Text: 1 Cor 10:31, Title: The Meaning of Life, Date/Place: NRBC, 8/14/11, AM
A. Opening illustration: Up until 450 years ago, everybody believed that the universe, and the sun, and the planets revolved around the earth. THEN, in 1543, Copernicus told them that the earth wasn’t the center of the universe. 50 years later, Galileo said that the planets revolved around the sun. They were so opposed to this idea, that they threw him in prison, and kicked him out of the church. The very IDEA that WE weren’t the center of the universe, was unthinkable! Over 40% of moms surveyed by Parents.com said they would rather lose 15 lbs than have their child be smarter, and that they would rather have a raise than more time with their children. The lyrics to the song “Talk about Me” below
B. Background to passage: Paul is recapping his argument as to why not to eat meat offered to idols, so we won’t rehash much of that, but he gives us a verse that very much transcends its contextual situation. And this verse is a key to much of life, and that’s what we want to focus on today.
C. Main thought: in this text we are exhorted to live for the purpose that we were created for.
A. Fulfills Purposes
1. No really deep word meanings in Greek, not fancy constructions, just plain straightforward language: do everything that you do to the glory of God. Whether you are drinking orange juice, finishing a paper for school, or driving to work, the reason that you do it and your foundational goal in doing it is to make much of God. The glory of God is His inherent value, worth, splendor, perfections, and excellencies. And one cannot add to that, for there is no deficiency in Him. None of us could ever add to infinite beauty and holiness or power. But we are called to do what we do to hold up a magnifying glass to God for those near us to see the excellencies that we have seen. This fulfills God’s purpose in creating you, and your purpose for living: making much of Jesus. In fact, the reason that God does everything He does is to glorify Himself.
2. Isa 43:7, 20-21, 44:23, 48:9-11, Zech 7:6, 1 Pet 4:11, Col 3:17,
3. Illustration: “The glory of God is the beauty and excellence of his manifold perfections. It is an attempt to put into words what God is like in his magnificence and purity. It refers to his infinite and overflowing fullness of all that is good. The term might focus on his different attributes from time to time—like his power and wisdom and mercy and justice—because each one is indeed awesome and beautiful in its magnitude and quality. But in general God's glory is the perfect harmony of all his attributes into one infinitely beautiful and personal being.” –Piper, if you know that a skillet is made for cooking instead of ditch-digging, you will be much happier in your culinary and your occupational life, ,
4. Why did God create the universe? Psalm 19:1 - “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showed his handiwork.” Why did God choose the Jews? Isaiah 43:7 – “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” Why does God allow troubles in our life? Psalm 50:15 – “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shall glorify me.” Why did God send Jesus to earth? John 17:4 – “I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gave me to do.”
5. This is the reason that many people are searching for purpose in life. This is the reason that many people find what they are looking for, but still feel empty. This is the reason that there is so much unhappiness in the world in general: people are not living for the purpose for which they were created. When you begin to put this principle into practice in your life, you will be fulfilled, complete, satisfied. When you do this, it points to the centrality of God in your life. When you think of Him as you enjoy a glass of orange juice, you testify that God is central to your life.
B. Demonstrates Love
1. Not only does it fulfill God’s purposes and yours, but it demonstrates love. It is relatively easy to see how if you live for God’s glory it will show love to others. God is pleased when you love each other, lay your life down for each other, etc. The context of these verses is a good example: if the Corinthians are living for God’s glory, they will abstain from eating meat in the temple of idols, and thus keep their brothers and unbelievers from stumbling. But some may ask, why is it necessarily good to have a God who main focus is Himself? Two reasons (there’s probably more, but these are central): 1) God would not be God if He didn’t value most what is most valuable; if He didn’t love what was most lovely; if He didn’t honor that which is most honorable; if He didn’t praise what is most praiseworthy. And there is nothing more valuable, lovely, honorable, and praiseworthy as God Himself. 2) To glorify Himself is of the most benefit to people. Why? When God is exalted as the most worthy being, people are drawn to Him (we are simply drawn to greatness). And when people are drawn to Him and begin drinking of the fountain of living water, they become more satisfied, fulfilled, happy, and this happiness becomes an eternal happiness. So in short, people are the most happy when God and His beauty and sufficiency is magnified. So it is the most loving thing that God can do to advance our joy: glorify Himself.
2. Illustration:
3. When you live for His glory it also demonstrates your love for Him. If you as a husband live your life to make much of your spouse, and you constantly tell others about her, bring her flowers regularly, compliment her daily, write about her, and make the whole world know of appreciation of her; everyone will know that you love her! It does not bring much glory to operate out of duty, right? Wife: oh, honey, these flowers are beautiful! Husband: o, honey, it was nothing, it’s my duty. Does this sweep her off her feet? Of course not! The glory comes when he says, “It’s my joy to make you happy because I love you so much.” So when we live for His glory in eating, drinking, working, loving, fishing, sports, relationships, music, conversing, driving home, feeding the dogs, washing the dishes, tithing, prayer, in everything, you show Him that you love Him, and you show the world that you love them.
C. Then How
1. Many people say that God is at the center of their lives, but don’t ever evaluate what they do in light of its advancement of His glory. Let me give you a few ways: 1) evaluate every thought, word, or action in light of how it makes God look, feel, or exalts His value to you. Easier said that done, right? Every action? 2) to glorify God we should intentionally make plans and efforts to glorify Him.
2. Argumentation
3. Illustration: God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him, extended illustration about drinking orange juice, you glorify a beautiful painting by enjoying it’s splendor and telling others about it, you glorify an excellent meal by enjoying it and praising the cook, you glorify a new, "The Scotch catechism says that man’s chief end is ’to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.’ But we shall then know that these are the same thing. Fully to enjoy is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him." -Lewis, C.S.
4. Is this relationship that I am in glorifying God? Is this anger that I am expressing making Jesus look good? Is the way that I am approaching this book I have to read for class demonstrating that I value Jesus? Is the truest thoughts of my heart pleasing God while I enjoy this piece of sausage? Does this dress I am wearing exalt Christ or the curvature of my figure? Does my choice of language promote the transforming grace of Jesus in my life? Does the vehicle I drive, or how I drive it demonstrate that I love Christ more than anything? Do my priorities in time and money scream that He is central? What have you done lately to purposefully beautify The Most Beautiful One? Shared Christ with anyone, invited anyone to your house for dinner, prepared dinner for someone else (Brother Charlie’s), laid down your lives for your children or grandchildren?
5. The best ways that we can make His glory seen as central to our lives and central to the universe is to trust Him, obey Him, love Him, desire Him, sacrifice for Him, and be satisfied/joyful/fulfilled/content in Him.
A. Closing illustration: "I do not go to heaven to be advanced but to give honor to God. It is no matter where I shall be stationed in heaven, whether I have a high or low seat there, but to live and please and glorify God.... My heaven is to please God and glorify Him, and give all to Him, and to be wholly devoted to His glory." –Brainerd to Edwards, “You glorify God's beauty and excellence by loving it and delighting in it. You glorify God's power by trusting him with all the hard and threatening things in your life. You glorify God's bounty and generosity and kindness and grace by overflowing with gratitude. And you glorify God's wisdom by obeying his counsel. And everybody knows that this is no burden. This is no heavy law. This is love.” –Piper
B. This command reminds us of how far short we fall, and how desperate our need for grace truly is. All of us every day continually break this command. Some of you didn’t realize how much you sin until today, and you need to do something about it. You need to born again today!
C. There are a number of believers here today that feel like you are just meandering through the normal Christian life. This truth is not in practice in your life, and you need to make a fresh commitment this morning to live expressly for the glory of Christ. To begin to re-evaluate what you do in light of God’s reputation and magnification.
D. And there are some of you that just need a complete perspective adjustment, you have been living for your goals, your wants, your needs, and it has left you fairly empty, let me invite you to drink deeply of a God who totally satisfies. Your happiness and God’s glory can be most advanced when you find your joy IN CHRIST. Let this command to do whatever you do for His glory be the new foundation for your life.
Additional Notes
• I wanna talk about me / Wanna talk about I / Wanna talk about number one / Oh my me my
What I think / What I like / What I know / What I want / What I see
I like talking about you, you, you, you usually / But occasionally
I wanna talk about me (me, me, me, me) / I wanna talk about me (me, me)
Some of you then asked the practical question: Well, how do you "eat and drink" to the glory of God? Say, orange juice for breakfast?
One answer is found in 1 Timothy 4:3-5: "[Some] forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer."
Orange juice was "created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe the truth." Therefore, unbelievers cannot use orange juice for the purpose God intended—namely, as an occasion for heartfelt gratitude to God from a truth heart of faith.
But believers can, and this is how they glorify God. Their drinking orange juice is "sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer." The word of God teaches us that the juice, and even our strength to drink it, is a free gift of God (1 Corinthians 4:7; 1 Peter 4:11). The prayer is our humble response of thanks from the heart. Believing this truth in the word, and offering thanks in prayer is one way we drink orange juice to the glory of God.
The other way is to drink lovingly. For example, don't insist on the biggest helping. This is taught in the context of 1 Corinthians 10:33, "I try to please all men in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved" (RSV). "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1). Everything we do—even drinking orange juice—can be done with the intention and hope that it will be to the advantage of many that they may be saved.
Let us praise God that we have escaped by his grace from the total ruin of all our deeds. And let us do everything, whether we eat or drink, to the glory of our great God!
How do you bring glory to an all-sufficient, perfect, infinitely beautiful, infinitely wise, infinitely powerful, overflowing God? Here you can use the texts in the pamphlet or you can use illustrations from ordinary life.
For example, if you want to glorify a beautiful painting, you don't feel a burden to work to improve it. You simply enjoy it. You love it. You talk about it excitedly to your friends. Or if someone makes a wonderful meal and serves it up before you, how do you glorify the excellence of the meal? Not by putting on your apron and going out to the kitchen to make a few more dishes or add a few spices. No. You glorify a perfect meal by eating a lot and by feeling contented and saying, ahhh. In other words if it is your duty to glorify something infinitely beautiful and wonderful, that is no burden. It is a pleasure. In fact when you take from it pleasure, you show it's a treasure.
Or suppose it's your duty to glorify the strength of a new metal alloy that holds up a bridge. How do you glorify the strength of the metal? Not by working hard to provide some extra supports, but by getting in your car with all your family and trusting the bridge with your life as you peacefully drive across without any anxiety. You glorify strength by trusting it not by working to supplement it. So the duty to glorify power is not a burden. It's a restful pleasure.
Or suppose your duty was to glorify someone's generosity. Suppose someone was so rich and so generous that they just spilled over in love and generosity and grace and kindness to you. How would you glorify that quality in them? Not by trying to pay them back. That would turn their kindness into a business deal. It would treat their free gift like a trade. Tit for tat. That would not glorify the wealth of their generosity. No the way to glorify their generosity and their kindness is to be lavish and genuine in your gratitude and thanksgiving. And that is no burden. If you get a billion dollar gift, you do not groan under the duty to feel thankful. It is a pleasure not a hardship.
Finally, suppose it is your duty to glorify someone's great wisdom? Say the wisdom of your coach (if you're on some team) or your counselor (if you are in some kind of therapy)? The answer is that you don't glorify their wisdom by trying strenuously to help them figure out the answer to some problem. You glorify their wisdom by doing what they say. If you want to show that your coach is really wise, you run and do his drills without doubting or grumbling. If you want to glorify your counselor's wisdom, you do his assignments without doubt or grumbling. In other words, glad-hearted obedience glorifies great wisdom. And this is not a burden (1 John 5:3).
