SALVATION
DESIGNED FOR DIVINE PRAISE
“That
we should be to the praise of his glory” Ephesians 1:13
That
salvation which is revealed in Holy Scripture always honors the Lord God. It is
a salvation becoming the character of God. If your salvation does not honor God
alone, your salvation is a delusion.
The
great, ultimate purpose of God in all things is the glory of his own great
name. That is why he has saved us (Ps. 106:8). This is the end of
predestination, election, adoption, redemption, and calling -- “That we should be to the praise of his
glory.” Be sure you understand this. God’s primary objective and purpose in the
salvation of chosen sinners is his own glory.
God has chosen to save those
whom he has chosen to save, that no flesh should glory in his presence, that
all who obtain the glory of his grace and salvation should forever glory in
him, not in themselves (Jer. 9:23-24; 1 Cor. 1:26-31). This is the universal
test of all doctrine, of all religion, and of all preaching -- If
your doctrine, your religion, the preaching you hear, and the gospel you
believe gives you any reason to glory in yourself, it is not of God, but a
Satanic delusion. The gospel of God causes sinners to glory in the Lord, only in the Lord.
God’s method of grace as
well as his object of grace is the revelation of his glory in his people. "For God, who commanded the light to
shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2 Cor.
4:6). Salvation
comes to chosen, redeemed sinners, not by their choice and decision, but by
God’s choice and revelation. No one has ever been saved, or can ever
be saved, until God reveals the glory of his grace to them, and in them, in the
face of the Lord Jesus Christ, our all-sufficient, effectual, sin-atoning
Substitute.
God’s purpose in saving us
is that he might, in the ages to come, show forth the wonder and glory of his
grace in us (Eph. 2:7). Imagine that! The triune God shall forever show wondering
worlds what his grace has done as he eternally spreads his elect before all
angels, men, and devils in heaven earth and hell in the splendor of his saving
majesty!
Let us, therefore, ever
ascribe to our great God alone all praise, honor and glory. "Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but
unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake" (Ps. 115:1). We give thanks to God alone for
all the blessings and benefits of his grace. Let us, in all things, so order
our lives that we glorify our great God in all things. "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all
to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31).
AMEN.