God's Glory

Just a couple of follow up thoughts in regards to the "Why?" blog.

God is the most God-centered being in the universe. What is likely the most God-centered verse (according to John Piper) in the Bible goes like this:

"For my name’s sake I defer my anger,
for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,
that I may not cut you off.
Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tried[a] you in the furnace of affliction.
For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name be profaned?
My glory I will not give to another." - Isaiah 48:9-11 (ESV)

"Give thanks to the LORD,
call upon his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples,
proclaim that his name is exalted." - Isaiah 12:4 (ESV)

I post this to convey this truth. If you have placed yourself as the supreme being in your life then when things don't go exactly the way you think they should there is going to be despondency. If you believe that glory should come to you first and foremost you will be angry when it doesn't. If you believe the answers to all the issues in your life reside within your will and mind then you will be lost when your problems are not resolved to your satisfaction.

To take God off His throne and to put ourselves in His place is to say that our way is better. Don't read this and think that you don't do it. I do it everyday. I am guilty of breaking the first commandment consistently...even more than I am consciously aware. If you want more clarity in life and a greater understanding of why things are happening the way they are, you have to place God back on His throne and seek to see things through His prism outlined in His Word. This isn't easy for 21st century, self esteem-starved, self-centered, independence-driven, myopically-focused human beings to accept.

To do life any other way is to have missed the point of life altogether. As a friend of mine might say in response to placing God at the center of everything..."This is where life makes sense."