According to our shorter catechism the chief end (or goal) of man is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. In other words, what does my Christian life on earth have to do with the eternal life that awaits me? Our sanctification has many different facets in terms of working out the gospel in our daily lives, but the end goal is always the same: the glory of God.

That basically means I want God to look good, and more specifically, I want Jesus to be seen in and through me. That is not our plan but it is the plan of our Redeemer from before time. Here’s another description of the process from Paul in Romans 8:30, “And those whom he predestined he also called and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” God saves a people to bring glory to himself. He does that through the death and resurrection of his own Son.

This may be a somewhat easy thing to hear and understand but it is evidently not that easy to live out. The struggle with the world around me and the sin within me is the struggle with my will and my kingdom and the Lord’s call in my life. Look even in our own church and relationships. We want to be recognized and appreciated, which is not evil, but when it becomes more important than the honor and reputation of Christ, it is evil.

May the Lord move us more and more to live as the scriptures declare, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).

Tenth Highlight

The struggle to bring glory to God is no more evident than in the youth culture. Young people looking to understand life and relationships and especially the call of God need to see it as well as hear it. Please continue to pray for Dora Phan our Director of Maranatha (youth group) and her staff as they try to consistently create a culture where our children can grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus.