Glory In The Lord

Alba 2-2-2025

GLORY IN THE LORD

I Corinthians 1:26-31

In 2008, there was a movie released called “Four Christmases”. It tells the story of a couple who try to avoid family gatherings and their dysfunctional families by traveling abroad. So during Christmas they planned a relaxing vacation in Fiji, but heavy fog grounds the entire airport. They are unexpectedly interviewed by a television news crew, notifying their families that their holiday plans are now canceled, which forces them to visit all four of their divorced parents in one day.

Now, I have not seen the movie. But Steve Shepherd did, and here is what he said about it. “Elaine and I recently saw the movie, 'Four Christmases.' It was a comedy, but also had some mockery to it. There was one scene where actor Vince Vaughn played the part of Joseph in a church play and Reese Witherspoon played the part of Mary. It was funny and yet it wasn't funny, because Vaughn, in his idiocy, over-played his part to the point where he got all the glory. All attention was given to him in that church play instead of pointing to the Christ child.” Shepherd said, “And that's the way it is in our world. People want to steal the glory of Christ for themselves.”

James 4:10 tells us to humble ourselves in God’s sight so He can lift us up. So we’re told to be humble, yet this is one of the biggest challenges for most of us.

There seems to be a constant, and built-in, need to impress others. We try to do it by our words and actions. For example, with the passion for sports that many have, they love to brag about whose team is the best. With The Super Bowl next week, it is a time for boasting – that is if it is your team or favorite player involved in the big game. Only two teams have made it – only one team will claim victory. At the end of the game, there will be only one team that is boasting as champions. The other will go home disappointed that despite all their boasting, their team failed to win the championship.

All of this proves that boasting isn’t something that just kids do (you know the phrase, “My dad can beat up your dad”). But our text for today, First Corinthians 1:31 warns us about improper bragging. It says, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” What does it mean to ‘glorify’? Well, it means to elevate, and to give honor and praise. It means to put value on something or someone.

When writing to the Corinthians, Paul was paraphrasing Jeremiah 9:23-24 that says, “Thus says the Lord: 'Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,' says the Lord.” Paul applies this verse, this Old Testament principle, to Christians today. None of us should be so foolish as to boast in ourselves or in any other human being. Our praise belongs only in the Lord. It will not be hard to truly glory in the Lord, if we...

1. Remember What We Were Then (Before we became Christians)

When Paul writes to the church in Corinth, he wants these new Christians to remember where they came from: Out of darkness into the light. So he describes the people in the church in I Corinthians 1:26 and says, “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.”

Wow! Imagine if I stood in front of you this morning and said, “You people at Alba Christian Church were a bunch of losers before you joined this congregation. Nobody here was successful in business, most of you weren’t that bright, none of you came from a good family.” That sure doesn’t seem like the right thing to say to a congregation of Christians.

But Paul did not use these unflattering descriptions of the Corinthians to belittle them, but to remind them that they had no basis for boasting. The fact is, not many of the members in Corinth had much to boast about in the world outside the church. Most were not rich. They were not the movers and shakers in society or the trendsetters. Instead they many were thought to be slaves or blue collar workers. Not many had much of an education.

Why does Paul remind the Corinthians about this? He wants them to understand and appreciate God’s great gift of His grace. And Paul is reminding them that in God’s eyes it doesn’t matter what job they might hold, or who their parents are, or how many people they know, or how much money they have. He wanted the Corinthians to remember how they were brought to faith. They had been told the amazing news that through the death of a man named Jesus their sins could be forgiven. And accepting that message of the cross brought them to believe in Jesus and be forgiven of their sins.