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ED BANGHART

declaring God's Glory
It's what you are created for.

     My 5 year-old granddaughter, Hannah, asked my wife one day, "Did God make God?" That's a profound question for such a young philosopher! Do you know how hard it is to answer that question to a 5-year old ("Well, Hannah, God created everything, but God Himself is uncreated and eternal, without beginning or end."). Hannah accepted that explanation, and I don't think  she lost any sleep over it. But it reminded me of a truth that is so easy to forget and yet is so important to remember:

    The purpose of all creation is to declare and display
                                  the glory of God.

                 God created all things for His glory.

      All of creation exists to showcase the glory of God. Man, the crowning achievement of God's creation, has been set apart to make known the glory of God and to "proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9).

      The psalmist, while contemplating the vastness of our universe, pens the words, "The heavens declare the glory of God..." (Psalm 19:1). When you look up at the night sky and consider the billions of stars in our galaxy and the billions of galaxies in our universe, the sheer immensity of the space-time universe we inhabit is mind-numbing. 

​      THINK ABOUT IT: we share the celestial cosmos with countless galaxies, stars and planets, supernovas, black holes, meteors, comets, and who knows what else. 

      The heavens don't just declare the glory of God, they shout it out with a deafening sound!


​
     How much more should we, His people, declare and display His glory. It is the reason we exist.

Consider the following scriptures:


​"Ascribe to the Lord the GLORY due His name" 
(1 Chronicles 16:29).


"There is only one God, the Father, who created everything, and we EXIST for Him" (1 Corinthians 8:6, NLT).

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but  to your name be the GLORY" (Psalm 115:1).

     Everything that God does is for the sake of His great name, and to the praise of His glorious grace so that He might be our All in All--for all things are FROM Him, and THROUGH Him and TO Him (Romans 11:36:1; 1 Cor.15:28).

He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,          the Beginning and the End and Everything in between.

     History is HIS STORY--the unfolding of God's eternal purpose in this present evil age. It's not about our glory, our name, our honor or our greatness. It's not about me; it's not about you; it's all about God! 

     An astronomer once quipped, "When scientists discover the center of our universe, a lot of people are going to be very disappointed that it isn't them!"

      The Bible is essentially a story about God, not a story about us. A key theme of the scriptures is the redemption of fallen mankind, however, the ultimate value of salvation is not to be seen in what we are saved FROM ; it's value is in what we are saved FOR!

Steven C. Hawthorne points out that, "The rationale for mission is the colossal worthiness of God...Since God is supreme, every creature should bow down in subjection" (Perspectives: The Story of His Glory, pg 50).

      In American culture, we have trivialized the God of transcendent glory and pushed Him out to the periphery of our lives. 

Donald W. McCullough proposes that we "Visit a church on Sunday morning and you will likely find a congregation comfortably relating to a manageable deity who fits nicely within precise doctrinal positions or who lends almighty support to social crusades...but reverence and awe have been replaced by a yawn of familiarity" (The Trivialization of God, pg 13).

God has set us apart as His people to make known His glory. His eternal purpose is to bring many sons to glory, who would share His life, His nature, His purpose and His glory.

Declaring and displaying the glory of God--it's what you were created for!

The Time You Still               Have Choices

6/14/2019

1 Comment

 
In the movie City Slickers, Mitch (Billy Crystal) is having a serious midlife crisis.  In a classic scene, Mitch shares with a group of kids some lessons about the passage of time and the power of choices.


     "Value this time kids because it's the time you still have choices. It goes by so fast. When you're a teenager, you think you can do anything, and you do. The 20's are a blur. In your 30's, you raise your family, you make a little money, and you think to yourself, 'What happened to my 20's?'

     "In your 40's, you grow a pot belly, you grow another chin, the music starts to get too loud, and one of your girlfriends from high school becomes a grandmother. In your 50's, you have a minor surgery. You call it a procedure, but it's a surgery. In your 60's, you'll have a major surgery. The music is still too loud but that doesn't matter because you can't hear it anyway. 
     
      "In your 70's, you and your wife retire to Fort Lauderdale. You start eating dinner at 2 in the afternoon, you have lunch around 10, breakfast the night before. You spend most of the time wandering around the mall looking for the ultimate soft yogurt, muttering, "How come the kids don't call?"

      "In your 80's, you'll have a major stroke and you'll end up babbling to some Jamaican nurse, who your wife can't stand and you call 'Mama.'

      "Any questions?'


Mitch's outlook sounds a lot like the words of the Teacher in the book of Ecclesiastes: "Perfectly pointless...perfectly pointless. Everything is pointless" Ecclesiastes 1:2, CEB). 

I much prefer the words of the apostle Paul to the Ephesians: "So be careful to live your life wisely, not foolish;y. Take advantage of every opportunity because these are evil times. Because of this, don't be ignorant, but understand the Lord's will" (Ephesians 5:15-17, (CEB)
1 Comment
Cregg Garrett
6/16/2019 12:42:09 pm

These words are so true. The times go faster as you get older but what stands out for me in this Meditation is the make the most of every opportunity. God is always knocking at the door of your heart but it’s up to us to open and go through. Thank you as always challenging us to walk and do the right thing as God leads us.

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    Founding Pastor of Montclair Community Church.  Internationally unknown author and speaker.

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