Glorifying God: Sovereignty, Grace, and Our Purpose
Summary
The sermon begins with the pastor emphasizing the primary purpose of God, which is to make His glory known. He asserts that regardless of one's beliefs or faith, everyone will ultimately glorify God either as objects of His mercy and glory or as objects of His wrath and power at the final judgment. The pastor then refutes the idea that God owes anything to mankind, stating that God would still be fair and just if He sent everyone to hell. However, he highlights that God, out of pure mercy and grace, chooses to save some.
The pastor then transitions to the passage in Romans chapter 9, starting from verse 19. He acknowledges that this portion of Scripture contains challenging material but expresses the desire for it to go beyond solving an argument and instead speak to the hearts of the congregation. The pastor prays for the congregation to respond to the passage in a way that aligns with the leading of the Holy Spirit, whether that be through repentance or a deeper love, worship, and commitment to God.
The pastor discusses the weightiness of the doctrine of predestination and its related concepts. He expresses the desire for the congregation to have a deeper and more truthful understanding of God, which would lead to a more profound worship of Him. The pastor suggests that the starting place for this conversation is belief in the Word of God and a clear understanding of its teachings. The pastor encourages the congregation to have a Berean mindset, constantly examining and verifying the teachings they receive.
The pastor addresses the objection of how God can hold anyone at fault if it is His will to harden hearts. He assures the congregation that both God's sovereignty and human freedom and responsibility can coexist. The tension between the two can be embraced, as the Bible teaches that both are true. The pastor encourages those who may still be confused to take heart, as they are not alone in grappling with this complex topic.
The sermon concludes with the pastor emphasizing the importance of giving the gift of time to others. He encourages the congregation to recognize that time, patience, and kindness have a purpose, which is to lead others to come to God. The pastor urges everyone to view their interactions with others in this way, understanding that their actions can have a significant impact on someone's spiritual journey.
Key Takeaways:
- The primary purpose of God is to make His glory known. Regardless of one's beliefs or faith, everyone will ultimately glorify God either as objects of His mercy and glory or as objects of His wrath and power at the final judgment. This is a profound reminder of the sovereignty and power of God. [49:33]
- God does not owe anything to mankind. He would still be fair and just if He sent everyone to hell. However, out of pure mercy and grace, God chooses to save some. This emphasizes the perfect justice of God and the unmerited grace He extends to us. [52:45]
- The doctrine of predestination is weighty and complex, but it leads to a deeper and more truthful understanding of God. Belief in the Word of God and a clear understanding of its teachings is the starting place for this conversation. This encourages us to constantly examine and verify the teachings we receive. [56:12]
- Both God's sovereignty and human freedom and responsibility can coexist. The tension between the two can be embraced, as the Bible teaches that both are true. This is a crucial understanding for those grappling with the concept of predestination. [59:30]
- Time, patience, and kindness have a purpose, which is to lead others to come to God. Our interactions with others can have a significant impact on someone's spiritual journey. This challenges us to view our relationships and interactions with others in light of God's purpose. [1:03:45]
Study Guide
Bible Reading:
1. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26: "For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, 'This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes."
2. Romans 9:19-24: "One of you will say to me: 'Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?' But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? 'Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’' Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use? What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?"
Observation Questions:
1. What is the significance of the bread and the cup in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26?
2. In Romans 9:19-24, what is the argument being made about God's will and human resistance?
3. How does the metaphor of the potter and the clay in Romans 9:19-24 illustrate God's sovereignty?
Interpretation Questions:
1. How does the act of breaking bread and drinking the cup in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 symbolize the proclamation of the Lord's death?
2. How does Romans 9:19-24 reconcile the concept of God's wrath and mercy with His sovereignty?
3. What does the metaphor of the potter and the clay suggest about God's purpose for humanity?
Application Questions:
1. How can you incorporate the act of remembering the Lord's sacrifice, as described in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, into your daily life?
2. Considering Romans 9:19-24, how can you better accept and trust in God's sovereignty, even when His will is challenging to understand or accept?
3. In what ways can you demonstrate patience and kindness to others this week, reflecting God's patience with humanity as described in Romans 9:19-24?
4. How can you use your understanding of God's sovereignty and mercy to guide your interactions with others, particularly those who may not yet know Him?
Devotional
Day 1: The Sovereign Purpose of God
God's primary purpose is to make His glory known. Regardless of one's beliefs or faith, everyone will ultimately glorify God either as objects of His mercy and glory or as objects of His wrath and power at the final judgment. This is a profound reminder of the sovereignty and power of God. [49:33]
Isaiah 43:7 - "Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made."
Reflection: Reflect on your life. How are you glorifying God in your daily actions and decisions?
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Day 2: The Unmerited Grace of God
God does not owe anything to mankind. He would still be fair and just if He sent everyone to hell. However, out of pure mercy and grace, God chooses to save some. This emphasizes the perfect justice of God and the unmerited grace He extends to us. [52:45]
Ephesians 2:8-9 - "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
Reflection: How have you experienced God's unmerited grace in your life? How can you extend this grace to others?
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Day 3: The Weightiness of Predestination
The doctrine of predestination is weighty and complex, but it leads to a deeper and more truthful understanding of God. Belief in the Word of God and a clear understanding of its teachings is the starting place for this conversation. This encourages us to constantly examine and verify the teachings we receive. [56:12]
Acts 17:11 - "Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true."
Reflection: How can you adopt a Berean mindset in your study of the Bible? What steps can you take to deepen your understanding of God's Word?
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Day 4: The Coexistence of God's Sovereignty and Human Responsibility
Both God's sovereignty and human freedom and responsibility can coexist. The tension between the two can be embraced, as the Bible teaches that both are true. This is a crucial understanding for those grappling with the concept of predestination. [59:30]
Philippians 2:12-13 - "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose."
Reflection: How do you reconcile God's sovereignty and human responsibility in your life? How does this understanding impact your daily decisions and actions?
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Day 5: The Purpose of Time, Patience, and Kindness
Time, patience, and kindness have a purpose, which is to lead others to come to God. Our interactions with others can have a significant impact on someone's spiritual journey. This challenges us to view our relationships and interactions with others in light of God's purpose. [1:03:45]
Romans 2:4 - "Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?"
Reflection: How can you use your time, patience, and kindness to lead others to God? Think of one person you can show God's love to today.
Quotes
"God's primary purpose is always always to make his glory known and since God is all powerful this and will certainly certainly be achieved it will be achieved in every detail of history in the destiny of every individual." #!!01:01:20!!#
"God would be completely fair and just if he sent everybody to a christless eternity to hell. It is what we deserve by an act of pure mercy and Grace though God does save some and he does so while being completely and perfectly just in all of his actions." #!!41:01!!#
"These passages also give us a new starting place, a conversation starting place related to election, reprobation, predestination stuff like that...the starting place I would suggest that the passage is teaching us is that we begin first with belief...let's take the word of God for what it is, let's understand it clearly, certainly let's all be Bereans not just on Sunday morning but all throughout the week." #!!34:26!!#
"You can believe both that God is completely Sovereign and that freedom and responsibility of humans are fully preserved. You can believe it and you can determine to live with the tension. You can know with 100% certainty hear me now on this with 100% certainty that both are true because the Bible teaches that they are both true." (#!!46:50!!#)
"Let's not mistake the kindness of God for permissiveness, let's see it for what it is: a gracious delay, time for us to come to our senses and come to him." #!!01:10:02!!#
"Even in your Rebellion now God is so great he is using it for his glory because even now as these verses make very clear he is patient towards you, he's displaying his patience enduring your Rebellion rather than sending you to Hell immediately." #!!01:02:56!!#
"God allows sin in the world because this gives him an opportunity to show his power, show his attributes, and in this particular point on this verse, this attribute is wrath. Our great God is glorified in displaying his wrath just as surely as he is in displaying his grace." #!!56:24!!#
"Predestination teaches us that from eternity God has had one plan and nothing will thwart it...God doesn't have a bunch of different plans and depending on human behavior he may need to adjust to plan D or H or something like that...what God has purposed before the foundation of the world will come to be." #!!35:48!!#
"God's dealing even with the wicked even with the rebellious are neither arbitrary nor meaningless, they are intended his dealings to show his power." #!!58:32!!#
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