Compelling Love

A central message of the Bible is that God’s people are called to live for His glory. In Psalm 72, Solomon praises the name of the coming Messiah, and of the God of Israel, and prays that the whole earth will be filled with His glory.

Psalm 72 (NKJV)
¹⁷ His name shall endure forever;
His name shall continue as long as the sun.
And men shall be blessed in Him;
All nations shall call Him blessed.
¹⁸ Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who only does wondrous things!
¹⁹ And blessed be His glorious name forever!
And let the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen and Amen.

David prophesies in Psalm 86 that all nations will come and worship, and glorify God’s name, and personally vows to glorify His name forever.

Psalm 86
⁹ All nations whom You have made
Shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And shall glorify Your name.
¹⁰ For You are great, and do wondrous things;
You alone are God.
¹¹ Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
¹² I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
And I will glorify Your name forevermore.

In Psalm 96, upon returning the Ark to Jerusalem David exhorts people of all nations to give glory to the Lord and worship Him in the beauty of holiness.

Psalm 96
⁷ Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
Give to the Lord glory and strength.
⁸ Give to the Lord the glory due His name;
Bring an offering, and come into His courts.
⁹ Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Tremble before Him, all the earth.

John 1 declares that the Word became flesh, revealing His glory:

John 1
¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. …¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Jesus, the living Word of God, was focused upon giving glory to the Father in his life, death and resurrection, as seen in his prayer in John 17.

John 17
¹ Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, ² as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. ³ And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. ⁴ I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. ⁵ And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

In John 12, nearing the hour of his death on the cross, Jesus prays in the garden of Gethsemane, “Father, glorify Your name.”

John 12
²⁷ “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
²⁸ Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”

In John 14 and 15, Jesus encourages the disciples to pray to the Father in His name, promising that the Father will be glorified in the Son by answered prayers, and by the revelation of His love.

John 14
¹² “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. ¹³ And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

John 15
⁷ If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. ⁸ By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. ⁹ “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. ¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

Jesus exhorts believers to live in a way that inspires others to glorify God.

Matthew 5
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

In Matthew 6, Jesus teaches the disciples how to pray for God’s glory.

Matthew 6
⁹ In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come. Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
¹³ And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power
And the glory forever. Amen.

We live for God’s glory by doing all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com, https://compellinglove.net/, 10/12/2014