Dakota Community Church
December 23, 2012
Wonders of His Love
From The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647):
Question 1: What is the chief end of man? Answer 1: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him for ever.
Man’s chief end is to glorify God:
Romans 11:36
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
1 Corinthians 10:31
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
Revelation 4:11
“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
And to enjoy Him for ever:
Psalm 144:15
Blessed are the people of whom this is true; blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.
Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Revelation 21:3-4
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
God loves us and yet His story is not about us.
God loves us but our purpose is to glorify Him, to make much of Him, to enjoy/find our joy -in Him.
Does that seem backwards to anyone else?
I think the wisdom of this word says: “I am loved when I am being made much of!”
All of this “glorify Me” talk leaves God seeming petty, self-absorbed, narcissistic even.
How does the God-centeredness of God relate to his love for sinners like us?
How is God's passion for His glory an act of love?
God's love for us is NOT mainly his making much of us, but his giving us the ability to enjoy making much of him forever.
God's love for us keeps HIM at the center., it has to! - FOR HE created all things, and by HIS will they were created and have their being.
God's love for us exalts his value and our satisfaction in it.
If God's love made us central it would rob from us the only true source of life, the most precious thing in existence, namely, Himself.
God’s love for us compels Him to lead us to glory only in Him.
This can hurt - but the alternative is damnation.
A few examples of what I am talking about here:
Job 1:8-22
Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”
Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.
13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, 15 and the Sabeans attacked and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the sky and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
17 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 21 and said:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”
22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
You will suffer or someone you love will - no question about it.
The natural question is “Why”.
To common and unsatisfactory answers get offered - moralism (someone did wrong) or - fatalism (God doesn’t exist or He doesn’t care)
Job is never told why this happens.
We need to not just tolerate suffering without knowing why, when it happens we need to embrace not knowing why!
God wants to turn all of us into “free lovers”.
Do we love God only for what He does for us? For what He gives us? In order to gain a safe and pain free life?
Have you ever been networked?
Ladies, have you ever been pursued by a guy who only wanted one thing?
Why does Kathy love me?
John 11:1-6
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.
• Jesus chose to let Lazarus die.
"When He heard he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where he was."
• He was motivated by a passion for the glory of God displayed in his own glorious power.
"This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it."
• Both the decision to let Lazarus die and the motivation to magnify God were expressions of love for Mary and Martha and Lazarus.
"Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus . . . yet he stayed . . . where he was."
How many of us would complain about Jesus for callously letting Lazarus die and putting Mary and Martha and through the suffering of those days. Many would call this harsh even unloving.
How much more value do most of us place on a pain free life over the glory of God?
Let us not tell Jesus what love is.
Let us not instruct him how he should love us and make us central.
Let us learn from Jesus what love is and what our true well-being is.
Love is doing whatever you need to do to help people see and savor the glory of God forever and ever. Love keeps God central.
One more:
Matthew 11:2-6
When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”
4 Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. 6 Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”
Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners
He is the ONE - there is no other!
He is anointed to set the prisoners free - John is going to be beheaded because of an angry adulteress who bristled rather than repenting when confronted with the law.
Glorify God with me today - no matter what, even if... especially if, you don’t know why you are going through what you are going through.
Rejoice in the wonder of His love.
PowerPoint available (Free of charge) on request dcormie@mts.net
Follow Dan on twitter: @DanCormie
