Living for the Glory of God, 10/4/26

Our sermon text today is from 1 Corinthians chapter

1 Corinthians 10 · chapter mention

10 and verse 31. The title of the sermon is Living

for the Glory of God. We have a very simple verse

that's before us today. It is this, Therefore,

whether you eat or drink or whatever you do,

do all to the glory of God. Let's pray and ask

God's blessing. Father, thank you so much for

the privileges of this past week and now the

great privilege of meeting with your people right

here in Weezer, Idaho. I pray, Lord, that as

we look into this word today, that you would

grant us your grace and wisdom and understanding.

Lord, there is so much here. And I'm only able

to scratch the surface. So I pray that you would

give me wisdom, Lord, to make the words wise

and right. And I pray that you would open up

our hearts and our minds, Lord, to the word of

God. And that by the Holy Spirit, we might understand

and live this out. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Living for the glory of God. Now last week...

I did speak very briefly on this verse and I

very quickly in the course of the sermon named

a number of ways that we can live and do all

to the glory of God. I said these words, we are

to make God's glory visible. We are to make God's

glory visible, to display God's character. and

to advance his honor. God is to be glorified

even in how we eat and drink, in how we love

our wives and husbands and remain sexually pure,

and how we do not worship at idolatrous temples

or partake with them in these sins. Paul, in

concluding this masterful teaching on Christian

liberty, Gives us this comprehensive, this all

of life encompassing and enriching manifesto

for living and loving life on his good earth

on which we live. Now the effects of sin are

all around us. They're continually messing with

God's original creation. We ourselves continually

battle against temptation to sin, whether it's

laziness and lack of good stewardship, or whether

it's putting too much stock in earthly matters

and neglecting the eternal, or in twisting God's

design into our own selfish imaginations, or

with complaining and unthankfulness. We live

in this reality and tension all the time. Satan,

that old imposter, seeks to destroy the image

of God in his creation. On one side, by pride

and by arrogance. On the other, by attempting

to destroy beauty, goodness, and truth. Those

three absolute unchanging attributes rooted directly

in the character and being of God. We see the

effects of humanism and idolatry in how humans

become degraded in the use of and the display

of their bodies and in their works, in the outworking

of human creativity rather than for the glory

of God, instead to destructive and atheistic

goals, God -denying goals. This becomes evident

in many external forms, including dress. The

use and the care of the body in architecture

and yes, in ethics, both personal and in organizations

and businesses. Romans 1 details the degradation

in man when he suppresses the truth revealed

in creation and man does not glorify God as God.

From this lack of not retaining God in their

knowledge, Paul says in Romans 1, mankind descends

into utter moral chaos and debauchery as they

are filled with all unrighteousness, with sexual

immorality, with wickedness and covetousness

and maliciousness, where they are full of envy

and murder and strife and deceit and evil -mindedness.

And they are whisperers and backbiters and haters

of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of

evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning,

untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, and unmerciful.

That's quite a catalog from Romans 1, 29 to 31.

All of this comes from a rejection of God in

their knowledge and not glorifying him as God.

And they are not thankful. Living in a culture

that embraces far too many of these degradations,

Christians are sometimes tempted to throw up

their hands and just retreat. Some want to just

live in a remote area of the world and get away

from all the bad influences. Some just give up

and give in to some of these. What's the use

of attempting to glorify God in everything? For

the record, this is not how the pilgrims saw

it. We're coming up to the time of Thanksgiving

here before too long and remembering this. While

they did indeed want to get away from corrupt

influences, their ultimate goal was not to hide

away, but it was to undertake, in the words of

William Bradford, the governor, to undertake

the propagating and advancing of the gospel of

the kingdom of Christ in these remote parts of

the world. They desired to be a city set on a

hill whose light shed abroad and called the nations

to Christ. And indeed, while there are times

to flee, such as times of great persecution,

if we are able, the normal calling of a Christian

is this. Wherever God has planted you, live for

the glory of God in everything. Whether you eat

and drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory

of God. And the exaltation of Jesus Christ. This

is why we continually pray in the Lord's Prayer,

but in the account written in Luke 11. Our Father,

which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy

kingdom come. Thy will be done as in heaven,

so in earth. All of Christ. for all of life,

for all of Washington County or whatever county

or city you might live in. How then shall we

live for the glory of our God? How do we live?

Coram Deo, that is before the face of God. Now,

the answer to that question is so much that I

could preach on this. In fact, I could probably

do a whole series of sermons on this because

there is so much that... We could look at, but

today I will attempt to discipline myself and

look first of all at the foundation of worship

and then consider at least briefly the two aspects

mentioned in our text, eating and drinking and

doing all to the glory of God. So we'll look

at a few aspects, especially of that last one.

So main point, first of all, is we bring glory

to God. When we worship him as God. We must begin

with the foundation of worship. If we are to

honor and to glorify our God. Psalm 29 verses

Psalms 29:1

1 and 2. A Psalm of David. Give unto the Lord.

O ye mighty ones. Give unto the Lord glory and

strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due his

name. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

You see, God is glorious, yes, but he is glorified

even more when his people give him the glory

that is due unto his name. And how do they do

that? They worship the Lord in the beauty of

holiness. We worship, we gather together, and

it is beautiful, and it is beautiful in holiness.

So any worthwhile consideration of bringing glory

to God in all of life must begin with the private

and the public worship of God. Exalt the Lord

our God and worship at His footstool. He is holy.

Psalm 95 verse 5. The flying angel recounted

Psalms 95:5

in the book of Revelation goes, flies. Through

the midst of heaven with the everlasting gospel.

And he preaches to those who dwell on all the

earth. To every nation, every tribe, every tongue

and every people. And he says with a loud voice

these words. Fear God and give glory to him.

For the house of his judgment has come. And worship

him who made heaven and earth. the sea and the

springs of water. This is from Revelation 14,

Revelation 14:6

verse 6 and 7. If our labor, our speech, our

attitudes, our home, our workplaces, our cities,

and yes, our countries are to glorify God who

created us, then we must begin with the proper

worship of God, with true worship done rightly

and done with the right spirit, in spirit and

in truth. The first aspect to consider, is the

public worship of God. Hebrews 10 tells us that

we are not to forsake assembling ourselves together,

but to gather and exhort one another. This worship

is to be joyful, for our mouths shall praise

you with joyful lips. Psalm 63 and verse 5. It

is also to be reverent, for we must worship God

acceptably with... reverence and godly fear hebrews

Hebrews 12:28

12 verse 28 there are times when we lift our

hands in blessing to the lord psalm 134 verse

Psalms 134:2

2 or also in prayer first timothy 2 verse 8 public

1 Timothy 2:8

worship should be a very high priority to us

even when you are traveling if at all possible

i would exhort you to do your best to join in

worship with other saints i know there's exceptions

but wherever possible We should do this. Or even

if some of the family members are sick, those

who can should come and worship. In the feasts

of the Lord in the old covenant, God said to

them, three times in the year, all your males

shall appear before the Lord God. Exodus 23 and

verse 17. Many traveled with their families,

but if not, at least the men were commanded to

make that pilgrimage so important. was their

time of gathering to worship at the temple and

at the feast. Now over time, especially after

the exile, Israel established synagogues everywhere

to gather on each Sabbath day to worship, to

pray, to hear the word of the Lord read with

an exhortation. The worship of the Christian

church followed that example. They followed that

example, except... And that they moved it to

the Lord's day in honor of the resurrection.

As we see in 1 Corinthians 16 and verse 2. Our

worship is based on both a blend. It's on a blend

of both the synagogue and the temple models revealed

in the scriptures. For now we meet weekly, but

the church is called the temple of God. You all

are the temple of God. Ephesians 2 verse 20 and

Ephesians 2:20

22. This worship includes thanksgiving and praise

with songs and hymns and spiritual songs, praising

God and edifying one another. We can't edify

one another if we don't meet together and sing

for the edification of one another. We see this

in Ephesians 5, verse 19, and Colossians 3, verse

Ephesians 5:19 Colossians 3:16

16. Our worship must not be in vain. like those

whose hearts were far from God, like the Pharisees

recounted in Mark 7, where Jesus said of them,

in vain they worship me. Why? Because they teach

us doctrine, the commandments of men. They're

teaching the commandments of men instead of the

word of God. And our public worship must be orderly.

as commanded in 1 Corinthians 14, for God is

not the author of confusion, but of peace, as

in all the churches of the saints. And he concludes

that chapter with these words, let all things

be done decently and in order. Many of the problems

in the church of Corinth flowed from improper

and disorderly worship. Now, in order to bring

glory to God in worship, we must also honor God

and worship him in the private exercises of worship.

Personal prayer, reading the scriptures, exhorting

one another in our household, husbands washing

their wives with the word as Ephesians 5 commands,

and in leading our families in the word of God.

This also is bringing glory to God in everything

that we do. We know that all worship must be

done in faith. Excuse me, faith that God is and

that he is a rewarder of those who diligently

seek him. Hebrews 11 verse six, without faith,

it is impossible to please him. For he who comes

to God must believe that he is. and that he is

a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.

We must be undergirded in our worship with true

and pure faith. This is the foundation from which

all other actions flow. And if we miss the worship

of God, we cannot go on to bring glory to him

in any other way. Worship is essential. Secondly,

we bring glory to God when we eat and drink.

Excuse me. When we eat and drink to the glory

of God. And now we're going to break apart this

verse in chapter 10, verse 31. That is our text

a little bit more. I want to expand this to make

application to this text. So God has given us

wonderful and amazing gifts for us to enjoy.

How do we enjoy them to the glory of God? Now,

in order to understand God's gifts, we must first

understand that the earth is the Lord's. and

all its fullness. In order to understand the

good gifts of God, we must understand that the

earth belongs to God. It is His. He has brought

it forth, and it is His earth. We do not deny

the goodness of creation, and that God has given

the earth to the sons of men. Psalm 115, verse

Psalms 115:16

16. The heaven, even the heavens are the Lord's,

but the earth He has given to the children of

men. Now God is the rightful owner of all the

treasures of heaven and earth. And he has given

the earth for our use and our enjoyment. He has

filled it with an almost infinite amount of tastes,

of textures, of colors and pleasures that abound.

And God bestows them so freely to us. And then

he gives us human abilities to stir and to blend

and to mix and to create and to craft. so many

more things in great abundance. The earth, the

food and drink and the body are not neutral.

They are his and they are to be used in a way

that fits that ownership. The earth is the Lord's.

But then it continues here and he says, so we

are to eat to the glory of God, to eat to the

glory of God. So again, we saw, how can we eat

to the glory of God? I mean, isn't. eating just

that essential thing where we have to eat enough

to stay alive no we're called here to eat to

the glory of god something as earthly as eating

yes the scripture speaks of this how do we do

this well first of all we must be thankful we

must be thankful i mentioned how that Worship

must undergird everything in doing and living

life according to the glory of God. But the second

one is thankfulness. We must be thankful. We

do not take it for granted. We recognize when

we look, consider our food, the many times that

there have been famines and shortages and hunger

and starvation and malnutrition. Most of the

time, though. This is caused by humans through

control, through tyranny and in manipulation.

For even where there is a famine, such is the

global food supply that it can be shipped in

to save from famine. It's just that men do wicked

deeds and stop it or destroy it or steal it.

So in order to eat and drink to the glory of

God, we must be thankful. Thankful for what?

Well, we're thankful for the abundance. Thankful

for the variety. Thank you for the ability to

mix ingredients and come up with things like

creamy ice cream or a chocolate cake or cheese

danish or a savory sausage or bacon. Think of

the infinite varieties of cheeses that come from

four basic ingredients that God made. Four. Milk,

rennet, salt, and bacteria. Four things. And

you think of the thousands of varieties of cheese

that there are. And they all come from those

four things. Now, of course, sometimes they add

additional vegetable or something in. But seriously,

all cheese is made from those things. And of

course, then there is bacon. That wonderful salty

smoked meat. And then there's steaks on the grill.

Now think of that process. Just stop and consider.

God makes grass to grow in the fields and the

hills. Common, regular, ordinary grass. You throw

some grass on the grill and it's not going to

be good at all. But think, the cows and the steers

eat it. They digest it with their four stomachs.

And voila, we have the juiciest hamburgers and

the most wonderful roast and the ribeye steaks

and the brisket that magically turns into a delight

to the stomach when salted and smoked. What an

incredible thing. And then, of course, there

is bacon and more bacon. Church, let us stop

and consider. And let us eat to the glory of

God by being thankful and enjoying the wonderful

gifts that God has given. Ground grain, yeast,

salt, and oil makes bread that makes our heart

glad. Now, we don't offer food to idols, but

neither do we reject it. It's not suitable for

us. That is from some kind of a mistaken idea

that we can't really enjoy ourselves. There's

a movie called Babette's Feast. in which the

stories recounted that there were some islanders

on the Norwegian coast who thought that it was

their religious duty to eat just very plain food.

So day after day after day, they had dried cod

soaked and boiled into a soggy mess and an ale

bread soup. And so that's all they ate. And of

course, out of all of that, they also were not

getting along with each other. They were bickering

together and they were not thankful. In one incredible

day, through a young lady who came, who was a

world -renowned chef, who just dropped in, of

course, this is a movie, remember, but they just,

who dropped in, she decided that she was going

to make them a meal, a veritable feast. And the

story then plays out with how, when she made

that, everybody was like, how can this be right?

And yet, as they started to enjoy the food, Guess

what happened? Table fellowship. Differences

were laid down. They started talking with one

another and enjoying and rejoicing in the goodness

of God and in his creation. I encourage you to

look at it. It's a great story and it's well

worth watching. But in all of this, no, we have

the riches that God has poured out from us. And

I only named a few. Enjoy it. We enjoy it and

give thanks. God, thanks to God for it. Nevertheless,

in our eating, while we savor and enjoy and thank

the Lord, we also want to eat in a way that is

not abusive to our bodies. Gluttony is a sin

and God does issue a strong condemnation on those

who live for the belly and eat to excess. We

are to treat the body as purchased by God. Now,

he then says, whether we eat or drink to the

glory of God. So he speaks here of drinking.

How are we to drink to the glory of God? Now,

drinking to the glory of God in this statement,

Paul is likely not referring to water. Although

we should be very thankful for a cold drink of

water when we are hot and thirsty or in a dry

and thirsty land where there is no water. Water

is very amazing in and of itself. It has most

wonderful properties. Water can cleanse. It can

lubricate. It can flush out dirt. It can dilute.

And water replenishes the body throughout the

day as we are thirsty. And it's wonderful. And

in that sense, we give glory to God. But I don't

see really here a possible sin. an overindulgence

of water. So I don't think that's what Paul has

in mind here. After all, right after this verse,

he says, therefore, whether you eat or drink

or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God,

but give no offense either to the Jews or to

the Greeks or to the church of God. Now, again,

we are also refreshed by juices, by sparkling

drinks and by many other beverages like coffee

or tea, et cetera, et cetera. Again, I put these

in kind of a similar category as water because

there is almost no way to abuse them unless we

think of an overabundance of sugary sodas, which

is not the context of Corinthians. Therefore,

I think that... The passage here is most likely

referring to brewed or fermented beverages, particularly

wine and strong drink. Strong drink in the Bible

was a grain or fruit -based beverage like a type

of strong beer or heavy ale or also date or honey

wine. After all, Jesus turned water into wine,

not Welch's grape juice at the wedding in Cana.

And the Passover cup used at the Lord's Supper

consisted of wine. Now, the Bible speaks both

positively and negatively regarding wine and

strong drink. Why? Because it can be abused and

misused. But it also treats it as a gift from

God to be drunk to the glory of God. So how are

we to do this? Well, again, the scripture guides

our understanding in it. We drink to the glory

of God when the drink and the way we take it

honors his name and does not despise it. Now

this verse is not a rule about alcohol only.

God made thirst, he made taste, he made grain,

he made the vine, and he is glorified when those

gifts are used as his. So here are some scriptural

practical guidelines. First of all, drink inside

the fences that God has set. drunkenness is named

among the works of the flesh. And Paul says very

clearly in the scripture, there are many scriptures

we could turn to, we are not to be drunk with

wine. We know that's a possibility and we're

to guard against it. He says, be not drunk with

wine in which is dissipation. Galatians 5 .21

and Ephesians 5 .18. Drinking does not glorify

God. If it is taken in a way that joins his people

to demons or that stumbles a brother or that

seeks one own. We saw this in 1 Corinthians 10,

23 to 33. So staying within the fence that God

has given is part of the glory. It is not a limit

on it. Secondly, again, drink with thanksgiving.

Food and drink are sanctified by the word of

God and prayer. 1 Timothy 4, 4 and 5. Romans

1 .21 describes the fall as knowing God and yet

not glorifying him as God, nor being thankful.

Thanksgiving at the cup is the daily reversal

of that exchange, for the earth is the Lord's.

Receiving it without thanksgiving treats the

gift as if it were not his. But thirdly then,

drink with mirth. with joy and laughter and with

feasting. Hosea, the prophet Hosea, in describing

the judgment of God to the people, he names the

loss of mirth and of the feast days as a judgment

on them. In other words, unfaithfulness then

also meant the loss of mirth and of the feast

days. When God restores, Mouths are filled with

laughter and our tongues with singing. Psalm

126. And in the mountain of the Lord, Isaiah

Isaiah 25:6

25, verse 6, the Lord of hosts will make for

all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast

of wines on the leaves, of fat things full of

marrow, of well -refined wines on the leaves.

A grim cup is not holier than a glad one. In

fact, most times it is unholy as in a way to

drown sorrows. The liberty Christ gives includes

taste and the earth he has given to the children

of men includes the fruit of the vine and the

skill of those who dress it. psalm 104 14 and

15 he causes grass to grow for the cattle and

vegetation for the service of man that he may

bring forth food from the earth and wine which

makes glad the heart of man oil to make his face

shine and bread which strengthens man's heart

Wine that makes glad the heart of man is his

gift received in its measure. Fourthly, though,

drink so that his name is exalted and not defamed.

Our bodies were bought at a price, and so it

is the place where his ownership is confessed.

Cheerfulness, gladness, self -control, generosity

at the table, and the refusal to abuse the cup

all belong to the confession that we make when

we observe the fences that God has given to us,

but also the delights and the provisions. So

the answer is both ordinary and strict all at

once. Receive the drink as his. Thank him for

it. Enjoy it. Stop when he told you to stop and

that the brother beside you be helped and not

stumbled. Then the cup. like the meal and the

rest of the day, is done to the glory of God.

Thirdly, live all of life to the glory of God.

All of life. This is the third phrase in this

verse. This now opens up the verse from a relatively

narrow subject, eating and drinking, to a much

broader one that everything you do must be done

to the glory of God. There is absolutely no way

that I can even come close to covering all of

the ways in which we can do things to the glory

of God. But I'm going to briefly consider a few

specific ways in the ways in which the Holy Scriptures

speak of bringing glory to God. So I'm going

to move through these. First of all, How do we

bring glory to God? We recognize that God is

the source and the end of every good thing. Thankfulness

does not only extend to food, but to everything

around us that flows from God. In the introduction,

I spoke briefly of the downward trend from the

fall of man that led to all of this sin and corruption

and degradation listed at the end of that chapter.

But note this, it all began with suppressing

the truth about God. and the failure to give

Him thanks. A lack of thanksgiving leads to idolatry.

It trades the honor of God for the created things.

To do all to the glory of God means that at a

very foundational level, we must honor God for

who He is as creator and sustainer of life. Creator

and sustainer of life, and be thankful to Him.

Be thankful for your ability to work and to provide.

Be thankful for the place where God has you.

Be thankful for the time in which you were born.

Be thankful for the children that God gave you

if you had them. And if you don't have children

and you're living a single life, be thankful

for that. If God has not brought you into that

place of marriage. In everything give thanks.

Paul commands in 1 Thessalonians 4 verse 18.

1 Thessalonians 4:18

For this is the will of God concerning you. Paul

commands. This, in gratefulness and the giving

of thanks should flow from us like rivers of

waters that flow over the land and create the

life and prosperity wherever they go. Secondly,

Jesus exhorts his disciples to glorify and father

in heaven. How? By letting our light shine before

men so that they might see our good works. Let

your light so shine before men that they may

see your good works and glorify your Father in

heaven. Matthew 5, verse 16. So in this, we glorify

Matthew 5:16

God by living lives that make his character visible

to others. While we are not to be hypocrites

or do things just for show, we are commanded

by Christ Jesus to do good works that they might

be seen, to do them before men. This is letting

our lights show and shine for him. Now, sometimes

Christians just resort to slogans. or maybe symbols

to show that they are Christians. I don't know

if it's as big of a thing as it used to be back

earlier, but it was often common that if you

wanted to proclaim yourself as a Christian believer

or Christian business, you'd put a little sign

of a fish on your business card or on a bumper

sticker on your car. Now, the primary way...

I'm not saying that one can't do that. Don't

get me wrong. I'm just saying, though, that the

primary way that we let our light shine before

people in our daily life is not by having a bumper

sticker with a fish on it. How is it? It is through

our integrity in our business, our cheerful and

our thankfulness in our attitude and demeanor.

It's in our service ethic where we seek to serve

others, our customers very well, or those whom

we are with. Or it is in the making of good quality

items that are useful to others. Or of other

things that promote beauty and goodness and truth.

If we're an employee of someone. How do we glorify

God in this and let our light shine? Well we

do our job well without complaining. And we give

them our very best. And we don't rebel or talk

back or misrepresent ourselves. In our relationships

with others. Both in business and as neighbors.

We're not to lie to one another. Or misrepresent

things. Romans 12 lists so many ways in which

we let our light shine. We are to live in peace

with those around us as much as depends on us.

We're not to repay evil with evil. We're not

to lag in diligence. In other words, when somebody

hires you for work, you do it with all diligence

to them and do a good job as you have represented

yourself. Or whatever else we are to use diligence

in. We're not to lag in it. We're to be fervent

in spirit. We're to serve the Lord. We're to

rejoice in hope. We're to be patient in tribulation.

We're to be given to hospitality. And we're to

bless those who persecute you and do not curse

them. We're to be there and rejoice with those

who rejoice and weep with those who weep. We're

not to be haughty or high -minded, but rather

to associate with the humble and not be proud

or arrogant in our own opinion. We are to have

regard for good things in the sight of all men.

And then, as Peter concludes in 1 Peter 3, 15

and 16, he says, we sanctify the Lord God in

our hearts. We are to be always ready to give

a defense to everyone who asks you. Everyone

who asks you a reason. for the hope that is in

you, but with meekness and fear, having a good

conscience. This is how we give glory to God

in our businesses, in our relationships with

our neighbors, and all sorts of other things.

There's much more that could be said. We let

our light shine, brothers and sisters, by doing

good works that other people can see. Thirdly,

We glorify God by bearing fruit that remains.

By this, my Father is glorified that you bear

much fruit. John 15, verse 8. Fruit is the result

John 15:8

of abiding in Christ. It is not that of performance

detached from Christ. bear the fruits of the

Spirit. They flow out naturally as we soak ourselves

in the Word and in the worship of God. And from

us, the Holy Spirit works all of these wonderful

things that are listed in the fruits of the Spirit.

Love and joy and peace and patience and all of

the others. Fourthly, we glorify God when we

treat our bodies as a purchased possession of

Christ. We treat our bodies as a purchased possession

of Christ. 1 Corinthians 6, verse 20, for you

1 Corinthians 6:20

were bought at a price, therefore glorify God

in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.

How do we do this? We maintain sexual purity

and self -control. We refuse to participate in

idolatrous ceremonies and eat the food eaten

in honor of these idols. This was in the context

in 1 Corinthians 6 and in 1 Corinthians 10. All

of these are glorifying to God in our body and

our spirit. Now we could again go into this much

further. This even affects on how we dress and

how we treat ourselves and what we do to our

bodies. All of these kinds of things as well.

But the whole thing here is that we glorify God

when we treat them as a purchased possession

of Christ. Fifthly, we glorify God when we put

our trust in him and we lay down in sleep because

it is God alone who makes us dwell. in safety.

I've been around people already that just say,

oh, I'm just serving the Lord. I'm just going

to push myself to the very length. I mean, after

all, I'm going to do all of this all night because

I'm really intentional about serving the Lord.

No, our bodies need sleep. God created us this

way. And so we glorify God when we can understand

that we are not limitless and we must be within

the limits God made us. And furthermore, we need

rest. God made us that way. And so we can put

our trust in him and we can lay down and sleep.

God makes us dwell in safety. This flows from

our trust in God. Now the same thing is what

the same type of thing is when we lay aside our

labor on the Lord's day and we rest and we worship

on his Sabbath. This is a weekly reminder that

it is God who sustains us. He blesses us. He

gives us all of our good things. They do not

come from us. And we have a weekly reminder as

God calls us to rest. And in that rest, we are

reminded that it is God who provides for us.

It is not just my own efforts. Exodus 31, 15,

work shall be done for six days, but the seventh

is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. This

is talked about in our confession of faith that

That in God's word by a positive moral and perpetual

commandment binding all men in all ages. He has

particularly appointed one day and seven for

a Sabbath to be kept holy to him. Which from

the beginning of the world to the resurrection

of Christ was the last day of the week. And from

the resurrection of Christ was changed into the

first day of the week. Which in scripture is

called the Lord's day. And it is to be continued

to the end of the world as the Christian Sabbath.

The Lord's day is not a day to get caught up

in all of the things that we miss during the

week. Or to do our weekly shopping and providing

for ourselves. Or for any other labor that is

not necessary or a work of mercy. And this is

all for our benefit. As Jesus says in Mark 2

Mark 2:27

verse 27. The Sabbath was made for man. and not

man for the Sabbath. In other words, it is for

our good and our benefit to lay aside our work,

remembering that God is the disposer of all of

these wonderful and good things, and to rest

and to worship, to rest and to worship. Therefore,

the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath. Number

six, we glorify God by receiving one another.

We receive one another for his sake. Romans 15,

7. With one mind and one mouth, glorify the God

and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore,

receive one another just as Christ also received

us to the glory of God. We receive one another.

When we recognize that God has broken down the

walls of hatred, of segregation, and of enmity,

and he has made us all sons of God through faith

in Jesus, then we glorify God. galatians 3 26

for you all sons of god through faith in christ

jesus for as many as you of you as were baptized

into christ have put on christ there is neither

jew nor greek there is neither slave nor free

there is neither male nor female for you are

all one in christ jesus and if you are christ

then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according

to the promise. Now in that passage, Paul is

not saying that these things doesn't exist. Of

course, there's men and there's women. There's

Jews and there were Greeks or Gentiles. There

were some who were slaves and some were free.

But what grace did is bring them all together

in one body. And they received one another. And

that is what we are to do. Receive one another.

Love one another. And so fulfill the law of Christ

and glorify our Father in heaven. And lastly,

we glorify God by living a life that is lived

heartily. One that is to the full. Doing everything

to the Lord and not to men. Colossians 3 and

verse 23. Whatever you do, do it heartily as

to the Lord and not to men, knowing from the

Lord that you will receive the reward of the

inheritance for you serve the Lord Christ. Jesus

is not stingy. He does not withhold blessings.

He's not sanctimonious. He's not. No, he pours

out his blessing upon blessing upon blessing.

And therefore, we then also are to do things

heartily to the Lord. Do it with our whole heart,

filled with laughter and with joy, with peace

in the heart and enjoying the good gifts of God.

Let us then, brothers and sisters, honor and

glorify our Father in heaven. The church glorifies

God when her ordinary life, the table, the Lord's

table, when her work, her speech, and money,

and body, and love of neighbor, and all of these

things. This makes his holiness, his generosity,

and his lordship plainly revealed to all those

who are around us. Let us live this way. Now,

I would love to take this subject further and

show how we glorify God when we pursue truth

and beauty and goodness. Scripture grounds all

three of these in who God is and then in what

he makes and what he speaks and what he redeems.

But alas, I am out of time. So I might follow

up with this in two weeks. Brother Ty is going

to be preaching next week before we go into 1

Corinthians 11, but we will see. In the name

of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

I submit this to you for your edification. Let's

pray.