Introduction:

A.     Why Should I Give Glory to God?

1.       Because He made us.

a)        Psalm 100:3 – we tend to forget that & think that our accomplishments make us worthy of praise.

b)        As Creator, He alone is worthy to be glorified (Psalm 100:3 cf. Revelation 4:11).

2.       God made everything to give Him glory.

a)        The whole purpose of creation is to glorify God (Prov.16:4)

b)        God takes pleasure in His people giving Him glory willingly

This people I have formed for Myself; They shall declare My praise. (Isaiah43:21)

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; (1 Peter 2:9 NKJV)

1)        Unbelieving May Not Want To Give God Glory But They Will.

(a)      Pharaoh was determined not to glorify God but God was glorified in Pharaoh’s destruction.

"And I indeed will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them. So I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, his chariots, and his horsemen. (Exodus 14:17 )

"But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth. (Exodus 9:16 NKJV)

2)        One Day All Men Will Give God Glory, Willingly Or Unwillingly (Phil.2:9-11)

3.       God judges those who don’t give Him glory.

a)        According to Romans 1:21-23, lost men are condemned because they refuse & corrupt God’s glory.

“Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God . . . and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man” (Romans 1:21-23)

Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth----to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people----saying with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water." (Revelation 14:6-7)

B.     Worship & God’s Glory

1.       True worshipers are to glorify God with a joyful, willing heart

a)        This begins at salvation by submitting to Jesus Christ as Lord (Phil.2:9-11)

b)        Whatever we do, we are to do all to the glory of God (1Cor.10:31 cf. Col.3:23-24)

1)        Matthew 24:38-39 – their error was in doing these things with no thought of glorifying God.

(a)      Jesus’ purpose in life was to bring God glory even if that meant death (John 8:50 cf. John 7:18)… 1Peter 2:21 – Jesus set the pattern for every true worshiper!

(1)        This takes submission to the Father (1Pet.2:23) & humility (1Pet.5:5-6).

C.     Confession of Sin

1.       1 John 1:9

a)        “confess” homologeo – comes from the union of two Greek words

§   homo, meaning “the same”

§   logos, meaning “expression”… Literally means “to express complete agreement”

§   Confession is fully agreeing with God about the responsibility for sin and the awfulness of it.  

b)        Confession of sin is worship: When we confess our sins, we are:

§   humbling ourselves before God

§   acknowledging His holiness

§   experiencing His faithfulness & righteousness in forgiving us

§   accepting any chastisement He may give, & therefore glorifying God

c)         Hebrews 9:14 – Confession of sin serves as a dual purpose of:

1)        Being an act of worship itself & Preparing the repentant sinner to worship

(a)      The Greek word for serve in that verse is latreuo, which means “worship”

                                    The purifying that takes place in confession & forgiveness is an important preparation to worship.

2.       Joshua 7:1-26

a)        The Warning (Josh.6:18-19)

1)        God gives us many warnings, but to often we do not take heed to these warnings.

This battle was so completely God’s, and in God’s hands, that God required that all of the booty from the battle come to Him. 

All of the spoils were to be brought to the house of the LORD.  They weren’t to touch the spoils themselves.  When they conquer the other cities, then the spoils will be divided: but not with Jericho. 

1.         The word “accursed” can also be translated “devoted.” 

2.         These things were to be devoted to God.  Keep yourselves from these devoted things, lest you become accursed, if you take of the devoted things, and you make the camp of Israel a curse.

b)        Sin affects others (Josh.6:26-7:1, 11)

1)        God Charged The Nation Of Israel For Achan’s Sin (7:1,11)

(a)      One person’s disobedience can cause the sorrow and failure of a whole nation, family or church.  Because of Achan’s sin the entire nation of Israel suffered for it

1.         Romans 5:12 – sin entered the world by one mans sin

2.         1Corinthians 12:12 ff. – when one suffers the whole body suffers

3.         Numbers 32:23 Achan was discovered & his sin was exposed!

4.         We underestimate the seriousness of our sin!

c)         Impatience, Human wisdom & Self-confidence (Josh.7:2-5)

1)        Joshua Was Impatient Not Waiting For The Lords Directions (compare Heb.6:12 & James 1:3)

2)        Joshua Acted On Mans Suggestions Rather Than God’s Word (compare 7:3 with 8:1).

3)        When we need wisdom we must come to God (James 1:5)

d)        Joshua put his confidence in man rather than in God (7:3-5)

1)        They just conquered Jericho by faith, trust & obedience unto God.

2)        After a victory in our life it is so easy to then say, “Well I don’t need the help of God anymore, I can handle this one” (1Corinthians 10:12)

Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.

It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in man. (Psalms 118:8)

In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will have a place of refuge. (Proverbs 14:26)

Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble Is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint. (Proverbs 25:19)

e)         Lack of Prayer (Josh.7:6-9)

1)        Joshua prayed second rather than praying first (7:7

(a)      If he would have prayed first God would have revealed the problem & had victory at Ai.

"Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." (Matthew 26:41)

But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. (1 Peter 4:7)

(b)      God never brings us to a place where we will never have to rely or trust in Him

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.   Do not be wise in your own eyes (Proverbs 3:5-8).

f)          Sin in the Camp (Josh.7:10-26)

1)        Achan’s sin found him out (7:19) he thought he could hide his sin but God saw what he did.

(a)      God knows & sees everything (Ps.139:1-12)

(b)      Our iniquities have separated us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2), He will not hear.

(c)      Revelation 2:1-5—Jesus said to the church of Ephesus that unless they repented, he was going to remove the candlestick from its place (His presence).

1.         This happened in 1 Samuel 4:1ff. 

2.         GOD is warning Israel, “Look, I’m not going to be with you anymore until you get things right.” 

3.         Don’t expect GOD to compromise with sin in your life.  

4.         GOD will not make a covenant or a compromise.  And with sin in your life; He said, “I’m not going to dwell anymore with you, until you get rid of it, until you destroy the accursed from among you.”

g)        Confessing sin is glorifying God (7:19): It exonerates [to free from blame] God and acknowledges that He is holy when He acts in judgement against evil.

1)        Excusing or refusing to acknowledge our responsibility for sin is blaming God.

(a)      Adam tried to lay the blame of his sin to God (Gen.3:12)

(b)      Revelation 16:8-9 – because they refused to confess & repent they were judged.

h)        The Progression of Sin (7:20)

“I saw… I coveted… I took” – Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.   But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.   Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (James 1:12-15 cf. 1John 2:15-17)

His sin destroyed his family.  His family was probably aware of what he did; they were accomplices in this act of sin.

D.     Implicit Faith in God

1.       God is glorified when we trust Him unquestionably.

a)        Faith is perhaps the basic form of worship.

          “[Abraham] did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God” (Romans 4:20)

1)        The slightest doubt about God or His goodness, His Word implies that He is not all He says He is.

          “He who does not believe God has made Him a liar” (1 John 5:10)

2)        If we say that we cannot bear our temptations and the trials of life, we call God a liar.

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it (1 Corinthians 10:13)

3)        Daniel 3:1-18: Before Nebuchadnezzar cast them into the white-hot furnace he gave them a chance to deny their faith in God & worship a golden image of the king instead.

(1)        Verse 17 is the answer they give to him.

(2)        By them taking confident stand of faith in God, their faith was vindicated, & God was glorified in the eyes of an entire nation.

2.       Faith & God’s delays

a)        Joshua 3:1-17—we must get our feet wet first, step out!  We like to say, “Ok God, if you part the sea I will be more that willing to cross it”, but He says, “Put your feet in the water, then I will part it” in other words, “trust Me”!

b)        John 11:1—Jesus stayed two more days after he heard of Lazarus’ death. 

1)        This was for God’s glory (v.4).  Martha thought it was to late (v.21) she believed that God could raise Him in the resurrection at the last day but not now.  

2)        God likes to put the circumstance that where, humanly nothing can be done, so that when it is accomplished all men will know that this is a work of God!  He gets the glory!

c)         Genesis 32:22-28

1)        Spiritual Breaking (v.25)—We see that Jacob is broken of his self-dependence.

2)        Jacob means “heal catcher”, “deceiver”—Jacob lived all his life as a deceiver, now God is going to break him of that in order to depend on God alone. 

Application: When we are faced with situations set before us that look like they are not going to work out, do not try and handle it on your own strength & wisdom, do not look inside of yourself and say, “How am I going to work this out”, trust the Lord (Prov.3:5-6), that is what broken people do.

d)        2Kings 5:1-14:

1)        This is probably not the message that he was looking for (v.10).

2)        Naaman had this miracle all worked out the way he thought it should be done (v.11)

(a)      We cannot order God to do a miracle the way we want it to be done, & then when it doesn’t happen we say, “God, You didn’t do it the right way”, kind of like Martha, “Lord, if you had been here my brother would have not died.”

(b)      When he did it, not the way he thought it should be done, but God’s way, the miracle was brought about.

e)         Luke 11:5-8 – persistence in prayer, with God all things are possible.

E.     Abundance of Fruit

1.       Fruitful believers glorify God.

a)        Spiritual fruit is an essential part of true worship

1)        John 15:8 – the Father is glorified when we bear much fruit.

2)        Psalm 92:13-15 – through our fruit the Lord is declared upright.

3)        Philippians 1:11 – being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ.

4)        Colossians 1:10 – walking a worthy walk, bearing much fruit is pleasing to the Lord.

5)        Ephesians 5:9 – goodness & righteousness & truth is fruit.

6)        Demonstrating that fruit can manifest itself in attitudes as well as actions (Gal.5:22)

7)        The fruit we bear reveals the character of God to those who don’t know Him.

F.     A Willingness to Suffer

1.       Living for God always involves suffering.

a)        To suffer for Christ is the supreme honor to His holy name.

1)        Peter paid the high price of death by crucifixion to glorify God (John 21:18-19)

2)        Peter wrote to suffering believers to encourage them to suffer for God’s glory (1Peter 4:12-19)

3)        Paul was appointed for suffering (Acts 9:16), & underscored the same principle (Romans 8:18)

4)        The Apostles suffered for preaching the gospel and rejoiced (Acts 5:41)

5)        Paul wrote to the Philippians saying that suffering is a gift from God (Phil.1:29 cf. 3:10)

6)        Jesus feels our pain when we suffer (Acts 9:9:4-5)

(a)      Micah was cast in prison

(b)      Isaiah was sawn in two

(c)      Tradition says that Luke was hanged on an olive tree and Peter was crucified upside down

(d)      God comforts us in all our afflictions that we may be able to comfort others.

        Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.   For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)

2.       Seeking to glorify God above all else can be costly (Exodus 32:1-29)

a)        Israel was stealing God’s glory right at the foot of the mountain by worshiping a calf.

1)        The glory of God was at steak & those who wanted to defend it were called upon to perform a difficult task (v.27-28) & about 3,000 men died, a high price to pay for God’s glory.

2)        God will not ask us to kill our loved ones for His glory, but He may ask us to forsake them. 

(a)      God will often call us to take unpopular stands on important issues & the one who truly wants to glorify God will be content to do His will at any cost!

(b)      This is the mindset of the true worshiper of God, the one who has committed his or her life to the glory of God

(c)      We are not to seek our own reputation or self-image, but for the glory & majesty of Almighty God, to whom we have devoted our whole being to worship.

(d)      This is the kind of life that is acceptable to God (Rom.12:1-2)

Glorify God right now by confessing Jesus as Lord (Phil.2:9-11)

A.       A Contented Heart

1.    Regardless of circumstances, a true worshiper lives a life of contentment.

a)         Contentment testifies to the wisdom and sovereignty of God thereby glorifies God

b)        Discontentment is essentially rebelliousness, blaming God.

(1)        Philippians 4:4 says we are to “rejoice in the Lord; again I say rejoice”

(2)        Philippians 4:10-20 describes Paul contentment in his circumstances.

(3)        It is easy to be content when you have received a gift of money, but Paul was content in adverse circumstances as well.

(4)        2Corinthians 11:23-28 is a catalogue of the things Paul had suffered.

(5)        Such contentment marks true spiritual worship!

B.       Confident Prayer

1.    Prayer glorifies God

a)         John 14:13 is a clear statement that prayer glorifies God.

(1)        Our prayers must be in Jesus’ name.

(2)        This means asking in line with what He desires for us.

(3)        Our request must be in accordance with His will.

b)        We must have the mind of Christ in our prayers.

(1)        This eliminates selfish prayers.

(a)       We must not view prayer as only a way to get things or get out of things.

(b)      We must live in the constant communion & consciousness of God’s presence, learning His thoughts & desires and praying for their fulfillment – “Thy will be done.”

(c)       Prayer does not inform God of things He hasn’t heard

(d)      It purpose is to allow Him to manifest His glory in giving an answer

(e)       His glory is more important than the answer to the prayer.

C.       A Clear Witness

1.    We Worship God by proclaiming His Word with clarity

a)         2 Thessalonians 3:1 cf. Acts 13:48-49

b)        When we proclaim the Word and by it bring others to Christ, we are glorifying God.

(1)        When a person is redeemed he to begins to worship in spirit and truth & devotes his life to Christ.

c)         Worship is an active, all-consuming, never ending pursuit.

(1)        As the worshiper gives his life to the glory of God, he discovers a rich resource of joy and power and meaning not available to everyone, for the life that honors God is the only life God honors.