For the Glory of God
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” I Cor. 10:31
Do you ever get those e-mail quizzes that go around? Most of them are about trivial things. How well would you do on this four question trivia quiz:
1. Who was the first couple, not married in real life, to be shown in bed together on prime time TV? (Fred and Wilma Flintstone)
2. Coca-Cola was originally what color? (Green)
3. Which state has the highest percentage of people who walk to work? (Alaska)
4. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser printers all have in common? (They were invented by women)
How well did you do? Will knowing any of those answers affect your life? I doubt it. They are trivial.
Now I have four questions for you that are not trivial. Don’t worry, I will not be grading your answers.
1. According to the Westminster Shorter Catechism, what is the chief end of man? The answer, according to the catechism is: “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
Everything we do is to be for the glory of God. Creation declares the glory of God. Ps. 19 begins, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” It ends with, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
Some youth choirs in the late 60′s / early 70′s used a collection called, “The Electric Church.” One song in that collection was a musical version of Ps. 19. It began, “Don’t you wonder why… the stars are in the sky… they’re telling you and I of the glory of God. And every flowering tree… is there for folks to see… so there no doubt can be of the glory of God.” I particularly like the way it ended. “So let the words of my mouth… and the meditations of my heart… do the same thing for thee… and a witness be… to the glory of God… to the glory of God… to the glory of God.”
“Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
2. Again, I will not be grading your answers. What are the responsibilities of the church? What should we be doing? Answers include:
- Great Commission, Mt. 28:18-20: go, share the gospel, make disciples, baptize, teach…
- Sheep and Goats, Mt. 25:31-40: provide for the hungry, homeless, sick, and imprisoned
- Pure Religion, Ja. 1:27: minister to widows and orphans
- Heb 10:24-25: meet together, encourage one another
- other examples include the church praying together, sending out missionaries, taking relief offerings…
3. What are the responsibilities of Christians? To use Ezekiel’s words, “How should we then live?” 33:10
Without going into any detail, for several months Bro. Jim (Pastor, First Baptist Church, Everman, TX) has been printing from a list of commands for Christians in the church newsletter.
Finally…
4. What does 1 Cor. 10:31 say about these and all other activities of the church and of Christians? Everything we do is to be done for the glory of God. Our worship is for the glory of God. Our evangelism is for the glory of God. Our fellowship is for the glory of God. Our ministries are for the glory of God. Whether we eat or drink or worship or evangelize or fellowship or pray, we should do it all for the glory of God.
Last week, someone asked if I was discouraged doing so much work to prepare for so few people to come on Wednesday nights. There are children’s activities at the same time as prayer meeting. There are youth activities at the same time as prayer meeting. There are adults who help in both of those areas and in the nursery. Whether I lead prayer meeting, or Bro. Jim leads, or a seminary student leads, or anyone else leads, we should prepare as vigorously and lead as enthusiastically in Wednesday night prayer meetings in a small town church as we would if we were preaching in Sunday morning worship in a big city megachurch. We should not be leading for the glory of being in front of crowds. We should be leading for the glory of God.
I am not discouraged that I put in the work and teach so few. I am discouraged that there are so few in prayer meeting. Am I being clear in that distinction? My discouragement is not that there are so few here when I am teaching, but that there are so few in prayer meeting. I understand that some people have to work. I understand that some people are physically unable to be here. I understand that some have ministry responsibilities elsewhere. But I am discouraged that so few who can be here are here. Our prayer meeting should be to the glory of God.
I realize I am saying all this to the people who are here. I suspect some of you share that discouragement. Much of prayer meeting involves praying for the sick. The senior saints, who are more likely to be here than most age groups, are more likely to take that seriously than younger Christians, but praying for the sick should be done to the glory of God, and there is no age restrictions on that praying.
We also pray for the ministries of our church, for our staff, and for revival in our church, our community, and our nation. We also take time to praise God for answered prayer. We should do all that to the glory of God. There are no age restrictions on those prayers, either. I have thought of this before, but I hesitated to say it before because I did not want to sound like I want people here just because I am teaching, but we should pray that God will convict more people to join us in prayer. And it doesn’t have to just be members of First Baptist. Some other churches have no activities on Wednesdays. We can invite them to join us in prayer for revival.
Worship and prayer meetings are not the only ministries to the glory of God.
Recently, I was the substitute for a substitute teacher in a Sunday School class. As we were coming to a close, one member had to leave early. She is a greeter. She apologized for leaving early. No apology was needed. We need to greet strangers and make them feel welcome in God’s house. God calls people to that ministry. That ministry should be performed to the glory of God.
Sadly, in even in small town modern America, we need security to patrol our halls and parking area during worship. Our security people should patrol to the glory of God. They should greet people passing the church, letting them know that God’s people are happy and friendly. God can make people who are passing by think, “That is a friendly person in the security vest. I’m sure my car will be safe there. I need to get back in church. I think I’ll visit there.” That is the ideal. Too many people don’t think of visiting a church or talking to a pastor until they have a crisis in their lives. They, too, may think of godly people patrolling the parking lots. Patrolling parking lots is a ministry that should be performed to the glory of God.
Everything we do as the church or as individual Christians should be done to the glory of God. If we see that someone has dropped a bulletin on the floor, those of us who are physically able should pick it up, recognizing that how we present our church facilities is to the glory of God. Our restrooms should be cleaned not just as a matter of sanitation but for the glory of God.
Ministry for the glory of God is not satisfied thinking that:
- No one ever studies their Sunday School lesson. Anything I do will be more than they do and will be good enough.
- I know this song pretty well. I don’t have to rehearse it. I can do it well enough.
- I didn’t know it was so late. My favorite TV show comes on in twenty minutes. This room isn’t perfect, but it’s good enough.
I read a sermon by Kevin Higgins in which he said, “I heard about a church that needed a new sink one time, and it so happened that one of the members was putting a new sink in his house. He looked at the old sink and said that it was still good enough for the church, so he donated it. Listen, that’s a reflection of what we think about God. He doesn’t want our leftovers – He’s not deserving of our seconds. God is the God of glory and majesty and beauty and honor and excellence, and everything we do, everything we say, every way we treat other people should reflect our recognition of that fact!”
Too many churches have too many people satisfied with mediocrity and leftovers for the church. We must be better than that. When it comes to God’s glory, we have no business being mediocre. As the hymn says, “Do then the best you can, not for reward, not for the praise of man but for the Lord.”
Everything we do as a church should be to the glory of God. Everything we do as individual Christians should be to the glory of God. Doctors should be doctors to the glory of God. Electricians should be electricians to the glory of God. Lawyers should be lawyers to the glory of God. Members of the military should be members of the military to the glory of God. Bus drivers should be bus drivers to the glory of God. Athletes should be athletes tot he glory of God. Eric Liddell is an excellent example of this.
Eric was born on the mission field. In college, he became a very successful runner. In the movie, “Chariots of Fire,” he tells his sister that he has decided to return to China. She is thrilled. She thought that his success in running interfered with his devotion to God. All that time could be better spent helping the family on the mission field. She even questioned his commitment to God.
Now she exclaims, “Oh, Eric, I’m so pleased!”
Then he disappoints her again, saying, “But I’ve got a lot of running to do first. Jennie, you’ve got to understand. I believe that God made me for a purpose, for China. But he also made me fast, and when I run, I feel his pleasure. To give it up would be to hold him in contempt.”
He eventually makes the 1924 Olympic team. In France, he faces what his sister feared. He has to choose between running and God. The preliminary heats for his race, the 100 meters, are on Sunday. Christians took the Sabbath more seriously back then. Racing, even in the Olympics, was considered unworthy. He refuses to run. Instead, he preaches in a local church. His theme is, “Total Surrender.”
A teammate who won the 400 meter high hurdles drops out of the 400 meter dash to make a place for Eric. There are expectations that, being a 100 meter runner, he will burn out before completing 400 meters.
While taking position for the race, someone hands him a note saying, “Them that honour me I will honour” 1 Samuel 2:30.” He not only wins the race, he sets a world record.
Eric turns his back on the fame of an Olympic champion and goes to China as a missionary. The Japanese overrun his village in WWII and send him to a prison camp. He dies in that camp, but survivors say he continued to preach total surrender.
Eric Liddell ran for the glory of God. He was a missionary for the glory of God. He suffered for the glory of God. He died, but his testimony lives on.
God calls us to glorify him in every area of our lives. Whether it is eating or drinking or running or praying, we are to glorify God.
Let’s read 1 Pe 2:11-12: Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against you soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
In Peter’s day, Christians were the victims of outrageous slander. Pagans heard something about eating someone’s body and drinking his blood. Rumors spread that Christians were cannibals. Then the rumor became that Christians practiced infant sacrifices like the pagan tribes of the land long ago. The rumor was that Christians, unlike the ancient pagans, did not sacrifice their own children. They stole and sacrificed gentile children. Christians become “the big, bad wolf” of Roman empire fairy tales. Christians preached that the world would end by fire, so it was easy for Nero to blame them for burning Rome.
Christians today are the victims of slander. Have you ever heard anyone blame Christians for abortion clinic bombings? Have you ever heard Christians blamed for hate crimes against homosexuals?
With all this slander being spread, Peter urged Christians to “live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.”
Peter tells us to do the same, to live lives that glorify God.
Celsus, a second century skeptic, would be unknown today if a an early Christian leader, Origen, had not quoted his attack on Christians. He is only remembered today as one whose arguements Origen devastated. Dr. James Denison wrote that Celsus accused Christians of ignorance and superstition, but never of immorality, because he knew no one would believe it. By their lives, Christians defeated the slander spread about them. With slander being spread about us, we need to live lives that glorify God.
Dan Blocker was my favorite character, Hoss, on the TV series Bonanza. When he died unexpectedly, Hoss died. The producers knew they could not replace him. The story was that woman was caught in a flood. Hoss held her above the water with one hand and held a branch with the other to keep them from being washed away. He died, but he never let go. He died, but she lived.
Fans almost mourned for the fictional character, but they agreed it was a fitting way for Hoss to die.
In the 80′s, I saw an article about a new TV series, Bonanza, the Next Generation. The story was that the original Cartwrights were dead. Ben’s brother ran the Ponderosa. For various reasons, Adam’s son, little Joe’s son, and Hoss’ son were coming there to live.
Hoss died without marrying. The new series said he had a illegitimate son and died before bringing the mother to the Ponderosa.
Test audiences were scheduled with fans of the original series. They were furious. Ben had three sons by three wives. Maybe he had another son somewhere. Adam, sometimes a scholar and sometimes a Casanova, may have had an illegitimate son. If Joe had an illegitimate son, no one would be surprised. But Hoss? HOSS??? Fans refused to believe it. Test audiences were so angry that producers cancelled the series before the pilot even aired.
Fans refused to believe Hoss’ immorality. If a fictional character can inspire such belief in his character, how much more should we, “live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse [us] of doing wrong, they may see [our] good deeds and glorify God…
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
