Boasting, Hope, and Glory

This is a passage that is chock full of wonderful tidbits that teach us about our marvelous God and the benefits of belonging to Him. Lord willing, I expect that next week we will move out of this passage, but just a few final thoughts.

We talked yesterday about "Boasting in the Hope of the Glory of God." Our passage (again!) was Romans 5:1-2.

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God."

Let's review the three words we emphasized--boast, hope, and glory.

Boast - to verbalize with enthusiasm

Hope - the desire for something good along with the confidence of receiving it (this isn't just wishful thinking)

Glory - something that grabs our attention because of admirable attributes

So what is the application here? What should we do with that powerful little sentence?

It should elicit a response:

• Enthusiastic boasting about God's goodness and glory.
• Continually looking forward to what God has in store for those who believe on Him.
• Focusing on Him -- letting Him grab our attention. The more He "grabs our attention" the more we see Him and are drawn to Him and ultimately changed by Him.

"And let us rejoice and exult in our hope of experiencing and enjoying the glory of God.." (Amplified)

"We confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory." (New Living Translation)

[This is not talking about usurping God's glory like Satan tried to do.]

"We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise." (The Message)

So again, here is the NIV version of Romans 5:1-2 followed by "Pastor John's interpretation" (what it says to me personally).

NIV:

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God."

x

PJ's version:

x

"Because God now views us as righteous, we have peace with God. This isn't because of anything we have done, but it is through the blood of Jesus and His work on the cross. His death, paying for our sins, bought us access to God's abundant grace. All we have to do is believe in Him. This is the work of Christ, and we cannot boast about ourselves, but we can and should boast in what He has done for us! Not only is the result of His grace evident in our lives now, but we have confident hope, knowing that one day we will be presented by Jesus to the Father and be fully acceptable because of Jesus. And on that day, we will share the likeness of Jesus!"

x

So what are your thoughts? We've spent three weeks on this passage. Tell me what you come away with!

BOASTING in the Greatness of the Lord!

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom His whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:14-21

This is a powerful passage written by the Apostle Paul , and it is a favorite of mine!

Paul is taking the opportunity to underscore the vastness of God's power and love. He wants them to know that they are serving a God that is bigger than anything they can imagine! He is literally praying that they will be able to grasp how "wide and long and high and deep" the love of God is.

The psalmist recognized God's greatness. The psalms are full of wonderful passages that recite the vastness of God's creation and His limitless power, love, and mercy. No wonder, then, he wrote about "boasting" about the God he served.

"In God we boast all the day long, and praise Thy name for ever." Psalm 44:8

Another of my favorite passages is found in Job 26:7-14. Here is a guy who has been stripped of everything important to him--family, posessions, prestige, and health, and here he takes an opportunity to talk about the power and greatness of God! He didn't let his difficult circumstances change the way he thought about God. Read this, and remember it was written by a guy whose life was MISERABLE!

He [God] spreads out the northern skies over empty space; he suspends the earth over nothing.

He wraps up the waters in his clouds,
yet the clouds do not burst under their weight.

He covers the face of the full moon,
spreading his clouds over it.

He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters
for a boundary between light and darkness.

The pillars of the heavens quake,
aghast at his rebuke.

By his power he churned up the sea;
by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces.

By his breath the skies became fair;
his hand pierced the gliding serpent.

And these are but the outer fringe of his works;
how faint the whisper we hear of him!
Who then can understand the thunder of his power?"

Now in case you missed it, go back and read that last verse again. He is basically saying, "God is big and powerful and we can see it in creation and in what he does in the world. But believe me, guys, that is just the tip of the iceberg. We have no concept of how big He really is!"

You boast about your kids or your new electronic toy or your favorite sports team. So as you go through this next week, I challenge you to boast about your God. Seize opportunities to let the people you meet up with know that the God you serve is bigger than anything in their wildest imaginations!

Talk to me....what do you think about serving this great God?