Matt Delves
A slave to sin no more
(rough notes, needing to be cleared up)
Orienting thoughts
Peril - approach the word of God with humility as those who teach are in peril if they go wrong Privilege - Pleasure - there is great love in talking about these issues. There is no hesitation in preaching the topics that are being preached on. The importance is for all people, not just localities Plan - the same content, just a different progression and added stuff. Show Christ
Thesis - God is infinitely passionate for His Glory
Eric Reece - writer in residence in university of Kentucky - he quotes Matthew 10:37 and was questioned on that. Who is this egomaniac quoting these words? The interviewer is unclear about how Jesus would say you should love Him more than mother and father.
If any of us got up and made the claims that Jesus did we would be called names such as egomaniac.
C.S. Lewis - the psalms are filled with divine summons to praise. They sounded to Him like God was craving for our worship like a vain women.
Worship is an aspect of religion I always found difficult to understand. Why should we worship Him? Surely a morally perfect god would have no character defects then why would so many people worship Him on a Sunday - (check quote, not exact and can’t remember the author) - Michael Prouse??
Exodus 34:13 and deut 4:24 - God determines to have all your affections.
There are people who stumble over the thesis as the above descriptions show.
If we don’t get our hatred for His centrality and His passion for His centrality, then we won’t get to the cross.
Do it all to the glory of God, though God does everything for Hie glory and that is the design of God. We are to join Him in this purpose and design. Gods sovereignty is all about His glory and His centrality.
Along comes God who says that He is totally about His own Glory. If that doesn’t sit well with you then it might be that your are failing the test. The test is are you totally God centered.
Is your God centeredness only a cloak for your own self-centeredness?
Is God calling us to be involved in His God-centeredness.
Predestination to consummation, everything God does is to make much of His glory. To uphold, make. iChat of and to vindicate his name.
Predestination - Ephesians 1:5:6 - “5 He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His favor and will, 6 to the praise of His glorious grace that He favored us with in the Beloved.” - God wants to be praised forever and He does that through predestining people to Grace.
Creation - Isaiah 43:6-7 - 6 I will say to the north: Give them up! and to the south: Do not hold them back! Bring My sons from far away, and My daughters from the ends of the earth — 7 everyone called by My name and created for My glory. I have formed him; indeed, I have made him.”
Oh God make my life a telescope because you look tiny to them. Make me an instrument for magnification to show them what You look like to them.
God wants people to recognize Him in you.
Incarnation - Romans 15:8-9 - “8 For I say that the Messiah became a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth, to confirm the promises to the fathers, 9 and so that Gentiles may glorify God for His mercy. As it is written: Therefore I will praise You among the Gentiles, and I will sing psalms to Your name.”
Mercy, the best news to all of the world.
The Gentiles will glorify God because of His mercy to Israel.
Propitiation - Romans 3:25-26 - “25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 26 God presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.“
The only way this makes sense is that sin is a falling short of the glory of God. We exchange His glory (worth and value) for something that is far less valuable. We have all sinned and trampled on Gods glory by accepting those things which are less glorious. Gods apparent neglect for His glory is shown to be incorrect in that God has dealt with and passed over sin in Jesus. Our sin deserves death. Gods righteousness is demonstrated and His glory vindicated in the loud proclamation of His glory in the cross.
Sanctification - Philippians 1:9-11 - “9 And I pray this: that your love r will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, 10 so that you can approve the things that are superior and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.”
1 Peter 4:11 - “11 If anyone speaks, it should be as one who speaks God’s words; if anyone serves, it should be from the strength God provides, so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything. To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.”
God purifying us to be a beautiful display of his glory
Consummation - 2 Thessalonians 1:9-10 - “9 These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction from the Lord’s presence and from His glorious strength 10 in that day when He comes to be glorified by His saints and to be admired by all those who have believed, because our testimony among you was believed.”
There is nothing more valuable than displaying the glory of God in your life.
Jeremiah 13:11 - “11 Just as underwear clings to one’s waist, so I fastened the whole house of Israel and of Judah to Me” — this is the Lord’s declaration—“so that they might be My people for My fame, praise, and glory, but they would not obey.”
Psalm 106:7:8 - “7 Our fathers in Egypt did not grasp the significance of Your wonderful works or remember Your many acts of faithful love; instead, they rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea. 8 Yet He saved them because of His name, to make His power known.”
Isaiah 48:9-11 - “9 I will delay My anger for the honor of My name, and I will restrain Myself for your benefit and for My praise, so that you will not be destroyed. 10 Look, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. 11 I will act for My own sake, indeed, My own, for how can I m be defiled? I will not give My glory to another.”
C.S. Lewis went back and wrote about the psalms after he found Jesus. We delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not only expresses but completes the joy. It is the consummation.
Gods summoning us to see Him, know Him and praise Him is so that we will not be glad until we praise Him. For God self-consummation is appropriate. We are satisfied in Him. He provides for us the one thing that will make us happy for ever.
John 17:24 - “24 Father, I desire those You have given Me to be with Me where I am. Then they will see My glory, which You have given Me because You loved Me before the world’s foundation.”
It is love! Nothing short of Him can satisfy my soul. It is not self-exultation but rather love.
