by Dan Jones
This is my third day of having a fairly bad cold. I’m stuck sitting in my recliner, blowing my nose, taking various medications, and sleeping. Sometimes I watch some television, but that’s pretty depressing because, well it’s television.
I can eat, but being sick is no fun.
Doesn’t God know I have things to do? Why doesn’t he heal me so I can get up and… well, do something more important than sitting in a chair?
It’s even hard to write when I’m sniffling all the time. My head is stuffy, and it’s difficult to form thoughts any of you would want to read about.
Okay, so how about some Scripture?
This is Ephesians 1:3-14:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Now lest you think I have elected to write a blog on predestination and predeterminism, which these passages certainly mention, that is not my intent at all.
God gets the glory.
We are rescued to the praise of HIS glory.
Yes, God loves us. Yes, he saved us because he loves us. Yes, Jesus died to save us. Yes, he could have called ten thousand angels and not died on that cross, but then where would we be? And where would be the glory in that?
I don’t think we even begin to understand the magnitude of His glory. I know I don’t.
When I am sitting in that recliner all whiny and annoying because I have a minor affliction (which will almost certainly pass) maybe, just maybe, it’s God’s way of giving me time to reflect on who should really be getting the glory.
Today’s Praise
God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. Acts 2: 32-33