[b]Living For The Glory Of God[/b]
[i]by Zac Poonen[/i]

"To Him are all things" (Rom. 11:36) God is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. And so, as all things of an eternal nature originate in Him, they find their consummation in Him too. All things were created by God to bring glory to Him. This is not because God selfishly desires our glory. He is completely self-sufficient in Himself, and there is nothing that we can offer Him that can add to His sufficiency. When He calls us to seek His glory, it is because that is the way for our own highest good. We would be self-centred and miserable otherwise.

To be centered in Him is a law that God has built into creation. That law can be violated only by moral creatures with a free will. Inanimate creation joyfully obeys its Creator and glorifies Him. But Adam disobeyed that law, and we see the consequences in the misery of humanity.

In the prayer that the Lord taught His disciples to pray, the very first request is, "Hallowed by Thy Name." This was the primary longing in the heart of the Lord Jesus. He prayed "Father, glorify Thy Name," and chose the way of the Cross since that was to the Father's glory (Jn. 12:27,28). One supreme passion governed the life of the Lord Jesus - the Father's glory. Everything He did was for the Father's glory. There were no separate sacred and secular compartments in His life. Everything was sacred. He made stools and benches for the glory of God as much as He preached and healed the sick for the glory of God. Every day was equally sacred to Him; and money spent on the necessities of daily living was as sacred as money given to God's work or to the poor. Jesus lived in perfect rest of heart at all times, because He sought only the Father's glory and cared only for His Father's approval. He lived before the face of His Father and did not care for the honour or praise of men. "He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory," said Jesus (Jn. 7:18).

The soulish Christian, however much he may appear or pretend to be seeking the glory of God, is really, deep down, interested in his own honour. Jesus on the other hand, never sought any honour for Himself. That which originates in man's cleverness and is carried out through human ingenuity and talents, will always end in glorifying man. That which begins in the soul will only glorify the creature.But there will be nothing in heaven or in earth in the ages of eternity that will bring honour or glory to any man.Everything that survives time and enters the portals of eternity will be what was from God, through God and to God.

It is the motive behind an action that gives value and merit to that action, as far as God is concerned.What we do is important, but why we do it is far more important.

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SI Moderator - Greg Gordon