S.D.G. Living
1 Kings 3:1-15 & Ephesians 5:15-20
20th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B
It’s hard for me to imagine a world without music. And it’s even more difficult to imagine worshiping our Savior without the joyful sounds of singing. One of the greatest composers of sacred music was Johann Sebastian Bach. Born into a family of musicians, by the age of 10 – when his parents died - Johann Sebastian had already become an accomplished musician, singing and playing several instruments. By the age 17, having found his musical love and calling, Bach accepted his first position as a church organist and choir director. Although the directing of the choir was to be a little strained as the singers did not live up to Bach’s expectations and they weren’t gifted enough (in his opinion) to singing the intricate compositions that Bach was composing for them!
His next church was beset by similar issues – the priests asked him to compose pieces of music that were simple and less ornate. These struggles seemed to follow Bach throughout his life – yet they did not deter his ambition to use his musical gifts to glorify God. While Bach was known throughout Europe for his skills on the organ bench, he was not in his lifetime well respected for his compositions. In fact, after his death, Bach’s music fell into obscurity for nearly a century until Felix Mendelssohn resurrected it. After the criticism of his music and after his cantatas and masses had long been forgotten, I’m certain Bach himself would be shocked that his music is still influencing worship 250 years after his death! If anyone had told him, I doubt that he could have believed that his music would be among the most widely performed and recorded centuries after it was written. But then again, Bach might be embarrassed by all the attention his life and his music have been give. Bach did not view his music as his own. He did not compose to impress himself or others. Bach composed music solely for the glory of God. Bach didn’t care if others thought his music was too ornate or too old-fashioned (yes, Bach was considered old-fashioned even in his day). Bach only cared about glorifying God.
You might wonder how we know this. Well on most of his original manuscripts there are two sets of initials: at the top there is J.J. and at the bottom is S.D.G. Both of these are Latin abbreviations that set forth Bach’s faith. J.J. stands for Jesus Juva (or Jesus help me.) And the S.D.G. stands for Soli Deo Gloria – to God alone be the glory. Bach did not compose his cantatas and his masses and his orchestrations or any of his music for his own vanity and glory – everything he did was done S.D.G. – for the glory of God alone. S.D.G. is probably one of the reasons Bach’s music fell into obscurity – because he did not mass produce it or publicize it. He wrote it solely for God to be glorified.
And perhaps, just maybe, S.D.G. – for the glory of God alone - is precisely why Bach’s music has withstood the test of time, because it was not written for kings or popes or bishops or priests or even for the people in the pews – it was based on scripture and written to glorify God.
Our scriptures today encourage us to live an S.D.G. life – a life that gives glory to God alone.
Solomon could have asked God for anything. But he didn’t ask for riches or health or fame. He didn’t ask for a legacy or a large family or the latest model chariot. He asked for wisdom. He asked for a discerning heart so that he could govern God’s people in a way that gave glory to God alone. That’s some S.D.G. living.
How many of us would have been so selfless in our request of God?
If God met you on your way to church this morning and said to you, “Ask! What shall I give you?” Would your initial response have been for God to give you a discerning heart, to give you wisdom and to give you insight? In all honesty, I probably would not have been all that selfless. I might have asked God for a meaningful message this morning or for good attendance or for making it through the sermon without coughing. But I wouldn’t have thought long-term, like Solomon. I would not have been in “SDG” mode where instead of seeking my own glory and fulfillment, I sought to use the gifts I have been given to glorify the One who gave them to me.
Thankfully, Solomon WAS in SDG mode. His prayer was for all that he did in his role as king to bring glory to the God of Israel. And for the most part it did. If you remember back a few weeks ago when we read from David’s life and about David’s desire to build a house for God, God told him no. God told David that his son would have the privilege of building a house for God. And so it was. Solomon was on the throne when the Temple was built in Jerusalem. Throughout Solomon’s reign the kingdom was united and Solomon celebrated many successes and great notoriety. Of course, as with all of us, Solomon was human and there were times in his life when he did not use his wisdom wisely. And, like all of us there were times in his life when he was living for his own glory and not for the glory of God. But at least at this moment in today’s scripture passage, Solomon’s was seeking to live a life that glorified God. At least at this moment in his life, Solomon was signing his work S.D.G.
Imagine what the world would be like if we Christians sought to live SDG – soli deo Gloria - solely for the Gloria of God. How different would your life be? How different would the body of Christ in the world be? What if we no longer lived life for our own glory and notoriety, but lived so that all we said, all we did, and all we thought was done for the glory of God alone.
Max Lucado in his book, “It’s Not About Me,” speaks of SDG living. Although he doesn’t call it that, this whole book is about living a life that glorifies God. And of all the powerful examples and images that he gives within the books pages, one usually sticks with those who have read the book. And that is the image of living like the moon.
If you remember back to your earth science classes in elementary school, you should remember that the moon does not generate any light of its own. The glow that we see in the night sky is a reflection of the sun. If there was no sun, the moon would be nothing more than a cold dark rock. And yet God saw that it was good to place the sun to rule the day and the moon to rule the night. The moon cannot be the sun. The moon is not capable of producing any light of its own. And yet, imagine our world without the moon as a sun reflector.
We as Christians, according to Lucado, are to be not like the sun attempting to produce our own light and our own glory. But we are to be like the moon, reflecting the Son (S-O-N) in all aspects of our lives.
Soli Deo Gloria.
Moon-living.
Wisdom living.
Whatever you want to call it - Christians who are truly seeking and striving to live as disciples, know their place in the order of things. We recognize that we are not God. We understand that God alone is the judge of all creation. We seek salvation as a gift from God and not the work of our own doing. We attempt to make our living about glorify our Creator rather than glorifying the creation.
Now, in all honesty, this type of living is not popular nor is it easy. Yet it is how the body of Christ in the world is to live!
Paul writes to the Ephesians and to us saying, “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity… always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” That is soli deo Gloria living! Be wise! Make the most of every opportunity to proclaim Christ. Give thanks to God! That is the essence of how we are to be living!
A good rule of thumb is if it doesn’t glorify the Lord, then don’t do it.
Wouldn’t it be awesome if that was the only rule we had in school or the only law we had in society. If it doesn’t glorify the Lord, don’t do it.
Well, though we may NOT be able to make all of society live for the glory of God alone, we can make the choice to live our lives in a way that gives glory to God. It is in our power to live an SDG life. It is in our power to live a life of reflecting Jesus to the world. And it’s not just in our power to do this. It’s not just a “good idea” and maybe something we should try … living Soli Deo Gloria is what God created us and calls us to do.
So what does SDG living look in our world? Well, it means questioning everything we do in an effort to seek that which glorifies God while weeding out that which we do for our own ego. Here are a few things to consider to get us started on the path of SDG living:
Does our worrying give glory to God?
No, God is not glorified when we worry. Worrying and fretting over situations is really all about us. It’s about our feelings and our quest to control or figure out what’s going to happen.
SDG living – is about giving all our cares and concerns to God. It’s praying for God’s will to be done and then trusting God to work all things for his glory.
What about busyness? Is God glorified in our busyness?
No, God is not glorified by our busyness. It makes us feel good and important. But how much of our busyness is about giving glory to God and how much of it is for bragging rights to show others how productive we can be?
SDG living requires us to spend time in communion and communication with God. Living a life that gives glory to God requires us to seek what God would have us do. Most of us are experts at filling the minutes of the day and the days of the weeks – but are we filling them with activities that give glory to God or with activities that give glory to us?
Do you give God time during your devotions to speak to you or do you do all the talking when you pray?
SDG living, gives God the opportunity to speak and act in our lives.
Like Solomon, are you concerned that your living will lead others down the paths of righteousness or is it every person for himself?
SDG living reflects Christ into the world, encouraging others through your actions and your joy to live in righteousness.
Do you heed Paul’s words of wisdom and seek to find your fulfillment in the Spirit of the Lord or are you looking for fulfillment elsewhere?
SDG living knows true happiness, joy and fulfillment can not come form manufactured items, but from the Spirit of God alone.
Do you moment by moment sing and make music in your heart to the Lord or do you only think about God on Sunday mornings from 10:45-noon?
SDG living is being in a continual state of praise. SDG living is being aware of the world around you and of the God’s activity in that world.
And here is possibly the most telling and difficult question to reflect upon in an effort to live soli deo Gloria: if everything you have (family, friends, home, jobs, wealth, health, everything!) - if it all disappeared in the blink of an eye, could you find peace and comfort in the Lord your God?
When we begin to live our lives solely for the glory of God, our earthly and our heavenly relationships will be changed. There will be less focus on our wants and more focus on God’s wants. There will be less focus on our own suffering and more impassioned awareness of the suffering of all God’s children. There will be less propensity to live for notoriety and fame and more of an effort on our part to lay treasures in heaven through our words, thoughts and deeds.
Soli deo Gloria living requires that we seek to have:
the loving heart of Christ in this broken world,
the servant hands of our Lord that reach out to all creation and
the attitude of sacrificial living modeled on the faith and life of the One who died and was raised that you may have life abundantly.
SDG living requires an attitude that acknowledges your life is not your own. You belong to God.
And to God be the glory of your life now and forever more. Amen.
