Glory IN God
Yesterday was the 27th Anniversary of my Air Force retirement. I was humbled, honored, and privileged by many comments about my service to our country, however the most meaningful were the comments talking about my service to God as well. When I joined the Air Force as a naïve 18-year-old, wet behind the ears, little did I realize that the next 22 plus years was God training me how to follow orders, lead others fearlessly, and become a servant, all at the same time. He was preparing me for His plan, and that was to pastor His children, gently moving them closer to Him through the truth of The Word and loving kindness.
God has humbled me enough to know that everything I do, say, or am as a humanitarian and human being is because He lives inside of me. I no longer fool myself that I would be as kind, compassionate, and caring without having accepted His gift of living inside of my body, heart, and soul, allowing Him to guide each and every step. So while people were glorifying me, they were actually glorifying God because everything good in me comes from His presence in my heart. It is derived from the fact that He alone chose to train me in His ways as I lay bedridden for two years, away from humans and depending on Him to determine my future. I didn’t understand it completely back then, as the suffering was pretty intense; however, it was necessary to get me alone and gain my full attention.
When I speak of our glory IN God, I mean that everything people see in us, everything they celebrate about our lives and how we lived our lives yesterday, how we live our lives today, tomorrow, and forever, is all a reflection of how much He lives in us and directs our path. Our part is agreeing to give our free will to Him, but after that, everything we become and do is simply to glorify God’s goodness to other people in the hope they will accept His free gift of salvation.
- 1 Corinthians 10:31: “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
- Psalm 86:12: “I will praise you, Lord, my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your
name forever.”
- Matthew 5:16: “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
- Colossians 3:17: “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it in the name of
the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
- Isaiah 43:7: “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.”
- Romans 11:36: “For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things. To
Him be the glory forever! Amen.”
- Philippians 4:20: “To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
- Psalm 115:1: “Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your
love and faithfulness.”
Glorifying God with our lives means God will glorify our lives to others. They will see us and bask in our light. In that light, they will clearly see God and feel a draw towards the peace, happiness, and joy they want in their lives. It isn’t just glorifying God to receive glory. It isn’t just about singing songs or saying prayers, rather it is reflected in our DAILY actions and interactions. This sermon is to remind you that our lives should be a reflection of God’s mercy, grace, forgiveness, servitude, compassion, peace, and love. By living our lives in a way that honors and glorifies God, we inspire others to honor Him with their lives.
When we glorify God, He will honor us with His glory!
1 Samuel 2:30 “Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: 'I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.' But now the LORD declares: 'Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.”
Matthew 6:1-4 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.” “But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”
Daniel 1:9-21- These scripture verses discuss how God honored and glorified Daniel because Daniel honored/glorified God. I highly recommend you read these verses to better understand God’s MO and how He gives favor to those who live a life ensuring they give God all the glory!
God tells us He KNOWS our thoughts and what is in our hearts. He further warns us that if we ACT simply to become noticed, acknowledged, and honored/glorified by man, we have already received our reward, so therefore there is no reward in heaven. (See Matthew 6:1-2 below) Our lives should be a reflection of the glory of God, and we should be humble enough to realize this. All of our power, gifts, and blessings come from God. We honor God by giving credit where credit is due. For if we seek to impress man, we will disrespect God, and He will NOT be impressed with your motivation to act for self-gratification.
Matthew 6:1-2 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.”
The greatest compliment anyone can give others is to tell them, “I see God in you.” “I appreciate and can see that you are a servant of God.” “You honor God with your thoughts, actions, and behavior.” If you are not receiving this feedback from others, then possibly you need to look carefully at how you are living your life and if you are TRULY HONORING God in all you do. Truly I tell you, the ONLY honor worth receiving is living your life in a way that enables others to see that you GLORIFY God in everything you do and He is the cause of all the goodness in you. Amen.
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