Sermon

The Five Solas (2017): Soli Deo Gloria

Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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  1. This is a copy of God's Word, which I hope you have with you, that it's well read and treasured in your heart.

  2. Turn with me to the book of Romans chapter 11, verse 33.

    Romans 11:33

  3. Today we're going to conclude our series on the solas of the Reformation.

  4. And I'm going to preach from selected texts today.

  5. I'm going to bounce this around a lot, which is not typically what I enjoy doing.

  6. But I think to deal with the glory of God alone, we need to do so thematically this morning.

  7. And so I want to begin our study with a reading from Romans 11, verses 33 through 36.

    Romans 11:33–36

  8. And then we're going to leave it.

  9. I'll probably read it again in summary.

  10. But I just want you to know, don't be thrown off when you go,

  11. wait, Nathan's not talking about Romans 11, 33 through 36.

  12. We'll bring other scripture.

  13. And I want you to get ready, nimble fingers, to turn to other places with me this morning.

  14. But I hope that this text will help draw your mind to the glory of God and the salvation of His people.

  15. As Paul has spent the first 11 chapters of this great letter to the church in Rome,

  16. outlining what the gospel is.

  17. Our great need for justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

  18. And then he writes this, beginning in verse 33 and following.

  19. Oh, the depths of the riches and the wisdom and knowledge of God.

  20. How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways.

  21. For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been His counselor?

  22. Or who has given a gift to Him that He might be repaid?

  23. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things.

  24. To Him be glory forever.

  25. Amen.

  26. On Tuesday, we will celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

  27. Specifically, on the 31st, we celebrate the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses

  28. to the door of the Wittenberg Church.

  29. The 95 theses was a document outlining 95 reasons why the selling of indulgences by the Roman Catholic Church

  30. was not biblical.

  31. The prologue to this document reads as follows.

  32. Out of love for the truth and from desire to explain it,

  33. the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology,

  34. an ordinary lecturer therein at Wittenberg,

  35. intends to defend the following statements and to dispute on them in that place.

  36. Therefore, he asks that those who cannot be present and dispute with him orally

  37. shall do so in their absence by letter.

  38. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

  39. Amen.

  40. So we outlined his reasons and we will not get into them,

  41. although you can find good English translations of them all over the place.

  42. It's online.

  43. It's especially easy to Google search this month.

  44. One of the major concerns that Martin Luther had was that the selling of indulgences,

  45. the teaching that justification could come by works of one kind or another,

  46. were a degradation to the glory of God.

  47. That maximized man and his work and it minimized God's working.

  48. What precipitated from this document ignited a flame of doctrinal purification in Europe.

  49. And we are beneficiaries of this purification.

  50. God used the reformation in mighty ways that we might believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

  51. Now, much of the reformers' teaching has been summed up systematically in what are known as the solas.

  52. The reformers didn't write it systematically in the way that we are studying it across these past weeks.

  53. But we've brought it together.

  54. We've encapsulated it in this way.

  55. The reformers loved the word alone or only because recall that they were speaking to audiences that considered themselves Christian.

  56. There was not opposition in the day to Scripture or grace or faith or Christ or the glory of God.

  57. But there was so much addition to or subtraction from these key doctrines that the reformers loved to say only.

  58. So a number of weeks ago, five weeks ago, we picked up the topic of sola scriptura.

  59. That is to say that the Bible is our final authority.

  60. It's the reigning authority over all other authorities.

  61. So the Scripture alone is our authority.

  62. And it teaches us that we are justified, have a right standing before God by grace alone, sola gratia,

  63. through faith alone, sola fide, with the proper object of that faith being Christ,

  64. in Christ alone, sola Christus.

  65. And all things are for the glory of God alone, sola deo gloria.

  66. As we end this series with a consideration of sola deo gloria,

  67. know that we very well could have began our series with it.

  68. God's glory is His renown or His fame.

  69. And while we cannot make God more glorious than He already is,

  70. we can mitigate it in our own hearts and to the detriment of others.

  71. This was the predominant issue of the Reformation.

  72. The glory of God expressed in the life of the church.

  73. What do we believe to be true?

  74. And how does our doctrine either shed a proper light on the glory of God

  75. or lessen it, in a sense I'll get into momentarily?

  76. A book I want to commend to you, but I'm not going to give to you, this morning anyway,

  77. written by John Piper in a series he did called The Swans Are Not Silence.

  78. There's a series of biographies.

  79. This one's called The Legacy of Sovereign Joy.

  80. He writes of an example from John Calvin's life.

  81. He writes,

  82. In 1538, the Italian cardinal Sadele wrote to the leaders of Geneva

  83. trying to win them back to the Roman Catholic Church

  84. after they had turned to the Reformed teachings.

  85. He began his letter with a long conciliatory section

  86. on the preciousness of eternal life

  87. before coming to his accusations of the Reformation.

  88. Calvin wrote the response to Sadele in six days in the fall of 1539.

  89. It was one of his earliest writings

  90. and spread his name as a Reformer across Europe.

  91. Luther read it and said,

  92. Here is a writing which has hands and feet.

  93. I rejoice that God raises up such men.

  94. So Calvin writes this response to this cardinal

  95. who's trying to draw the Reformer leaders back to Roman Catholicism.

  96. And his response to a teaching that said

  97. that justification was not by grace through faith in Christ

  98. was this, and I quote,

  99. Your zeal for heavenly life is a zeal which keeps a man

  100. entirely devoted to himself

  101. and does not, even by one expression,

  102. arouse him to sanctify the name of God.

  103. There he goes on to say that the goal of every person's life

  104. ought to be to set before man

  105. as the prime motive of his existence

  106. zeal to illustrate the glory of God.

  107. To make much of God.

  108. To know God as he is

  109. and to help others to know God as he is.

  110. This was the great cry of the Reformation.

  111. So we could have also started with

  112. Soli Deo Gloria,

  113. but it's also apt to end with this theme,

  114. this idea of to God alone be the glory.

  115. Now the Bible reveals God's glory in two ways.

  116. And this will be the outline for our study this morning.

  117. The Bible reveals God's glory in two ways.

  118. Number one,

  119. as God's intrinsic reality.

  120. God is glorious.

  121. And number two,

  122. as the external manifestation of God's glory.

  123. So his glory expressed in the world.

  124. Number one is God's intrinsic reality.

  125. And number two,

  126. as the external manifestation of God's glory.

  127. So number one,

  128. God's glory expressed as God's intrinsic reality.

  129. In the Old Testament,

  130. the primary Hebrew word for glory,

  131. which is pronounced,

  132. I believe,

  133. kabod,

  134. meant a heavy weight.

  135. Such as a rich man's possessions,

  136. which,

  137. when weighed,

  138. added up to a great deal of weight.

  139. The richer he was,

  140. the more his possessions would weigh.

  141. With this wealth came a degree of clout,

  142. or a heavy influence upon others in the community.

  143. Thus,

  144. glory came to represent the greatness of a man,

  145. which commanded the respect of others.

  146. So not just how well a man would be known,

  147. not famous like people are famous in our day,

  148. and then they try to have influence on people,

  149. right?

  150. But famous for being famous in some respects.

  151. But this is a fame that has influence.

  152. God's weight,

  153. or glory,

  154. is the greatness of who he is.

  155. His glory is the awesome gravity of his name.

  156. I am who I am.

  157. The infinite wealth of his divine attributes,

  158. as is found in his holiness,

  159. his sovereignty,

  160. his wrath,

  161. his justice,

  162. his grace,

  163. his goodness,

  164. and so on.

  165. Every aspect of his character

  166. is immeasurably heavy,

  167. weighty,

  168. incomparably great,

  169. beyond any human's character,

  170. or ability.

  171. Being absolutely perfect,

  172. God is awesome in every way.

  173. Steve Lawson,

  174. who's a contemporary pastor,

  175. told the following account in an article

  176. concerning the intrinsic reality of God's glory.

  177. He wrote this.

  178. Years ago,

  179. Donald Gray Barnhouse,

  180. pastor of 10th Presbyterian Church

  181. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,

  182. delivered a message that aired on CBC radio.

  183. In this national address,

  184. the noted Bible teacher speculated

  185. about what would be

  186. the most diabolical strategy

  187. that Satan could employ

  188. against the church

  189. in the years to come.

  190. You catch that?

  191. He said,

  192. this is what I think

  193. would be most diabolical

  194. that Satan could do

  195. as a strategy against the church.

  196. To the astonishment of many listeners,

  197. Barnhouse imagined

  198. that all of the bars in Philadelphia

  199. would be closed.

  200. Prostitutes would no longer walk the streets.

  201. pornography would no longer be available.

  202. The streets would be clean

  203. and all the city neighborhoods

  204. would be filled with law-abiding citizens.

  205. All swearing and cursing would be gone.

  206. Children would respectfully say,

  207. yes, sir, and no, ma'am.

  208. Every church in town,

  209. Barnhouse added,

  210. would be packed to overflowing.

  211. There would not be one church pew

  212. that could not contain one more citizen.

  213. What, you ask,

  214. could be wrong with this?

  215. Barnhouse then delivered

  216. the knockout punch.

  217. The deadliest,

  218. most diabolical danger,

  219. he said,

  220. would be that in each of these

  221. filled-to-capacity sanctuaries,

  222. Jesus Christ would never be preached

  223. and the glory of God

  224. would never be exalted.

  225. And beloved,

  226. this is all too true

  227. in many of our churches today.

  228. I have actually found myself

  229. in these past five weeks

  230. feeling a heaviness

  231. about the state of American Christianity.

  232. the degree to which

  233. the heirs of Rome

  234. have slipped into

  235. our evangelical churches.

  236. The magnitude

  237. of a soft prosperity gospel.

  238. Many call it

  239. moralistic, therapeutic deism,

  240. which goes something like this,

  241. and you can pick this up

  242. in so many sermons today.

  243. Do good

  244. so that you'll feel good

  245. so that you'll get good.

  246. Next Sunday,

  247. we're going to

  248. I hesitate on the word celebrate.

  249. We're going to gather together

  250. and consider

  251. the persecuted church

  252. as it's the International Day of Prayer

  253. for the persecuted church.

  254. Try to preach that garbage

  255. at some places in the world.

  256. Some of our pastors today,

  257. great theologians,

  258. well-studied,

  259. doctors of theology,

  260. would be shut down

  261. by the simple faith

  262. of suffering Christians.

  263. around the world.

  264. That they would say to them,

  265. oh, but to be like Christ.

  266. This past week,

  267. a church called

  268. First Baptist Dallas,

  269. pastored by a man

  270. named Robert Jeffers,

  271. Dr. Robert Jeffers,

  272. a church that is part

  273. of our denomination,

  274. invited Sean Hannity

  275. to come and be interviewed

  276. as part of the preaching.

  277. This is last week.

  278. Because he is the executive producer

  279. of a film,

  280. a faith-based film,

  281. Sean Hannity has,

  282. for a long time,

  283. espoused himself

  284. as a Roman Catholic.

  285. So he sits on the stage

  286. talking to Dr. Jeffers

  287. and proceeds to talk about

  288. how he's not sure

  289. if he really considers himself

  290. a Catholic any longer,

  291. but more a,

  292. and I quote,

  293. born-again Christian.

  294. And then he goes on

  295. to talk about

  296. how the ill feelings

  297. he would have

  298. as a young man

  299. after partying all night,

  300. he'd wake up feeling horrible.

  301. He thought was God

  302. working and speaking

  303. in his conscience.

  304. And so he stopped

  305. doing those things.

  306. He stopped partying.

  307. He started hanging out

  308. with other people.

  309. He stopped working

  310. in the restaurant industry.

  311. He started working

  312. in the construction industry

  313. instead.

  314. And he finds that

  315. if he just will listen

  316. to this conscience

  317. God telling him,

  318. helping him to do

  319. good things,

  320. that he feels good.

  321. You're hearing

  322. do good

  323. and the feel good

  324. in there.

  325. And at the conclusion

  326. of this,

  327. Dr. Robert Jeffers

  328. says to him,

  329. brother,

  330. I am so glad

  331. that I'm going to see you

  332. in heaven one day.

  333. Trampled the gospel

  334. of Jesus Christ.

  335. Justification by,

  336. through grace,

  337. by grace alone,

  338. through faith alone

  339. in Christ.

  340. Alone.

  341. A horrible travesty.

  342. And I hope you feel that.

  343. I hope that you don't go,

  344. I don't really understand

  345. what's bad about that.

  346. Sean Hannity said,

  347. I'm earning my way

  348. to heaven.

  349. And a Southern Baptist pastor,

  350. a well-known,

  351. outspoken,

  352. published Southern Baptist pastor

  353. said,

  354. yeah,

  355. you sure are.

  356. Dr. Jeffers

  357. helped damn

  358. Sean Hannity

  359. this past Sunday

  360. did not speak

  361. clearly to him

  362. the gospel

  363. of Jesus Christ

  364. and they were applauded.

  365. It makes me tremble.

  366. I'm so afraid

  367. for American Christianity.

  368. God's glory

  369. may have already

  370. left our churches.

  371. He may have already

  372. moved on

  373. places like China

  374. where it's reported

  375. that 10,000 people

  376. come to faith

  377. every day.

  378. He may have already

  379. left us

  380. to this

  381. diabolical

  382. strategy

  383. of Satan.

  384. let this not be

  385. true

  386. of us.

  387. Despite all of this,

  388. despite the troubling

  389. state of American

  390. Christianity,

  391. God

  392. is

  393. glorious.

  394. He is

  395. intrinsically

  396. glorious.

  397. Nothing that we

  398. feel,

  399. think,

  400. say,

  401. or do

  402. will add

  403. to or subtract

  404. from God's

  405. intrinsic

  406. glory.

  407. King David

  408. declares

  409. in Psalm

    Psalms 138:5

  410. 138,

  411. verse 5,

  412. great

  413. is the

  414. glory

  415. of the

  416. Lord.

  417. In Ephesians

  418. 3,

  419. 16,

  420. the Apostle

  421. Paul

  422. asks that

  423. the Ephesian

  424. believers

  425. be strengthened

  426. with power

  427. according

  428. to the

  429. riches

  430. of God's

  431. glory.

  432. In Isaiah

  433. 42,

  434. 8,

  435. God says,

  436. I am the

  437. Lord,

  438. that is

  439. my name,

  440. my glory,

  441. I give

  442. to no

  443. other.

  444. So God

  445. is himself

  446. glorious.

  447. And not only

  448. that,

  449. but we see

  450. in Isaiah

  451. 42,

  452. 8,

  453. that he

  454. is a

  455. glory

  456. miser.

  457. And this

  458. is good

  459. for us

  460. because we

  461. are glory

  462. thieves.

  463. We love

  464. to have

  465. glory for

  466. our self,

  467. to be made

  468. famous,

  469. to have

  470. influence

  471. for us.

  472. We're always

  473. wanting to make

  474. more of ourselves

  475. than we ought

  476. to,

  477. and in

  478. so doing,

  479. make little

  480. of God.

  481. God

  482. is

  483. weighty,

  484. whether or

  485. not we want

  486. him to be,

  487. and so

  488. God is

  489. right in

  490. being zealous

  491. for his

  492. own fame.

  493. Beloved,

  494. it is so good

  495. for us that

  496. God is

  497. God-centered,

  498. that God is a

  499. miser of his

  500. own glory

  501. because he

  502. is

  503. God.

  504. God.

  505. It would

  506. always be

  507. wrong for

  508. any one

  509. of us

  510. to try

  511. to heap

  512. up glory

  513. for

  514. ourselves

  515. because we

  516. are not

  517. God.

  518. But God

  519. himself,

  520. the Lord,

  521. the great

  522. I am,

  523. the self-existent

  524. one,

  525. the intrinsically

  526. glorious

  527. one,

  528. would do us

  529. no favor

  530. allowing us

  531. to have glory

  532. for ourselves.

  533. He does

  534. us

  535. infinite

  536. favor

  537. in showing

  538. us

  539. how glorious

  540. he is,

  541. pointing to

  542. himself

  543. all the time

  544. and in so

  545. many ways.

  546. Look at

  547. me,

  548. the glorious

  549. one.

  550. And that

  551. we get this

  552. right is so

  553. important.

  554. That in our

  555. thinking and

  556. therefore in our

  557. living,

  558. God is

  559. huge and

  560. we are but

  561. tiny.

  562. God is

  563. glorious and

  564. we are

  565. humble.

  566. It's a

  567. massive

  568. importance.

  569. A.W.

  570. Tozer said,

  571. what comes

  572. into our

  573. minds when

  574. we think

  575. about God

  576. is the

  577. most

  578. important

  579. thing

  580. about us.

  581. So,

  582. is God

  583. glorious

  584. in your

  585. mind?

  586. Is his

  587. holiness,

  588. his

  589. separateness

  590. from us

  591. massive

  592. to you?

  593. Is it

  594. humbling

  595. to consider

  596. God?

  597. If not,

  598. I would

  599. suggest to

  600. you that

  601. you do

  602. not know

  603. the God

  604. of the

  605. Bible.

  606. Get into

  607. the

  608. Scripture

  609. and read

  610. about this

  611. glorious

  612. God.

  613. But also,

  614. we come to

  615. the second

  616. way that

  617. the glory

  618. of God

  619. is revealed

  620. as the

  621. external

  622. manifestation

  623. of God's

  624. glory.

  625. So we have

  626. his glory

  627. in the

  628. Scripture.

  629. We can

  630. behold his

  631. intrinsic

  632. glory in

  633. the Bible.

  634. But also,

  635. in the Bible,

  636. we're taught

  637. other ways

  638. in which

  639. and ways

  640. in which

  641. we read

  642. it in

  643. the Scripture,

  644. the external

  645. manifestation

  646. of God's

  647. glory.

  648. And I

  649. have four

  650. ways in

  651. which he

  652. manifests his

  653. glory

  654. externally.

  655. Number one,

  656. God has

  657. manifested and

  658. is manifesting

  659. his glory

  660. in his

  661. creation.

  662. So we

  663. look around

  664. us.

  665. The beauty,

  666. I'm glad to

  667. do this in

  668. October because

  669. things are really

  670. beautiful right

  671. now.

  672. Are they not?

  673. We live in a

  674. beautiful place.

  675. It gets

  676. ignited with

  677. beauty for a

  678. couple of

  679. weeks in

  680. October.

  681. I'm told you

  682. should drive

  683. north this

  684. week, not

  685. too far, and

  686. the leaves are

  687. just an

  688. astounding

  689. color right

  690. now.

  691. Beholding the

  692. manifest glory

  693. of God comes

  694. in so many

  695. ways in his

  696. creation.

  697. The psalmist

  698. says in Psalm

  699. 19, 1-4,

  700. the heavens

  701. declare the

  702. glory of God

  703. and the sky

  704. above proclaim

  705. his handiwork.

  706. Day to day

  707. it pours out

  708. speech and

  709. night to

  710. night reveals

  711. knowledge.

  712. There is no

  713. speech, there

  714. are their

  715. words whose

  716. voice is not

  717. heard.

  718. Their voice

  719. goes out

  720. through all

  721. the earth

  722. and their

  723. words to

  724. the end

  725. of the

  726. world.

  727. So we

  728. behold the

  729. manifest glory

  730. of God

  731. in creation

  732. and standing

  733. at the edge

  734. of the Grand

  735. Canyon on

  736. the north

  737. rim watching

  738. the sun

  739. rise, in

  740. catching a

  741. brook trout

  742. in a North

  743. Georgia stream,

  744. in skein,

  745. heavy,

  746. powdery

  747. drift.

  748. We see the

  749. glory of God

  750. and the

  751. beauty of

  752. his creation.

  753. Psalm 104

    Psalms 104:24

  754. verse 24 and

  755. 25 and then

  756. verse 31,

  757. psalmist says,

  758. O Lord,

  759. how manifold

  760. are your works.

  761. in wisdom

  762. have you made

  763. them all.

  764. The earth

  765. is full

  766. of your

  767. creatures.

  768. Here is the

  769. sea, great

  770. and wide,

  771. which teems

  772. with creatures

  773. innumerable,

  774. living things

  775. both small

  776. and great.

  777. May the

  778. glory of the

  779. Lord endure

  780. forever.

  781. May the

  782. Lord rejoice

  783. in his

  784. works.

  785. Paul writes

  786. in Romans

    Romans 1:20

  787. chapter 1

  788. verse 20,

  789. of God

  790. for his

  791. invisible

  792. attributes,

  793. namely his

  794. eternal

  795. power and

  796. divine nature

  797. have been

  798. clearly perceived

  799. ever since the

  800. creation of the

  801. world in the

  802. things that

  803. have been

  804. made.

  805. God has

  806. manifested

  807. and is

  808. manifesting

  809. his glory

  810. in his

  811. creation.

  812. And beloved,

  813. we do well

  814. when we enjoy

  815. these types

  816. of things,

  817. but when we

  818. begin to worship

  819. the things

  820. themselves,

  821. we become

  822. idolaters.

  823. sometimes our

  824. worship doesn't

  825. go quite

  826. high enough.

  827. It needs

  828. to go above

  829. and beyond

  830. the God

  831. who made

  832. these things.

  833. This feels

  834. a bit like

  835. an obligatory

  836. plug,

  837. but maybe

  838. once a year

  839. I need to

  840. say something

  841. about football

  842. because I

  843. hear that's

  844. what pastors

  845. do.

  846. Yesterday,

  847. for UGA

  848. fans,

  849. it was a

  850. pretty big

  851. deal that

  852. UGA beat

  853. the Florida

  854. Gators.

  855. I had to

  856. rehearse

  857. that line

  858. in my

  859. head,

  860. just so

  861. you know.

  862. I looked

  863. it up

  864. this morning

  865. for your

  866. benefit.

  867. We don't

  868. do well

  869. when we

  870. stop at

  871. worshiping

  872. UGA

  873. football,

  874. but we

  875. do well

  876. when we

  877. enjoy UGA

  878. football and

  879. the God

  880. who created

  881. the incredible

  882. athleticism of

  883. these people.

  884. We're created

  885. as people

  886. who worship.

  887. We are

  888. drawn to

  889. look at

  890. magnificent

  891. things,

  892. amazing

  893. feats.

  894. It happens

  895. naturally.

  896. There's an

  897. impulse in

  898. all of us

  899. to do

  900. that.

  901. It channels

  902. in all

  903. kinds of

  904. ways,

  905. but every

  906. bit of

  907. it ought

  908. to be

  909. aimed

  910. at the

  911. glory of

  912. God.

  913. God

  914. made

  915. all

  916. things.

  917. Those

  918. things that

  919. are admirable

  920. are to

  921. pull our

  922. minds

  923. to Him.

  924. So God

  925. has manifested

  926. and is

  927. manifesting

  928. His glory

  929. in His

  930. creation.

  931. More

  932. particularly,

  933. number two,

  934. God has

  935. manifested

  936. and is

  937. manifesting

  938. His glory

  939. in the

  940. person

  941. of Jesus

  942. Christ.

  943. God

  944. Himself

  945. condescended

  946. to become

  947. a man.

  948. Came as a

  949. baby in a

  950. manger,

  951. so humble,

  952. the son

  953. of a

  954. carpenter

  955. in a

  956. little town

  957. called

  958. Nazareth.

  959. Colossians

  960. 1,

  961. 15-18.

  962. Paul says

  963. this of

  964. this

  965. Jesus,

  966. Jesus

  967. Christ

  968. is the

  969. image

  970. of the

  971. invisible

  972. God,

  973. the

  974. firstborn

  975. of all

  976. creation.

  977. For by

  978. Him all

  979. things were

  980. created in

  981. heaven and

  982. on earth,

  983. visible and

  984. invisible,

  985. whether

  986. thrones or

  987. dominions or

  988. rulers or

  989. authorities,

  990. all things

  991. were created

  992. through Him

  993. and for

  994. Him.

  995. And He

  996. is before

  997. all things

  998. and in

  999. Him all

  1000. things hold

  1001. together.

  1002. And He is

  1003. the head of

  1004. the body,

  1005. the church,

  1006. He is the

  1007. beginning,

  1008. the firstborn

  1009. from the

  1010. dead,

  1011. that in

  1012. everything He

  1013. might be

  1014. preeminent.

  1015. Now you need

  1016. to hear that

  1017. closing phrase,

  1018. not that He

  1019. possibly could

  1020. be first,

  1021. but that He

  1022. will be

  1023. first,

  1024. supreme,

  1025. exalted,

  1026. glorified.

  1027. Hebrews 1,

  1028. 3,

  1029. the writer of

  1030. Hebrews says,

  1031. Jesus is the

  1032. radiance of

  1033. the glory of

  1034. God and

  1035. the exact

  1036. imprint of

  1037. His nature,

  1038. and He

  1039. upholds the

  1040. universe by

  1041. the word of

  1042. His power.

  1043. So God has

  1044. manifested and

  1045. is manifesting

  1046. His glory in

  1047. the very

  1048. person of

  1049. Jesus Christ.

  1050. And so when

  1051. we see

  1052. Jesus,

  1053. we see the

  1054. glory of

  1055. God.

  1056. Thirdly,

  1057. God has

  1058. manifested and

  1059. is manifesting

  1060. His glory in

  1061. the work of

  1062. Jesus Christ,

  1063. namely the

  1064. salvation of

  1065. His people.

  1066. So this

  1067. Jesus who

  1068. came and

  1069. lived a

  1070. perfect life

  1071. on our

  1072. behalf,

  1073. that we

  1074. might fulfill

  1075. the righteous

  1076. requirement of

  1077. the law,

  1078. we would have

  1079. His righteousness

  1080. imputed,

  1081. given to

  1082. us,

  1083. who died a

  1084. sinner's death,

  1085. the greatest

  1086. tragedy of

  1087. all history,

  1088. that He was

  1089. punished for

  1090. us in our

  1091. stead.

  1092. He bore the

  1093. wrath of God

  1094. on our

  1095. behalf,

  1096. was buried

  1097. three days

  1098. later,

  1099. raised again,

  1100. that by grace

  1101. through faith

  1102. in His person

  1103. and work,

  1104. we can be

  1105. saved.

  1106. God has

  1107. manifested and

  1108. is manifesting

  1109. His glory in

  1110. this.

  1111. Just listen to

  1112. some of what

  1113. Scripture says

  1114. concerning it.

  1115. Psalm 96,

  1116. 2-4,

  1117. Sing to the

  1118. Lord,

  1119. bless His

  1120. name,

  1121. tell of His

  1122. salvation from

  1123. day to day,

  1124. declare His

  1125. glory among

  1126. the nations,

  1127. His marvelous

  1128. works among

  1129. all the

  1130. peoples,

  1131. for great is

  1132. the Lord and

  1133. greatly to be

  1134. praised.

  1135. He is to be

  1136. feared above

  1137. all gods.

  1138. Or Isaiah

  1139. 43,

  1140. 6-7,

  1141. God says,

  1142. I will say

  1143. to the north,

  1144. give up,

  1145. and to the

  1146. south,

  1147. do not

  1148. withhold.

  1149. Bring my

  1150. sons from

  1151. afar,

  1152. my daughters

  1153. from the

  1154. end of

  1155. the earth,

  1156. everyone who

  1157. is called

  1158. by my

  1159. name,

  1160. whom I

  1161. created

  1162. for my

  1163. glory,

  1164. whom I

  1165. formed

  1166. and made.

  1167. Or Ephesians

    Ephesians 1:3

  1168. chapter 1,

  1169. verse 3,

  1170. and following,

  1171. blessed be the

  1172. God and

  1173. Father of our

  1174. Lord Jesus

  1175. Christ,

  1176. who has

  1177. blessed us

  1178. in Christ

  1179. with every

  1180. spiritual

  1181. blessing in

  1182. the heavenly

  1183. places,

  1184. even as He

  1185. chose us in

  1186. Him before

  1187. the foundation

  1188. of the world,

  1189. that we

  1190. should be

  1191. holy and

  1192. blameless

  1193. before Him.

  1194. In love,

  1195. He predestined

  1196. us for

  1197. adoption to

  1198. Himself as

  1199. sons through

  1200. Jesus Christ,

  1201. according to

  1202. the purpose

  1203. of His

  1204. will.

  1205. And then

  1206. verse 6,

  1207. so all of

  1208. this working

  1209. together,

  1210. God working,

  1211. verse 6,

  1212. to the praise

  1213. of His

  1214. glorious

  1215. grace.

  1216. Paul again,

  1217. 2 Corinthians

    2 Corinthians 4:6

  1218. chapter 4,

  1219. verse 6,

  1220. For God

  1221. who said,

  1222. let light

  1223. shine out

  1224. of darkness,

  1225. has shown in

  1226. our hearts

  1227. to give the

  1228. light of the

  1229. knowledge of

  1230. the glory of

  1231. God in the

  1232. face of

  1233. Jesus Christ.

  1234. If we have

  1235. beheld Him

  1236. in His

  1237. person and

  1238. His work,

  1239. we have

  1240. seen the

  1241. glory of

  1242. God and

  1243. it is now

  1244. given to

  1245. us to

  1246. help others

  1247. see the

  1248. glory of

  1249. God.

  1250. Spurgeon

  1251. quote of

  1252. the week,

  1253. it would

  1254. seem,

  1255. that's on

  1256. the front

  1257. of your

  1258. bulletin,

  1259. he said

  1260. this,

  1261. we endeavor

  1262. to glorify

  1263. Him now

  1264. by our

  1265. actions,

  1266. but then

  1267. He will be

  1268. glorified in

  1269. our own

  1270. persons,

  1271. in the fact

  1272. that we are

  1273. redeemed ones

  1274. of God,

  1275. He will be

  1276. glorified,

  1277. and character

  1278. and condition.

  1279. He is glorified

  1280. by what we

  1281. do,

  1282. but He is

  1283. at the last

  1284. to be glorified

  1285. in what

  1286. we are,

  1287. because He

  1288. made us.

  1289. We are saved

  1290. by grace alone,

  1291. through faith alone,

  1292. in Christ alone.

  1293. Regeneration

  1294. preceded our

  1295. faith, I would

  1296. contend,

  1297. and so all

  1298. praise is due,

  1299. to Christ.

  1300. Fourthly,

  1301. and lastly,

  1302. God has

  1303. manifested,

  1304. and is

  1305. manifesting

  1306. His glory

  1307. in the work

  1308. of His

  1309. church.

  1310. So having

  1311. been saved

  1312. by Christ,

  1313. now being

  1314. empowered by

  1315. His Spirit,

  1316. we are

  1317. about the

  1318. work of

  1319. bringing

  1320. honor and

  1321. glory to

  1322. God.

  1323. And do you

  1324. see the two

  1325. ways that it's

  1326. taught in the

  1327. Scripture?

  1328. God is Himself

  1329. glorious,

  1330. we can't

  1331. add to

  1332. that glory,

  1333. but we can

  1334. show Him

  1335. more as

  1336. He is.

  1337. John Piper

  1338. has this great

  1339. little analogy.

  1340. He talks about

  1341. magnifying God

  1342. being the same

  1343. as glorifying

  1344. God.

  1345. He talks about

  1346. how there's two

  1347. types of

  1348. magnification.

  1349. The type of

  1350. magnification that

  1351. a microscope

  1352. does makes

  1353. very tiny things

  1354. look bigger

  1355. than they really

  1356. are.

  1357. Sometimes people

  1358. think in this way

  1359. wrongly about

  1360. glorifying God.

  1361. God is not a

  1362. tiny thing

  1363. who needs

  1364. your help

  1365. to be made

  1366. look bigger.

  1367. But there's

  1368. also the type

  1369. of magnification

  1370. that a

  1371. telescope does

  1372. where it

  1373. makes a

  1374. massive thing,

  1375. a weighty

  1376. thing,

  1377. a glorious

  1378. thing look

  1379. more like

  1380. it actually

  1381. is.

  1382. So in that

  1383. way,

  1384. we bring

  1385. honor,

  1386. we bring

  1387. glory,

  1388. we glorify

  1389. God by

  1390. being reflections

  1391. of who

  1392. He is.

  1393. And you

  1394. see how

  1395. this is more

  1396. glory building

  1397. for God,

  1398. right?

  1399. Because we

  1400. have no way

  1401. of saying,

  1402. look at me

  1403. and how

  1404. great I

  1405. am in

  1406. following God,

  1407. but look

  1408. how great

  1409. God is

  1410. as I

  1411. follow Him.

  1412. It's a

  1413. humble posture

  1414. that brings

  1415. glory to

  1416. God.

  1417. In 1646

  1418. and 1647,

  1419. a group

  1420. of divines

  1421. met together

  1422. at a

  1423. synod

  1424. at Westminster

  1425. to help

  1426. bring the

  1427. Church of

  1428. England into

  1429. greater

  1430. conformity

  1431. with the

  1432. Church of

  1433. Scotland.

  1434. And they

  1435. wrote a

  1436. number of

  1437. documents.

  1438. We know

  1439. them as

  1440. the

  1441. Westminster

  1442. Confession,

  1443. the

  1444. Westminster

  1445. Shorter

  1446. Catechism,

  1447. and the

  1448. Westminster

  1449. Larger

  1450. Catechism.

  1451. Maybe well

  1452. known to

  1453. you,

  1454. the first

  1455. question of

  1456. the

  1457. Westminster

  1458. Shorter

  1459. Catechism

  1460. is this.

  1461. What is

  1462. the

  1463. chief

  1464. end

  1465. of

  1466. man?

  1467. And the

  1468. answer

  1469. that they

  1470. wrote is

  1471. man's

  1472. chief

  1473. end

  1474. is to

  1475. glorify

  1476. God

  1477. and to

  1478. enjoy

  1479. Him

  1480. forever.

  1481. And I

  1482. like

  1483. Piper's

  1484. alteration

  1485. on that.

  1486. I think

  1487. it's

  1488. correct.

  1489. I think

  1490. this is

  1491. what they

  1492. meant.

  1493. Man's

  1494. chief

  1495. end

  1496. is to

  1497. glorify

  1498. God

  1499. by

  1500. enjoying

  1501. Him

  1502. forever.

  1503. And just

  1504. to your

  1505. benefit,

  1506. I don't

  1507. know if

  1508. you're

  1509. aware

  1510. or not

  1511. of the

  1512. Westminster

  1513. larger

  1514. catechism.

  1515. Very few

  1516. of us

  1517. pay much

  1518. attention

  1519. to it.

  1520. Question

  1521. one is

  1522. a bit

  1523. different

  1524. and the

  1525. answer is

  1526. a bit

  1527. different.

  1528. And I

  1529. just think

  1530. it's

  1531. good.

  1532. It's

  1533. a little

  1534. expanded.

  1535. Question

  1536. one is

  1537. what is

  1538. the chief

  1539. and

  1540. highest

  1541. end

  1542. of

  1543. man?

  1544. So

  1545. not only

  1546. the

  1547. primary

  1548. but

  1549. the

  1550. best

  1551. end

  1552. of

  1553. man.

  1554. And

  1555. the

  1556. answer

  1557. is

  1558. man's

  1559. chief

  1560. and

  1561. highest

  1562. end

  1563. is

  1564. to

  1565. glorify

  1566. God

  1567. and

  1568. fully

  1569. to

  1570. enjoy

  1571. him

  1572. forever.

  1573. And so

  1574. we're

  1575. meant

  1576. to be

  1577. about

  1578. this

  1579. work.

  1580. This

  1581. is

  1582. the

  1583. chief

  1584. high

  1585. end.

  1586. Jesus

  1587. said

  1588. in

  1589. Matthew

  1590. 5.16

  1591. Let

  1592. your

  1593. light

  1594. shine

  1595. before

  1596. others

  1597. so

  1598. that

  1599. they

  1600. may

  1601. see

  1602. your

  1603. good

  1604. works

  1605. and

  1606. give

  1607. glory

  1608. to

  1609. your

  1610. Father

  1611. who

  1612. is

  1613. in

  1614. heaven.

  1615. My

  1616. father

  1617. has

  1618. this

  1619. wonderful

  1620. analogy

  1621. that I

  1622. have

  1623. used

  1624. rather

  1625. widely

  1626. and

  1627. so

  1628. if

  1629. you've

  1630. heard

  1631. it

  1632. before

  1633. my

  1634. apology

  1635. to

  1636. you.

  1637. He

  1638. uses

  1639. it

  1640. and

  1641. I

  1642. have

  1643. used

  1644. it

  1645. most

  1646. specifically

  1647. about

  1648. church

  1649. leaders

  1650. but

  1651. today

  1652. I

  1653. want

  1654. to

  1655. expand

  1656. a

  1657. little

  1658. bit

  1659. to

  1660. all

  1661. of

  1662. us

  1663. all

  1664. of

  1665. those

  1666. who

  1667. claim

  1668. to

  1669. know

  1670. Christ

  1671. and

  1672. to

  1673. follow

  1674. him

  1675. and

  1676. it's

  1677. an

  1678. analogy

  1679. about

  1680. a

  1681. race

  1682. horse

  1683. versus

  1684. a

  1685. plow

  1686. horse

  1687. my

  1688. dad

  1689. always

  1690. starts

  1691. it

  1692. this

  1693. way

  1694. he

  1695. says

  1696. our

  1697. denomination

  1698. needs

  1699. more

  1700. plow

  1701. horses

  1702. and

  1703. fewer

  1704. race

  1705. horses

  1706. and

  1707. he

  1708. goes on

  1709. to

  1710. explain

  1711. that

  1712. race

  1713. horses

  1714. get

  1715. a

  1716. lot

  1717. of

  1718. applause

  1719. right

  1720. they

  1721. do

  1722. something

  1723. that's

  1724. not

  1725. extremely

  1726. meaningful

  1727. running

  1728. around

  1729. a

  1730. track

  1731. but

  1732. we

  1733. all

  1734. praise

  1735. the

  1736. race

  1737. horse

  1738. we

  1739. want

  1740. to see

  1741. the

  1742. race

  1743. horse

  1744. run

  1745. fast

  1746. right

  1747. and

  1748. crowds

  1749. gather

  1750. to make

  1751. see

  1752. this

  1753. happen

  1754. and

  1755. applaud

  1756. them

  1757. on

  1758. the

  1759. plow

  1760. horse

  1761. doesn't

  1762. really

  1763. get

  1764. applauded

  1765. by

  1766. anybody

  1767. right

  1768. the

  1769. plow

  1770. horse

  1771. gets

  1772. hooked

  1773. up

  1774. to

  1775. a

  1776. plow

  1777. and

  1778. it

  1779. puts

  1780. its

  1781. head

  1782. down

  1783. and

  1784. it

  1785. draws

  1786. a

  1787. long

  1788. straight

  1789. line

  1790. and

  1791. at

  1792. the

  1793. end

  1794. of

  1795. that

  1796. row

  1797. it

  1798. gets

  1799. turned

  1800. around

  1801. and

  1802. it

  1803. puts

  1804. its

  1805. head

  1806. down

  1807. and

  1808. it

  1809. does

  1810. it

  1811. again

  1812. long

  1813. straight

  1814. line

  1815. and

  1816. the

  1817. only

  1818. people

  1819. that

  1820. possibly

  1821. praise

  1822. the

  1823. plow

  1824. horse

  1825. are

  1826. the

  1827. family

  1828. for

  1829. whom

  1830. he

  1831. helps

  1832. provide

  1833. food

  1834. and

  1835. that

  1836. plow

  1837. horse

  1838. lives

  1839. a

  1840. long

  1841. faithful

  1842. life

  1843. to

  1844. that

  1845. family

  1846. and

  1847. one

  1848. day

  1849. passes

  1850. on

  1851. we

  1852. need

  1853. more

  1854. plow

  1855. horses

  1856. I

  1857. would

  1858. suggest

  1859. that

  1860. the

  1861. Christian

  1862. is

  1863. meant

  1864. to

  1865. be

  1866. a

  1867. plow

  1868. horse

  1869. humbly

  1870. !

  1871. serving!

  1872. loving!

  1873. Putting

  1874. our

  1875. heads

  1876. down!

  1877. And

  1878. simply

  1879. doing

  1880. the

  1881. next

  1882. right

  1883. thing

  1884. quietly

  1885. lives

  1886. lived

  1887. to

  1888. the

  1889. glory

  1890. of

  1891. God

  1892. teaching

  1893. the

  1894. truth

  1895. propagating

  1896. it

  1897. everywhere

  1898. we

  1899. go

  1900. if

  1901. we

  1902. would

  1903. have

  1904. more

  1905. plow

  1906. horses

  1907. Ephesians

  1908. 2.10

  1909. Paul

  1910. says

  1911. for

  1912. we

  1913. are

  1914. his

  1915. workmanship

  1916. created

  1917. in

  1918. Christ

  1919. Jesus

  1920. for

  1921. good

  1922. works

  1923. which

  1924. God

  1925. prepared

  1926. beforehand

  1927. that

  1928. we

  1929. should

  1930. walk

  1931. in

  1932. them

  1933. so

  1934. whatever

  1935. it

  1936. is

  1937. that

  1938. you

  1939. do

  1940. in

  1941. your

  1942. life

  1943. you

  1944. can

  1945. be

  1946. sure

  1947. if

  1948. you

  1949. are

  1950. a

  1951. Christian

  1952. you

  1953. are

  1954. meant

  1955. to

  1956. glorify

  1957. God

  1958. in

  1959. it

  1960. you

  1961. work

  1962. to

  1963. the

  1964. glory

  1965. of

  1966. God

  1967. you

  1968. study

  1969. to

  1970. the

  1971. glory

  1972. of

  1973. God

  1974. you

  1975. sing

  1976. music

  1977. to

  1978. the

  1979. glory

  1980. of

  1981. God

  1982. you

  1983. cut

  1984. your

  1985. lawn

  1986. to

  1987. the

  1988. glory

  1989. of

  1990. God

  1991. Martin

  1992. Luther

  1993. famously

  1994. said

  1995. a

  1996. milkmaid

  1997. can

  1998. milk

  1999. cows

  2000. to

  2001. the

  2002. glory

  2003. of

  2004. God

  2005. and

  2006. glory

  2007. of

  2008. God

  2009. and

  2010. thinking

  2011. about

  2012. Soli

  2013. Deo

  2014. Gloria

  2015. it's

  2016. hard

  2017. for me

  2018. not

  2019. to

  2020. consider

  2021. Johann

  2022. Sebastian

  2023. Bach

  2024. if

  2025. you

  2026. don't

  2027. know

  2028. who

  2029. he

  2030. is

  2031. shame

  2032. on

  2033. you

  2034. you

  2035. need

  2036. to

  2037. listen

  2038. to

  2039. classical

  2040. music

  2041. he

  2042. was

  2043. a

  2044. late

  2045. 17th

  2046. early

  2047. 18th

  2048. century

  2049. German

  2050. composer

  2051. his

  2052. music

  2053. is

  2054. just

  2055. fantastic

  2056. and

  2057. you

  2058. may

  2059. not

  2060. know

  2061. that

  2062. he

  2063. signed

  2064. all

  2065. of

  2066. his

  2067. work

  2068. Soli

  2069. Deo

  2070. Gloria

  2071. you

  2072. find it

  2073. on

  2074. his

  2075. original

  2076. pieces

  2077. written

  2078. somewhere

  2079. on

  2080. there

  2081. and

  2082. then

  2083. later

  2084. in

  2085. his

  2086. life

  2087. he

  2088. simply

  2089. signed

  2090. things

  2091. S

  2092. D

  2093. G

  2094. and

  2095. if

  2096. you

  2097. received

  2098. an

  2099. email

  2100. from

  2101. me

  2102. you

  2103. may

  2104. have

  2105. noticed

  2106. a

  2107. lower

  2108. case

  2109. S

  2110. an

  2111. uppercase

  2112. D

  2113. and

  2114. a

  2115. lower

  2116. case

  2117. G

  2118. and

  2119. sometimes

  2120. my

  2121. name

  2122. in

  2123. lower

  2124. case

  2125. as

  2126. well

  2127. Soli

  2128. Deo

  2129. Gloria

  2130. Johann Sebastian Bach

  2131. and all of his

  2132. talent

  2133. wanted people

  2134. to be drawn

  2135. to the God

  2136. who gave him

  2137. the talent

  2138. he recognized

  2139. that he could

  2140. compose music

  2141. to the glory

  2142. of God

  2143. and so

  2144. right

  2145. doctrine

  2146. leads us

  2147. to this

  2148. a greater

  2149. magnification

  2150. of God

  2151. we do

  2152. not want

  2153. to make

  2154. much

  2155. of ourselves

  2156. we want

  2157. to make

  2158. much

  2159. of him

  2160. because

  2161. he is

  2162. worthy

  2163. of being

  2164. made

  2165. much

  2166. of

  2167. if

  2168. you

  2169. work

  2170. to make

  2171. much

  2172. of

  2173. yourself

  2174. you

  2175. will

  2176. find

  2177. yourself

  2178. a

  2179. liar

  2180. if

  2181. you

  2182. work

  2183. to make

  2184. much

  2185. of

  2186. God

  2187. he

  2188. will

  2189. never

  2190. fail

  2191. in his

  2192. intrinsic

  2193. gloriousness

  2194. so

  2195. the Bible

  2196. is our

  2197. final

  2198. authority

  2199. and teaches

  2200. us that we

  2201. are justified

  2202. by grace

  2203. alone

  2204. through faith

  2205. alone

  2206. in Christ

  2207. alone

  2208. and all

  2209. things

  2210. are for the

  2211. glory

  2212. of God

  2213. alone

  2214. I said I'd

  2215. read it again

  2216. and I will

  2217. Romans chapter 11

    Romans 11:33

  2218. verse 33

  2219. and following

  2220. I hope it has a little

  2221. more meaning for you

  2222. now

  2223. oh the depth

  2224. of the riches

  2225. and wisdom

  2226. and knowledge

  2227. of God

  2228. how unsearchable

  2229. are his judgments

  2230. and how inscrutable

  2231. his ways

  2232. for who has known

  2233. the mind of the Lord

  2234. or who has been

  2235. his counselor

  2236. or who has given

  2237. a gift to him

  2238. that he might be

  2239. repaid

  2240. for from him

  2241. and through him

  2242. and to him

  2243. are all things

  2244. to him be glory

  2245. forever

  2246. amen

  2247. please join me

  2248. in prayer

  2249. thank you

  2250. thank you

  2251. thank you

  2252. thank you

  2253. thank you

  2254. thank you

  2255. thank you