For the Glory of God

(Month -7)

One of the most arresting paragraphs I have recently read came from the pen (Ed. do they still use pen’s instead of keyboards in the UK?) of the always interesting Tim Chester:

“How easily we say: ‘I have planted this church through this strategy … these missiological principles … through my energy … through my skills.’ I wonder how often God withholds his blessing because he knows we would use his blessing to rob him of his glory”.

Indeed. That last sentence hit me between the eyes when I read it. I wonder how often my own proud heart has been too interested in its own place in this world and so all too ready to rob God of the glory that is due to him alone. An important warning for us all.

Then, this morning, I was reading John 15 and came across Jesus saying:

⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (TNIV)

There are wrong ways to respond to the critique that we might be robbing God of his glory. One would be to stop using wisdom in planting churches. Another would be to not expect much from God so that we don’t rob much! Both would be wrong.

A better way is what Jesus teaches here in John 15: to ask God to give success to our desire to see people’s lives transformed by the gospel and for glory to go to God. For it is to the Father’s glory that we bear much fruit. I guess the key is to celebrate together what God is doing in every little answer to prayer and to pray broadly and consistently.

~ by nodroglegin on June 29, 2008.