ALL for His Glory - #213

We are forgiven, not because we are good, but because God is glorious. Our redemption is a testament to His character, a display of His grace, and a declaration of His glory to the world.

Learn more about the ministry of The Purity Coach at  http://www.thepuritycoach.com

Transcript

Romans 8:1 says, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." This truth should transform how we view ourselves and how we choose to live our lives. We are forgiven, not because we are good, but because God is glorious. Our redemption is a testament to His character, a display of His grace, and a declaration of His glory to the world.

Welcome to The Point of Purity Podcast. A powerful weekly study filled to the brim with the all the tools from Scripture you will ever need to build a lasting life of Biblical purity and godliness. I’m your host Steve Etner – author, National Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry and this is Episode #213 entitled “All for His glory”.

In last week’s episode we focused our attention on the fact that God loves us, God forgives us, God redeems us “For His name’s sake.” Before moving on to our next point, I want to share one more passage of Scripture with you as it relates to God’s “name’s sake.” 

In Isaiah 48:9-11 God says, “For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.” (Isaiah 48:9-11 ESV)

In this text God refers to His name’s sake, His praise, and His glory. This is highly significant. Please listen closely as I quote Isaiah 48:9-11 once again, and as you hear it, I want you to notice that God is passionately committed to His glory.

“For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another. (Isaiah 48:9-11 ESV)

God is always and forever all about His glory. Not yours, not mine, but His—always His.

In Isaiah 42:8 He says, “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to anyone else, nor share my praise with carved idols.” (Isaiah 42:8 NLT)

I am fairly certain that you are able to fundamentally grasp this truth, but let’s be honest here - we also struggle with it. We know God is all about His glory, but we tend to focus our attention on the basic truth that God’s love for us is His highest priority.

Yes, God most definitely loves you. Of that there should be no doubt.

Jesus declared in John 3:16 that “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 ESV) And in Romans 5:8 the Apostle Paul writes, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8 NIV’84)

John 15:13 records that “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13 NIV’84) Which is exactly what Jesus did for you and for me. This is why John writes in 1 John 3:1, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1a ESV)

Here’s my point: God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. (1 John 4:9-10 NLT)

God’s love for you is at the top of His priority list. If it wasn’t, He would never have died in your place. He is zealous for you. He is passionate about you. While that is true, in Isaiah 48:9-11 we see God placing an even higher emphasis upon Himself, His name, His praise, His glory. This is why God is so angry over our sin. This is why He hates it every time you choose to worship self. This is why He speaks out so forcefully against any and every form of idolatry.

In Psalm 8:1 David exclaims, “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.” (Psalm 8:1 ESV) And in Psalm 108:5 he cries out “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!” (Psalm 108:5 NIV’84)

God’s glory is the most important thing to Him. This is why the angels in heaven constantly cry “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isaiah 6:3 NASB’95). In 1 Chronicles 29:11 David prayed, “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things” (1 Chronicles 29:11 NLT).

God’s zeal and passion for His glory directly relate to His love for you. How, you ask? Let’s look at Isaiah 48:9-11 again. This time focus your attention on exactly what God is doing for you.

“For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another. (Isaiah 48:9-11 ESV)

In the Old Testament we see God choosing to defer His anger. He is restraining it. In His unfathomable and incomprehensible love He is choosing to refine His people and try them as opposed to consuming and destroying them—which, as God, is His right. This is how He expresses His amazing patience with mankind and His eternal love for us.

Let me repeat a point here that I made earlier in this episode. God’s love for you is based upon His commitment to His name, His praise, and His glory, not upon anything you can do or become. We see this in His words “for my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I am restraining myself from cutting you off. For my own glory I am doing these things.” (Isaiah 48:9 ESV) Can you see the expression of God’s unconditional love? It is because of who He is that He has chosen to redeem you. It is solely because of His name, His praise, His glory.

Oh, my friend, don’t let God’s unfathomable love for you blind you to the fact that He is angry–not at you but at your sin. He is angry at your idolatry and rebellion, and yet He has chosen to restrain Himself from cutting you off.

Consider this: even as a Christian you still have the dross of sin in your life. Scripture often refers to our sinful impurities as “dross” (see Proverbs 25:4; Isaiah 1:25; Ezekiel 22:18-19; Psalm 119:119). Dross is the scum, waste, foreign matter, impurities, and unwanted material that forms on the surface of a precious metal while being refined. As the metal is intensely heated, the impurities rise to the top where they can be extracted, leaving a pure metal base.

Every time we choose to worship King Me, we choose to violate the sanctity of God’s holy name. This is why we need to be refined. When we choose idolatry, we are choosing not to live as though His name, His praise, and His glory is the highest, the ultimate, the absolute thing above all else. 

When we choose to worship King Me, we have chosen to live as if God exists for us instead of the other way around. This is what God is angry over. Our sin deserves His wrath and judgment.

Romans 1:18 declares that “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” (Romans 1:18 NIV’84; see 1:18-32) 

Colossians 3:25 gives us this solemn warning. “For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality.” (Colossians 3:25 ESV)

God’s commitment to His name, glory, and praise is restraining the punishment that is due you for the demeaning and disparaging of His name. For His name’s sake He has postponed, deferred, and restrained the anger that is rightfully His to show.

Before Christ came to earth to die for our sin, God said, “For my name’s sake I defer my anger” (Isaiah 48:9). To “defer” means to put off an action; to temporarily set aside for a future date. God is saying that His anger has been temporarily set aside, not completely resolved. Because God is also a just God (see Isaiah 30:18; Job 34:12; Deuteronomy 32:4) His wrath cannot be forever deferred; it cannot be eternally restrained. His justice demands execution.

Here’s the most exciting news of all time: God’s anger at your sin has already been dealt with. The guilt of your sin has already been paid for. God’s wrath has been fully executed. I love the words of 1 John 4:10 which says, “This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” (1 John 4:10 NLT)

You see, “God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT) 1 Peter 3:18 reminds us that “Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.” (1 Peter 3:18 NLT)

God’s anger over our sin was fully expressed at the cross. This is why 1 Thessalonians 1:10 declares that “Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10 ESV). And just four chapters later Paul writes, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:9 NASB’95). Consequently, we can confidently say “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1 ESV).

Why? Because “God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past.” (Romans 3:25 NLT)

Before I wrap up this episode, let me reiterate a powerful point established in Ephesians 1:7. “In [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.” (Ephesians 1:7 ESV)

Let this truth, let this promise, let this declaration settle deep into your heart. Let it bring you peace. Let it bring you encouragement. Let it fill you with joy. For “the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him” (Daniel 9:9 NLT).

Therefore, as 1 John 1:9 declares, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 NASB)

OK, we’re going to hit the pause button here until next week’s episode as we look forward to continuing this study.

In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about today’s study, or if you’re interested in learning more about The Pure Man Ministry (what we do to help men across the globe find freedom and victory over sexual sin), be sure to visit our website to see the multitude of resources we’ve made available to you – you can find our website at ThePurityCoach.com

One of these powerful resources we are making available to you is my book called “Overcoming Temptation: 4 Steps to Spiritual Victory.” You see, saying “No” to temptation and choosing to live an upright and godly life is a daily decision you must make. Every time you are faced with a temptation, you are also faced with a decision: Do I give in, or do I stand firm in my faith and fight it? Do I yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit and live to glorify God, or do I focus on King Me and give in to my fleshly desires?

This book “Overcoming Temptation: 4 Steps to Spiritual Victory” presents, in a very clear and practical way, how to live a life that is holy and pure, how to say no to sin and live by the Spirit in a way that glorifies your creator, your Savior, your Heavenly Father. So, head on over to Amazon.com and purchase your copy of “Overcoming Temptation: 4 Steps to Spiritual Victory.” today.

And if you have not yet subscribed to this podcast, let me encourage you to do so today so you won’t miss any of our upcoming episodes!

So, until next time this is Steve Etner author, National Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.