Let God Be Glorified in Your Life
April 2, 2025 · 1:31:41 · Watch on YouTube ↗
Summary
The midweek service opened with John 13:31, where Jesus, the very moment Judas left to betray Him, said: Now is the Son of Man glorified. Before the cross, before the empty tomb, He already spoke of glory. The preacher reflected on how often we fail to see what God is doing - when people betray us, when we carry a cross of sorrow, when we pass through the valley of death. Only on the far side do we begin to grasp that God wants to be glorified in our lives.
Scripture after Scripture made the same point: the man born blind (John 9), so the works of God might be shown; Israel trapped between the sea, the mountains, and Pharaoh (Exodus 14), so God could display His glory; the doubting officer at Samaria's gate (2 Kings 7), who saw God's provision but never tasted it because of unbelief. God's ways are not our ways, and His timing is not ours. Like the sister who said she would lay down her oars and let God steer her boat, we are called to stop striving and trust.
A second message urged believers to put off the old self and put on the new (Colossians 3, 2 Corinthians 5, Romans 12), to be transformed by the renewing of the mind and to present their bodies as a living sacrifice. Using the picture of Joshua the high priest in Zechariah 3, stripped of filthy garments and clothed in clean ones, and the bronze mirrors the women of Israel kept polished, he called the church to daily cleansing through Christ's blood, so His glory would shine from their hearts. Testimonies of answered prayer - a visa granted and a sudden healing - confirmed that God is faithful to His word.
Key Points
- Jesus spoke of being glorified now, before the cross - God's glory often comes through what looks like defeat.
- In the moment we rarely understand what God is doing; the meaning is usually revealed only after the valley.
- Trials, betrayal, and dead ends can be the very places where God chooses to display His glory.
- Unbelief can keep us from the answer God has already prepared, as it did the officer at Samaria's gate.
- Stop rowing in your own strength - lay down your oars and let God steer your life where He wills.
- Put off the old self and put on the new; let your heart be a clean mirror that reflects Christ's glory.
- God stays faithful to His word, as the testimonies of answered prayer made plain.
Devotional
When you cannot see a way out, remember that God may have led you to that exact place so His glory could be revealed. The betrayal, the long wait, the valley - none of it is wasted in His hands. Lay down the oars you have been straining at and let Him steer, for His ways are higher than yours and His timing is never late. Each day let Him cleanse your heart like a polished mirror, until the image of Christ shines through you to everyone you meet.
“Now is the Son of Man glorified - before the cross, before the empty tomb, God already speaks of glory.”
“Lay down your oars in the boat and let God steer it wherever He wills.”
“When Jesus is in me there are no wrinkles - only the joy of the Lord in my heart.”
