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 declare
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 my fame
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 declare
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 my glory
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 that you
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 might be
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 gathered to
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 me
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 so that I
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 will make
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 your name
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 great
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 forever.
00:30:49 --> 00:30:51 His glory
00:30:51 --> 00:30:54 his pursuit
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 of his glory
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 is the very
00:30:56 --> 00:30:56 foundation
00:30:56 --> 00:30:57 of his love
00:30:57 --> 00:30:57 for us.
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 Live for
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 the glory
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 of God
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 live for
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 his glory
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 for his
00:31:05 --> 00:31:05 fame
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 and he
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 will make
00:31:07 --> 00:31:07 your name
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 endure
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 forever.
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 God's
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 commitment
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 to his
00:31:12 --> 00:31:12 glory
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 means love
00:31:13 --> 00:31:13 and life
00:31:13 --> 00:31:15 and forgiveness
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 and eternal
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 fame for those
00:31:17 --> 00:31:17 who live for
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 his glory.
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 His commitment
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 to his glory
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 is the
00:31:20 --> 00:31:20 foundation of
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 his love
00:31:21 --> 00:31:21 for us.
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 It's not
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 about divine
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 ego.
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 And that's
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 why you
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 read passages
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 that Wendy
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 read out to
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 us in 1
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 Corinthians 10
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 where the
00:31:32 --> 00:31:32 apostle Paul
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 says do
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 everything
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 for the
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 glory of
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 God.
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 And whatever
00:31:37 --> 00:31:38 you, so
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 whether you
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 eat or
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 drink,
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 whatever you
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 do, do
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 it all
00:31:41 --> 00:31:41 for the
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 glory of
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 God.
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 Do
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 everything
00:31:43 --> 00:31:43 for the
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 glory of
00:31:44 --> 00:31:44 God.
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 When you're
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 eating your
00:31:46 --> 00:31:48 cheese and
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 bickies and
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 drinking your
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 diet coke,
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 do it all
00:31:51 --> 00:31:51 for the
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 glory of
00:31:52 --> 00:31:52 God.
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 Not for
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 personal
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 benefit, for
00:31:56 --> 00:31:58 personal advancement,
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 for personal
00:31:58 --> 00:32:00 promotion, for
00:32:00 --> 00:32:01 personal glory,
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 personal satisfaction,
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 but for God's
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 glory.
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 And it does
00:32:05 --> 00:32:05 actually come
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 down to the
00:32:06 --> 00:32:06 nitty-gritty,
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 even to
00:32:07 --> 00:32:07 eating and
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 drinking.
00:32:09 --> 00:32:10 That is,
00:32:10 --> 00:32:12 God's glory is
00:32:12 --> 00:32:14 all-encompassing
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 of our lives.
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 Jesus is not
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 just for
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 Sundays.
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 Relationship
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 with him
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 touches
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 everything,
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 everything in
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 our life for
00:32:24 --> 00:32:26 those whose
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 glory has been
00:32:27 --> 00:32:27 revealed.
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 is, in
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 fact, a
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 God moment,
00:32:31 --> 00:32:31 not a
00:32:31 --> 00:32:32 Steve
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 Jeffrey
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 moment.
00:32:33 --> 00:32:33 It's a
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 God moment.
00:32:34 --> 00:32:35 Everything is
00:32:35 --> 00:32:35 an opportunity
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 to engage
00:32:36 --> 00:32:37 with God,
00:32:37 --> 00:32:37 to worship
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 God, to
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 glorify God,
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 to honour
00:32:40 --> 00:32:40 God.
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 24-7, every
00:32:42 --> 00:32:44 decision is
00:32:44 --> 00:32:44 either I'm
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 going to make
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 much of me,
00:32:46 --> 00:32:46 or I'm
00:32:46 --> 00:32:47 going to make
00:32:47 --> 00:32:47 much of
00:32:47 --> 00:32:48 God.
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 Now, I'm
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 convinced
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 convinced that
00:32:57 --> 00:32:59 for us to
00:32:59 --> 00:33:00 effectively bring
00:33:00 --> 00:33:01 glory to
00:33:01 --> 00:33:04 God, it
00:33:04 --> 00:33:04 has to be
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 much more
00:33:05 --> 00:33:07 about certain
00:33:07 --> 00:33:07 external
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 behaviours.
00:33:09 --> 00:33:09 That is, it's
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 possible for you
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 next week to
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 sign a pledge
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 card and not
00:33:13 --> 00:33:13 glorify God.
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 It's possible
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 for you to not
00:33:17 --> 00:33:17 sign a pledge
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 card and also
00:33:18 --> 00:33:18 not glorify God.
00:33:18 --> 00:33:25 to glorify God
00:33:25 --> 00:33:25 is so much
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 more than
00:33:26 --> 00:33:27 just external
00:33:27 --> 00:33:29 behaviours.
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 Internal
00:33:30 --> 00:33:30 motivations
00:33:30 --> 00:33:34 are, in
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 order to
00:33:35 --> 00:33:35 glorify God,
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 are absolutely
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 essential.
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 If we're not
00:33:40 --> 00:33:42 careful, we
00:33:42 --> 00:33:42 can get settled
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 into a pattern
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 of dutiful
00:33:44 --> 00:33:44 behaviour,
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 where I read
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 the Bible,
00:33:48 --> 00:33:50 I pray,
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 I attend
00:33:51 --> 00:33:51 church, I'm
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 part of a
00:33:52 --> 00:33:52 small group,
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 I give some
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 money to
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 church,
00:33:55 --> 00:34:00 but I
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 don't give
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 praise to
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 God when I
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 go to bed at
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 night and
00:34:03 --> 00:34:03 thank you for
00:34:03 --> 00:34:03 the day I've
00:34:03 --> 00:34:05 had, where I
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 can go and
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 purchase a
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 motor vehicle
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 and not even
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 pray about the
00:34:10 --> 00:34:12 issue, ask
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 what God
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 might have in
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 that, where
00:34:14 --> 00:34:16 I can build
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 a church
00:34:17 --> 00:34:19 building for
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 my fame and
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 not for
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 God's.
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 That is, what
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 can happen is,
00:34:25 --> 00:34:25 we can tick
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 certain boxes and
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 our relationship
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 with God is
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 all about duty,
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 obligation and
00:34:30 --> 00:34:30 loyalty.
00:34:31 --> 00:34:32 When we are
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 settled into
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 that position,
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 we may even
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 fulfil our
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 duty at great
00:34:37 --> 00:34:39 personal cost.
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 We may even
00:34:41 --> 00:34:43 give more and
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 sacrifice much.
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 What is
00:34:47 --> 00:34:49 missing is
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 the affections.
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 Rather than
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 requiring dutiful
00:34:54 --> 00:34:56 obedience in
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 doing everything
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 for his glory,
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 God is actually
00:34:59 --> 00:35:01 interested in
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 us seeing
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 his glory and
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 being moved
00:35:04 --> 00:35:05 by his glory
00:35:05 --> 00:35:06 from our
00:35:06 --> 00:35:07 hearts.
00:35:08 --> 00:35:08 He wants us
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 to love him
00:35:09 --> 00:35:09 according to
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 Deuteronomy 6.
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 He wants us to
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 light ourselves in
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 him according
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 to Psalm 37.
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 He wants us
00:35:15 --> 00:35:15 to worship him
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 with gladness
00:35:16 --> 00:35:17 according to
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 Psalm 100.
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 In fact, he
00:35:19 --> 00:35:19 condemns
00:35:19 --> 00:35:21 dutiful obedience
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 where there is
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 no gladness and
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 no joy in him
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 in Deuteronomy
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 28.
00:35:26 --> 00:35:28 So picture a
00:35:28 --> 00:35:30 husband bringing
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 flowers to his
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 wife on their
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 anniversary.
00:35:33 --> 00:35:34 Must remember to
00:35:34 --> 00:35:34 do that.
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 And she is
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 overjoyed and
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 she thanks him
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 for it.
00:35:40 --> 00:35:44 And in that
00:35:44 --> 00:35:44 moment, he
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 says, don't
00:35:45 --> 00:35:45 mention it.
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 It's my duty.
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 Even though I
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 didn't really want
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 to do it, I
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 sacrificed my
00:35:52 --> 00:35:53 money and my
00:35:53 --> 00:35:53 time and I
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 bought these
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 flowers for you.
00:35:55 --> 00:35:55 It's just what
00:35:55 --> 00:35:56 I've got to do.
00:36:00 --> 00:36:02 I think I know
00:36:02 --> 00:36:02 how Nat would
00:36:02 --> 00:36:03 respond.
00:36:05 --> 00:36:06 It would be an
00:36:06 --> 00:36:07 insult to her
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 honor and the
00:36:08 --> 00:36:08 relationship.
00:36:09 --> 00:36:10 She is honored
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 when the husband
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 sacrifices and
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 gives because it
00:36:13 --> 00:36:15 is his delight to
00:36:15 --> 00:36:15 do so.
00:36:18 --> 00:36:19 And so here's
00:36:19 --> 00:36:19 the thing.
00:36:20 --> 00:36:21 If we are doing
00:36:21 --> 00:36:22 everything for the
00:36:22 --> 00:36:24 glory of God as
00:36:24 --> 00:36:25 a church out of a
00:36:25 --> 00:36:27 sense of duty and
00:36:27 --> 00:36:28 because it is a
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 great personal
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 sacrifice for us to
00:36:30 --> 00:36:34 do it, then it
00:36:34 --> 00:36:35 reveals what we
00:36:35 --> 00:36:35 really treasure.
00:36:35 --> 00:36:38 And it's not
00:36:38 --> 00:36:39 Jesus.
00:36:43 --> 00:36:45 If it is a
00:36:45 --> 00:36:46 great sacrifice
00:36:46 --> 00:36:47 for us to do
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 everything for the
00:36:48 --> 00:36:49 glory of God, it
00:36:49 --> 00:36:51 shows us what we
00:36:51 --> 00:36:52 truly value more
00:36:52 --> 00:36:53 than God and it
00:36:53 --> 00:36:55 tends to be us and
00:36:55 --> 00:36:57 our fame, our
00:36:57 --> 00:36:58 name.
00:36:58 --> 00:37:01 God is
00:37:01 --> 00:37:01 our greatest
00:37:01 --> 00:37:01 treasure.
00:37:01 --> 00:37:02 When he is our
00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 greatest treasure, then
00:37:03 --> 00:37:04 choosing him over
00:37:04 --> 00:37:05 lesser things is not
00:37:05 --> 00:37:06 even a sacrifice.
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 When we delight in
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 his power and his
00:37:10 --> 00:37:12 perfection, his
00:37:12 --> 00:37:12 beauty, his
00:37:12 --> 00:37:14 mercy, our service
00:37:14 --> 00:37:15 of him will glorify
00:37:16 --> 00:37:17 him.
00:37:18 --> 00:37:19 God is
00:37:19 --> 00:37:21 dishonored when
00:37:23 --> 00:37:24 all of our service
00:37:24 --> 00:37:25 of him is but a
00:37:25 --> 00:37:25 duty.
00:37:25 --> 00:37:27 God desires that
00:37:27 --> 00:37:29 we see him, that
00:37:29 --> 00:37:30 we savor his
00:37:30 --> 00:37:32 mercy, his
00:37:32 --> 00:37:33 forgiveness, his
00:37:33 --> 00:37:34 acceptance and
00:37:34 --> 00:37:36 serve him with all
00:37:36 --> 00:37:37 of our lives, with
00:37:37 --> 00:37:38 joy and with
00:37:38 --> 00:37:39 gladness.
00:37:39 --> 00:37:40 And so I, if you
00:37:40 --> 00:37:41 haven't connected
00:37:41 --> 00:37:42 this, I have
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 deliberately connected
00:37:43 --> 00:37:46 God's glory and the
00:37:46 --> 00:37:47 joy of all people in
00:37:47 --> 00:37:48 our mission statement.
00:37:49 --> 00:37:50 They go together.
00:37:50 --> 00:37:52 God's glory and
00:37:52 --> 00:37:54 God's glory and
00:37:54 --> 00:37:54 you and I were
00:37:54 --> 00:37:55 made for the
00:37:55 --> 00:37:56 express purpose to
00:37:56 --> 00:37:58 glorify God at all
00:37:58 --> 00:37:59 times, in all places,
00:37:59 --> 00:38:00 in every circumstances.
00:38:00 --> 00:38:01 Our deepest joy and
00:38:01 --> 00:38:02 our most profound
00:38:02 --> 00:38:04 happiness is that our
00:38:04 --> 00:38:06 creator has revealed
00:38:06 --> 00:38:07 himself to us in the
00:38:07 --> 00:38:08 Lord Jesus Christ.
00:38:09 --> 00:38:09 And what he has
00:38:09 --> 00:38:11 revealed to us is that
00:38:11 --> 00:38:12 he loves us, that he
00:38:12 --> 00:38:14 wants to know us, that
00:38:14 --> 00:38:14 he has given himself
00:38:14 --> 00:38:16 for us, that he has
00:38:16 --> 00:38:17 given us a name and a
00:38:17 --> 00:38:19 status that will in
00:38:19 --> 00:38:21 fact live on for all
00:38:21 --> 00:38:22 eternity as he will
00:38:22 --> 00:38:23 live on for all
00:38:23 --> 00:38:23 eternity.
00:38:26 --> 00:38:27 And that hope and
00:38:27 --> 00:38:28 that revelation and
00:38:28 --> 00:38:30 that status means that
00:38:30 --> 00:38:31 we get to live for his
00:38:31 --> 00:38:33 glory and we get to
00:38:33 --> 00:38:34 participate in his
00:38:34 --> 00:38:37 glory now that we're
00:38:37 --> 00:38:39 finally able to do
00:38:39 --> 00:38:41 the thing for what we
00:38:41 --> 00:38:44 were made to make God
00:38:44 --> 00:38:46 look great in
00:38:46 --> 00:38:47 everything that we do.