Glory Road

Part Two

Last month we presented a short study about the concept of “Glory”. Probably the most important thing that we learned was that “it is the chief duty of man to glorify God”. You will remember that this is the answer to the question in the Westminster Catechism. If we accept this statement, it means that we must give Him his due. And once we decide that we are to give God His due, then it follows that all glory is due His Holy Name! We shall be glorifying Him throughout eternity and we are to begin right now while we have carnal breath. Infinite glory belongs to Him! Blessed be the name of our God and Our Lord  Jesus Christ. Amen!

One of the ways that God expects us to glorify Him is found in our text in Psalm 86 above which says we are to praise Him. The glory of God calls for worship and one of the major avenues of worship is to express His worth with our voices in song and sermon, in conversation and confession. Even among men, when we want to acknowledge their worth we praise them with words from our mouth. Too often we hold the praise for our fellow humans until after they have passed through death and then we eulogize them at their funeral! But that is another story. The Psalms are full of people who want to give God glory, and so they offer praise for his Goodness, His Mercy, His Longsuffering and any number of other graces that He freely bestows upon His children. All of this calls for, or rather it requires a response of praise.

The degree of the magnitude of Glory of God that we are cognizant of is of course limited by our finite existence upon the earth. It is His Self revelation which He has granted that humans can comprehend with their fallen nature and to which humans must respond in confession, worship, and praise. Notice the omnipresence of God’s Glory that David speaks of at the time when he was gathering material for the Temple that his son Solomon was ordained by God to build. The people were moved with great joy in their opportunity to give their gold and silver and precious things toward this project of ultimate worth. These folks knew what it meant to be cheerful givers.

Wherefore  David  blessed the LORD before all the congregation: 
and David  said,  Blessed be thou, LORD God of Israel our father,
for ever and ever. Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power,
and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the
heaven and in the earth is thine;  thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and
thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come of
thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might;
and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Now
 therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name. 
I Chron 29:10-13

One need only look at the Psalms to get a sense of how the Glory of God not only fills the earth, but also is above the earth. (See some sample Scriptures below) People often give such glory to God, as they recognize the essential nature of His Goodness. They see His importance and weight in relationship to the human worshiping community. Praise to God can also be false, not truly recognizing His importance (Isa. 29:13). God  reveals His glory in His just dealings with men. He also reveals it in the storms and events of nature (Ps. 29). Such revelation does not reveal all of God, for no person can see the entirety of the divine glory, not even Moses (Ex. 33:17-23).

At times “giving the Glory to God” is not as much fun as at other times. We have several examples in the Bible where the phrase is a Hebrew idiom meaning “confess your sins”. During the battle for Jericho, Achan took certain items for himself which had been dedicated to God and which the Lord had ordered to be destroyed. Because of this sin the Israelites were not victorious at the battle of Ai which followed. When Achan is revealed by casting lots, Joshua as the leader, and the one responsible before God to repair the damage done says to Achan; My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. (Joshua 7:20) Achan does indeed confess and pays a heavy penalty for direct and willful disobedience to a command of God. But once the sin is taken out of the camp  Israel is finally given victory over Ai and allowed to spoil the goods in that city.

A similar situation occurs in the New Testament in the ninth chapter of John’s Gospel.  There we find the Jews grilling the man healed of blindness; A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God, " they said. "We know this man is a sinner. John 9:24 New International Version. They wanted a confession of guilt. Their request was equivalent to saying “Confess that you were not really blind, but that you are an impostor” “Give the Glory to God and tell the truth”. They said this because they wanted to deny that a miracle had taken place and that Jesus was a fake. Of course in this case the man had no guilt and he was really healed and he responded to their demand with those glorious words "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!" This is the type of response I often recommend for newer Christians when they are confronted by hecklers with theological questions that they are not prepared to answer. Just say, “I do not know the answer to all your questions, but this I do know, I once was lost but now am found, I was blind but now I see. End of argument. Remember also, this poor man did not yet know Jesus personally. That would not happen until after the Jews threw him out of the synagogue. At that point Jesus revealed Himself to the man and the man responded with Lord I believe and he worshipped Jesus!

How can we leave off the teaching about giving glory to God until we mention our father Abraham in Romans 4:20 where it is said that He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God. How did Abraham give glory to God? He glorified God by the firmness with which he believed the promises that God made to him. His conduct was such that it brought honor to God; that is, he showed his conviction that God was worthy of confidence and trust. In this very same way all who believe in the promises of God do honor Him. They bear testimony to Him that He is worthy of their confidence. They become so many witnesses to His grace and thereby present to the world living proof that God has a claim on the confidence and trust of mankind.

Do not fail to Give Glory to God throughout the day. He deserves it!

[Next month we will look at the Glory that was revealed in Jesus Christ our Lord]                                    

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Isaiah 42:8      I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.

Psalm 8:1        O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.

Psalm 57:5      Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.  (Repeated in verse 11)

Psalm 72:19    And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.

Psalm 108:5    Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: and thy glory above all the earth.

Psalm 148:13 Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven.

Rev. 4:11        Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Rev. 7:11, 12  And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev. 21:23      And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof