We had a tremendous time with the saints of New Orleans. The Gospel of the Kingdom was taken to the streets, through the airwaves, in churches, at Bible studies, and at an inner city ministry called Jesus Christ Miracle Power.
God's word went forth in power touching hearts and changing minds. A special thank you to Pastor Dale Sochia and his precious family for their love and hospitality they demonstrated to our family as they took us in and opened many effectual doors to serve God. Another thanks goes out to Pastor Bill Shanks, otherwise known as the Mayor of New Orleans, for opening the doors to preach at New Covenant Fellowship and Jesus Christ Miracle Power.
The following message was preached this past Wednesday, July 7th, at New Covenant Fellowship. It is called Living for the Glory of God. If you find any merit, please pass it on in your sphere of influence and please keep our family in your prayers as we storm the gates of hell. Thanks!
The Westminster Confession of Faith asks a crucial question. It speaks to the heart of God's purpose for the creation of man. The exact question is "What is the chief end of man?" The answer goes something like this, "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever."
Before we investigate what it means to glorify God, I'd like to define some aspects of the word glory? There are several Hebrew words for glory. For our purposes, I'd like to discuss four of them. One aspect of glory is general in scope. The Hebrew word is
hadar: It speaks of magnificence, i.e. ornament or splendor: -beauty, comeliness, excellency, glorious, glory, goodly, honour, majesty. It is the glory that could be ascribed to creation, wealth, prestige, and human refinement.
Another aspect of glory in the Old Testament is somewhat negative in nature. The Hebrew word is
halal: to shine; hence, to make a show, to boast; and thus to be (clamorously) foolish; to rave; causatively, to celebrate; also to stultify: -(make) boast (self), celebrate. It is a glory associated with human achievement, which produces boasting rites and puffs up the pride of man. It is the kind of glory witnessed at championship games or entertainment awards. This kind of glory is fleeting at best and at worse, it is dangerous to men's souls. God resists the proud, but grants grace to the humble.
Another aspect of glory is called
tohar: it literally means brightness; ceremonial purification: -clearness, glory, purifying. It is a glory associated with purification. For a Christian, it can be a glory associated with our faith going through fiery trials and coming forth as gold. We must remember, it is fire that brings the impurities and dross to surface in the attempt to purify precious metals. This process increases their value. It is said that a master craftsmen will repeat this process until he can see his reflection in the precious metals. So it is with us and our Lord's dealing in our lives. God will purge our sins, until He sees the reflection of His Son in us.
There are other aspects of glory, but the last one I want to cover is
kabowd or
kabad, which means weighty. This type of glory is connected to the very presence of God and it is indeed a weighty matter. This kind of glory is revealed in 1 Kings Chapter 8. Solomon completed the building of the temple and the presence of God filled it, to the point that the ministers of God could not stand due to the glory cloud of God's presence. I've experienced this kind of God's glory only twice in my life.
Once the glory cloud manifest at a drug rehab center in Houston, TX. I literally saw the cloud move over the rows of people. Everywhere it went the people burst as God was manifesting His power to deliver them from evil. Another time the kabad of God came upon me so strong that I couldn't open my mouth to preach at a church service. I literally felt that if I opened my mouth that God would strike me dead. All I could do was stare into the eyes of the congregation. People were squirming at the uncomfortableness of these moments that seemed like an eternity. Finally the weight of God lifted and I was allowed to speak. Little did I know that there was a planned Church split that was scheduled to take place that very evening. God's holy fear came into the congregation and the people responsible for the planned split repented and God spared the church.
Before we examine what it mean to glorify God, let us look at Proverbs 25:27, which states, "It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search their own glory is not glory." As human beings, we typically search for meaning and glory in this fleeting life. Our pursuit really comes down to two choices. We will seek our own glory, which God tells us upfront is no glory at all or will we seek God's glory, a glory, by the way, that we are changed into by the Spirit of the living God. 2 Corinthians 3:18 declares, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." Thus, we are called not to make ourselves famous, but to make Christ famous and spread His fame abroad. As we seek this blessed course, God changes us into the image of His Son from glory to glory.
So, what does it mean to glorify God, especially in light of these tumultuous times we live in? Jesus and the prophet Jeremiah grant us revelation. On a personal level, Jesus provides the example. John 17:4, 5 states, "I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." The Apostle Paul dealt with this phenomenon in Philippians 2:5-11. Jesus was also affirming what He stated previously to the Apostles as our Lord dealt with the woman at the well. He stated, "Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work (John 4:34)."
Each of us has a God-ordained destiny to fulfill. Each of us has a heavenly assignment to discharge. Each of us has a work to perform in obedience to God. As we faithfully execute our duties towards God, we glorify Him in the earth.
Lastly, how do we live for the glory of God in the midst of a nation under His judgment? Jeremiah 9:23, 24 grants us guidance, "Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord."
In context, Jeremiah was warning the nation of divine retribution. Their sins had reached heaven and they were in trouble with the Almighty. When told of the inevitable judgment, instead of pleaded for mercy through repentance, they resorted to their own defenses. They looked to their intelligence, military and political might, and their wealth and believed these things would save them and make of their nation impregnable. It was this foolish response that Jeremiah confronts in his admonishments.
We saw this same foolish response in the wake of Katrina. The disaster hit and New Orleans responded incorrectly. The city did not receive the message. God's message was repent and New Orleans response is we will rebuild. Thus they relied on their intelligence, political might, and wealth to rebuild. Unfortunately, New Orleans ran right back to the evil practices that invoked God's wrath upon the city in the first place. Today, Louisiana suffers once again by another disaster in the form of the oil spill. What is America's response? Even our prayers are an abomination as we look to the pantheon of gods, which exposes more of our idolatry as a people (Proverbs 28:9).
America is glorying in the things that have brought upon us God's judgment. God is warning our nation and we are turning to our intelligence, military and political might, and our wealth in the vain hopes that these are sufficient defenses, which will make us impregnable. It didn't work for Israel and it will not work for America. So, what are we to do as God's people in the midst of this deplorable condition? "But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord."
Let us pray!
