“I glorified You on earth, having accomplished the work that You gave Me to do.”
– Jesus, praying on the night of His betrayal (John 17:4)
As Jesus prepared Himself and His disciples for the time of trial quickly approaching, He prayed that God would keep His followers united and that the Father’s will would be done. In those moments of anguish before His betrayal, Jesus told the Father that He had glorified Him on earth by accomplishing the work that had been given Him during the time of His earthly ministry. Jesus specifically equated obedience to the Father’s will with the Father receiving glory!
God receives glory from our lives when we do His will. As the sovereign Planner of this universe, He has given us each a work to do and a purpose to fulfill. We have not been put on earth to waste time, but to seize every opportunity to accomplish the Creator’s design for us. The Bible says that King David died, only after fulfilling God’s purposes for him in his generation. In the same way, for such a time as this, God has placed each one of us in a certain location and has charged us to further His kingdom.
Glorifying God on earth means more than just singing, attending church or praying. The worship that truly brings glory to God springs from obedience to His commands – carrying out His kingdom plans in full devotion and humility. The act of true worship comes through doing the work He’s called us to do.
Jesus could boldly say that God the Father had been glorified, because He had finished the master plan that had been set out for Him from the beginning of time. We, in turn, must not relegate our worship to a passive, once-a-week event that makes us feel good. Instead, we must exemplify the lifestyle of worship that has at its center, the will and purposes of Almighty God, who has loved, saved, and regenerated us “according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of his will.”
written by Trevin Wax. © 2007 Kingdom People Blog
