2-23-25 | Living To Bring God Praise and Glory
Psalm 145:3, “Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom.”
Ephesians 1:11-12, “Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for He chose us in advance, and He makes everything work out according to His plan. 12 God’s purpose was that we who trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.”
WE ARE CALLED TO LIVE IN SUCH A WAY—THAT WE BRING GOD PRAISE AND GLORY!
Blessing #5- We were chosen to be living examples that would bring praise and glory to God.
Glory is used 295 times in the Bible:
In The Old Testament God’s Glory Was Seen In
The plagues against Pharaoh (Exodus 14:18)
The dividing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15:11)
God Speaking from the fire (Deuteronomy 5:24)
The Heavens (Psalm 19:1)
The appearance of a Consuming Fire Or Cloud (Exodus 24:16, 1 Kings 8:11)
In The New Testament God’s Glory Is Seen Primarily In Jesus And His Followers!
QUESTION: ‘How Do We Live To Bring God Praise And Glory?’
- Live In Community- The Nation Of Israel, The Church.
Genesis 12:1-3, “The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
Jesus Wants Every Follower To Be A Part Of A Local Church Family!
Ephesians 2:19b, “You are members of God’s very own family…and you belong in a local church with every other Christian.” (TLB)
Acts 2:42-47, “All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. 43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.”
What Happens When A Nation—or A Church—Fall Away From God?
- Both America And The Church Have Fallen Away From God And His Ways.
- We’ve Turned To Idolatry And Became Increasingly Materialistic And Obsessed With The Sensual.
- We’ve Justified As Ok And Even Sacred—What God Says Is Sin.
- We’ve Moved To Moral Relativism—Discarding God’s Absolute Truth!
Examples Of Falling From God And His Ways:
- Putting Self-Interest Above God And His Ways.
- Permeated By Vulgarity, Profanity And Debasement—Debasement Meaning Reducing The Value Of God And His Standards.
- Marriage No Longer Held As Sacred—And Sex Outside Of Marriage.
- Sexual Immorality- Sex Outside Of Marriage, Carnal And Erotic Images Of Sexual Desire Are Everywhere, Pornography.
- Sexual Immorality- Divorcing Sexuality From Gender; Homosexuality And Transgenderism.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10, “Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, 10 or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.”
Genesis 1:27, “So God created human beings* in his own image. In the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them.”
- Abortion
Through Prayer And The Election, We’ve Taken The First Step Back To God—But It’s Only The First Step.
- It’s Time The Church Stood Up—And We Did Our God Assigned Job!
Philippians 1:27, “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel.”
Deuteronomy 11:1 And 26-28, “You shall therefore love the LORD your God and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments…28 See, today I am setting before you a blessing and a curse— 27 a blessing if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am giving you today, 28 but a curse if you disobey the commandments of the LORD your God and turn aside from the path I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known.”
‘How Do We Live To Bring God Praise And Glory?’
- We The Church- Must Strive To Live By—And Proclaim His Commands.
Ephesians 4:14-15, “Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.”
- We Must Speak God’s Truth In Love!
- We Must Love And Pray For Those Who Oppose The Ways Of God.
- We Must Seek God And Pray!
2 Chronicles 7:14, “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.”
God Wants A New America!
- The Church Must Keep Taking A Stand—And Speaking God’s Truth In Love!
2 Kings 13:15-19
- We Must Point People To Jesus As Savior And Lord!
2 Timothy 4:5b, “Work at bringing others to Christ.” (NLT)
- Love God Above All Things And People!
Matthew 22:37-40, “Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
John 14:15, “Jesus said, ‘If you love me, you’ll obey my commandments.’”
- Make Your Number One Priority In Life Your Relationship With Jesus And Building His Church.
Matthew 6:33, “Make your number one priority in life a right relationship with God and building His church.”
- Imitate Jesus In All You Do!
Ephesians 5:1-2, “Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are His dear children. 2 Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered Himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.”
- Walk In God’s Grace—And Depend On God’s Power!
Hebrews 4:16, “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”
Let’s Live To Bring God Praise And Glory!
What Step Do You Need To Take—To Bring God Praise And Glory?