Living On The Edge Of Eternity Series

When Beth and I served as missionaries in Mexico, one of our team members named Mike was working on weaving a verse of Scripture into every conversation he had. I was really challenged by that. That would be a good thing for each of us to do. Let’s try to speak Scripture into everything we do. BTW, social media is a great place to share Scripture. I often quote a verse on Facebook and Twitter to get the Word onto the Web. Would you join me in using these sites for redemptive purposes?

• Serving Gifts. This category is broad and includes any kind of encouraging, showing mercy or helping ministry. I love all the sweet serving that goes on at Edgewood. I was struck again on Thursday by the team of servants who minister in the kitchen for Second Winders, and another team that serve at Celebrate Recovery every Friday night. I also celebrate the dedicated nursery servants – we need some more, BTW.

The phrase, “ability which God supplies” refers to a patron of a chorus or choir who supplied all their financial needs at his own expense. It’s the idea of furnishing generously and lavishly. That’s a cool idea, isn’t it? God supplies all that we need so that we can make music with the gifts He has given to us. We shouldn’t serve in our strength, but in His alone. Actually, when we serve in our strength, things go south pretty quickly, don’t they? We either get proud because we’re doing so much or prickly because we think no one else is doing as much as we are.

A Devoted Doxology

After describing our delightful duties Peter breaks into a doxology. That’s how it should be. Our practice must lead to praise; our work must culminate in worship. We’re reminded that it’s all about God; it’s not about us. Close your eyes as I read verse 11 slowly: “…that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

The word “that” can be translated as “so that.” We pray seriously, love fervently, and give graciously so that God may be glorified. Jesus put it like this in Matthew 5:16: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

“Through Jesus Christ” is a reminder that it is through the reconciliation that Jesus brings that the Father is ultimately glorified. The word “glory” can be a nebulous concept so let’s unpack it. In the Greek it refers to an opinion or estimation or reputation. The Hebrew word means “heavy” or “weighty.” God’s glory is His inherent majesty and His weighty reputation. So when my aim is to glorify God I want to show how excellent His worth and reputation is. Another way to say it is that I want to make God look as good as He really is. I read this tweet from Desiring God: “The most important, all-encompassing truth is that everything exists for the glory of God.”