Compelling Love

God’s glory is displayed both through His creation and through His people, who are made in His image. Even the trees give Him praise, and the heavens declare His glory. Jesus’ whole life and ministry was about the glory of God.

God says to His redeemed people in Isaiah 55:12, “For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”

One can sense Creation giving praise in the trees of autumn:

The Trees of Autumn
by David Krause

Their leaves go out in a blaze of glory,
As they lift their arms in praise.
Their roots drink deeply of living water,
Preparing for each new leaf.

Let’s live our lives for God’s glory,
Lifting our hearts in praise,
Drinking deeply of His living water,
Boldly turning each new page.

God’s glory is above the heavens, and declared by the heavens:

 Psalm 8
¹ O Lord, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth,
Who have set Your glory above the heavens!

Psalm 19
¹ The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.

David declares in Psalm 23:3, “He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

In Psalm 29, David encourages God’s people to give to the Lord the glory due to His name:

Psalm 29
¹Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones,
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
² Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name;
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

Psalm 47 exhorts God’s people to praise Him with a voice of triumph:

Psalm 47 (NKJV)
¹  Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
² For the Lord Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth.

Psalm 79 contains a prayer that God will save us for the glory of His name:

Psalm 79
⁹ Help us, O God of our salvation,
For the glory of Your name;
And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins,
For Your name’s sake!

Psalm 115 gives glory to God’s name because of His mercy and His truth.

Psalm 115
¹ Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
But to Your name give glory,
Because of Your mercy,
Because of Your truth.

God declares that He has created His people for His glory:

Isaiah 43
⁷ “Everyone who is called by My name,
Whom I have created for My glory;
I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”

The cross of Jesus is about the glory of God. He laid down His life both to provide atonement for sins and to give glory to His Father’s name.

John 12
Jesus Predicts His Death on the Cross
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.”

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.

Ephesians 1:6 says that those who are in Christ are adopted “to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”

The beloved hymn “Here is Love” has a prayer in verse 3 about living to the praise of God’s glory in Christ:

Let me all Thy love accepting,
Love Thee, ever all my days;
Let me seek Thy kingdom only
And my life be to Thy praise;
Thou alone shalt be my glory,
Nothing in the world I see.
Thou hast cleansed and sanctified me,
Thou Thyself hast set me free.

Matt Chandler in his book “The Explicit Gospel” writes, “The Christian life is about the reflection of the glory of God off of our lives into the universe.” The source of that light is our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

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.

2 Corinthians 4
⁶ For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

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