“Show Me Your Glory”
During 2021 I will go through a wonderful book by Steve Lawson titled, “Show Me Your Glory.” The thoughts will be Steve’s and worth pondering. He is a Ligonier Ministries teaching fellow and trains pastors to faithfully proclaim the Bible. The truths he unpacks contain deep insight into the character of God. This is not idle speculation, but based on what God says and does in response to Moses asking in Exodus 33:18, “Show me Your glory.” I will refer to him as Steve. I got to have dinner with him and some other pastors in 2019. What a blessed time it was. I have benefitted from his wisdom and teaching.
Steve tells a story about R. C. Sproul, who in the early days of Ligonier Ministries, worked with a consultant to develop a vision and strategy. When asked, “What is the greatest need of people in the church?” Sproul quickly responded, “People in the church need to know who God is.”
This will not be an exercise that just gives your brain cells a workout. “The trajectory of our lives is directed by our understanding of God. Moreover, our eternal destiny hinges on our relationship to Him and who we believe He is. If we are to live as He intends us to live, we must know who He is and what He is like.” Steve echoes J. I. Packer when he adds, “There is nothing more important in our lives than knowing God and living for the glory of His great and awesome name…Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, every moment is to be lived for the glory of God…Living for the glory of God is the beginning and end of all things. This divine glory is the blazing sun around which our lives must revolve…Only in the pursuit of the glory of God will our lives count for time and eternity.”
We need the same thing Moses needed – a deeper knowledge of God. “If we are to live life to the fullest, we must know the God who has made us in His image. If we are to meet the many difficulties before us, we must know Him who has an eternal purpose and plan for our lives.”
I hope you will eat up Steve’s words for many months to come. As the words will be his, I will not be writing this in the letter form I have used since March. I might add a question or two at the end for you to ponder. Written devotions will be posted on Monday and Thursday with a video devotion on Wednesday.
Pastor Gillikin