Verse of the Week...

3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
(2 Corinthians 4: 4-6)

After you’ve read the passage above, go back and read it again. Only this time, insert ‘good news’ where you see ‘gospel.’

You might do this already, as I do, to better understand the literal meaning of Paul’s message, rather than merely glossing over another religious-sounding word. It makes a substantial difference, especially in this particular context.

‘The light of the good news of the glory of Christ…’ Had you ever recognized the association between ‘gospel’ and ‘glory of Christ’? Truthfully, I hadn’t. But what a profound statement emerges when we do! Normally when we see ‘gospel,’ we immediately think of the good news of our salvation, paid in full by the death and resurrection of Jesus. We take it to mean our sins are forever forgiven, we’ll live eternally in heaven, pain and suffering will be long gone, and the news of that couldn’t get any better. Right? No doubt that’s all true. But perhaps we’re missing a crucial component. Perhaps what we’re perceiving is only a sliver of the story. Perhaps, the best part of the gospel remains hidden. What is it? Better, how will we find it? Shedding a little light on the subject will help, as Paul acknowledges. The best news of the good news is the glory of Jesus! Our salvation, our forgiveness, our redemption, purchased by the blood of the Savior, is ultimately for the sake of His Name. The cross, then, is certainly a symbol of hope and wholeness for you and me, but even more, it’s a mark of His magnification. God was lifted up that all men might see (amidst the illumination of the Light of the World) and savor Him…forevermore.

Check out Jesus’ prayer captured in John 17, just before He was betrayed, tried, and crucified:

“Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you…” (Verse 1)

Further, the Gospel writers, in their depiction of Jesus’ ministry, make one thing absolutely apparent—Jesus was about His Father’s work. That is, He was about His Father’s will. And fundamentally, God’s will is His worship. So if we consider our salvation the (sole?) subject of the good news, it turns out our aim is slightly awry. The central character to the Story of Life is God; at best, we play only a supporting role. The good news, the Gospel, then, is most directly Him and His glory. Therefore, the saving work of Christ was primarily for the Father’s glory, exactly why Paul points to our salvation as more a means of God’s glorification than the end of our eternal well-being. Notice how the Apostle describes his own ministry:

5For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. (2 Corinthians 4:5)

It’s not about Paul. He’s not the theme, he’s not the famous one, he has no desire for the Corinthian church to see him. Rather, he preaches Jesus. And not only that, he preaches Jesus as Master (Lord), which is a position of authority, one worthy of praise and full of glory. Paul is simply a shipwrecked servant, traveling, preaching, enduring hardship on every side…for his Master’s sake. Why? Because the eyes of his heart have been opened. And they can see the gospel (good news!) of the Father’s glory.

One more important point. The fact that God is all about His glory in no way means He is guilty of the sin of egocentrism. Not in the least. For you and me, centeredness on us and our own exultation is sinful. It is idolatry. But not so for God. Think about it. If He wasn't enraptured with Himself and His glory, He’d cease to be God. Be careful, then, not to apply to Him, the Creator, that which applies to the created.

Lastly, God’s passion for His glory is perfectly in accord with His unconditional, unending love for us. In His infinite wisdom, He knows the very best for us is our worship of Him. And so He solely wills and acts according to the purpose of His praise, and concurrently lavishes us with His love. It’s a beautiful thing—if you can see to believe it.


Grace to you, to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of the invisible God,

Voice of another

Verse of the Week...

He who hears, let him be found

with his face into the ground—

where repentance is found,

where Jesus is found

              ‘You Say,’ Shane and Shane


The posture of kneeling is not an uncommon practice globally, despite its relative rarity in Western society. This is especially the case with orthodox religious practice. Many faith systems call for the position out of reverence and submission, and in fact, each year during the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, one might see upwards of a million people at once bowing before Allah. I’ve only seen pictures, but it’s a staggering sight nonetheless.

For those unfamiliar, I grew up attending a smallish evangelical church, one which did not practice corporate kneeling during worship services. As one might imagine, then, the thought of bowing before God only surfaced when reading a Bible story or seeing someone do it on the evening news. It was a completely foreign concept, that is, until I truly became a child of the King. At that point I found myself, time and again, drawn to my knees. I couldn’t help it. My spirit, in worship, begged my flesh, ‘Get low before Him.’ Then, when attending corporate services, I couldn’t understand why it was left out.

The physical act of kneeling before God is profoundly impactful. It’s so markedly distinct from our common stance it’s as if manipulating one’s posture directly influences one’s soul. It’s incredible, really. If you don’t currently do it, I encourage you to give it a try—you may be floored (sorry, couldn’t resist) at the result.

But enough of the ‘what,’ let’s move on to the ‘why.’ As I mentioned, falling prostrate before God became for me, as it has for countless others, a position of worship. No doubt, a reverent heart has a way of drawing one down. But as life rolled on, and as I continued in my faith, I noticed another prompter of this posture: repentance. As I committed sin after sin, and my heart broke over my infidelity, my face fell into the ground, where repentance was found, where Jesus was found. That’s why the above lyrics rang so true upon their hearing. It’s no wonder Psalm 51 so magnetized my living room floor!

Reverence and repentance—the two predominant provokers of this most submissive stance—began to blend. That’s when I realized they’re largely one in the same. Think about it. Repentance is the turning of one’s heart from sin, to God, but in doing so, it’s also a unanimous acknowledgment of His holiness. Our waywardness has a way of making His transcendent perfection crystal clear. And so as we seek the forgiveness of our Father, we declare the majesty of His matchless worth. He is exalted (worshipped) in our utter dependence upon His pardon. That’s why I personally love getting on my knees. I find that only in doing so do I grasp the reality of my absolute need. I cling to Him, to His awe-striking grace, when my face is buried in the floor. And my tears of worship become my food.

One of my favorite stories in the Bible (most of them have a way of becoming favorites!) is depicted in 1 Kings 18:16-39. Take a minute to read it (italics mine).

Elijah on Mount Carmel

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, "Is that you, you troubler of Israel?"

18 "I have not made trouble for Israel," Elijah replied. "But you and your father's family have. You have abandoned the LORD's commands and have followed the Baals. 19 Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel's table."

20 So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. 21 Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him."

But the people said nothing.

22 Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only one of the LORD's prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. 23 Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. 24 Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire—he is God."

Then all the people said, "What you say is good."

25 Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire." 26 So they took the bull given them and prepared it.

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. "O Baal, answer us!" they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.

27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. "Shout louder!" he said. "Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened." 28 So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. 29 Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come here to me." They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, "Your name shall be Israel." 32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs [a] of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, "Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood."

34 "Do it again," he said, and they did it again.

"Do it a third time," he ordered, and they did it the third time. 35 The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.

36 At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."

38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD -he is God! The LORD -he is God!"


If you missed it, look again—the reverence of Israel’s acknowledgment that the LORD is God and the repentance of turning their hearts back to Him again, are closely related. And what did they call for? Faces into the ground.

Is yours a posture of pride and callousness? Or one of reverence and repentance? Go ahead, get down. Or keep getting down. There Jesus will be found.

Grace to you, to fall flat on your face for the sake of the King,

Voice of another

Verse of the Week...

As a father I’m afforded the joy of taking my daughter on a guided tour of life, revealing to her the beauty of creation, pointing out how things both tangible and abstract work, and why. In fact, it’s one of my favorite things to do. I consider it a privilege. I have the opportunity to showcase life to this ‘blank slate,’ through my eyes, assisting her to see what I see and, ultimately, to love what I love. I easily recall the stage when she was just emerging from babyhood and beginning to more fully perceive the world around her. One of the things I delighted pointing her attention towards was the moon. For one, it’s a physical sight to behold, sleek and mysterious in its midnight luminescence, captivating in its contrast with the black canopy of the night sky. And I relish its spiritual symbolism—it’s nothing more than a giant ball of dirt that, when aligned with the sun, reflects the radiance of its glory. Ask anyone who knows me—I have a thing for gazing upward at a moonlit sky.

One night, when the moon was particularly full and rich with white light, I knelt next to Annie and extended my arm, my index finger, like an arrow perfectly pointed at its target (I even squinted one eye to ensure the angle was precise!). There was no way she could miss it. ‘Annie, look! See where Daddy is pointing? Look at the beautiful moon!’ My rapt attention shifted from the vast heavens to my little girl. But as my eyes landed on her, I was startled at the sight: Annie was looking intently at my pointer finger, completely missing the brilliance of moment. What gripped her innocent mind was the thing nearest her line of sight and, unfortunately, as a result, the majesty of the moon was lost on her altogether.

So it often is with my faith. So often I lock in on the finger, the things of God, and entirely miss the Person they’re pointing towards. Perhaps you can relate?

The problem is we almost can’t help it. We’re ‘human,’ easily distracted, constantly bombarded with material stimuli. Rarely do we open our eyes to see and savor the immaterial. And so we, like little Annie, often only see what’s nearest our line of sight—in this case, the tangible blessings of God. Little do we realize what’s behind it all. See, God, in His perfect will, pours out blessing upon blessing, but for a distinct purpose: that we would perceive Him, the Giver, and give praise. HE wants to be beheld. The forgiveness, the grace, the mercies, the love, the peace, the hope, in a way, even the salvation, serve as a pointer finger. That’s the main intent of their outpouring.

Like I said, I regularly marvel at the things at the expense of their Supplier. And there’s no doubt, I’m the loser in the transaction. God is literally sparing nothing to captivate my heart, to help me behold the majesty of Himself, and I can’t see beyond a foot from my face. Is that you too?

Let’s quickly look at the Story of the Prodigal Son. I’ve referenced it before, but consider it again. The son demands his inheritance, leaves his father, and blows it all in unbridled revelry. He ends up destitute, sitting in slop, contemplating what a fool he’s been, what his father would think. But he literally has no choice, so he emerges from the mud and returns to his father’s wide-open arms. Unfazed by his former irreverence, the father covers him with his finest robe, puts a ring on his son’s finger and orders the choicest calf slaughtered for the celebration of his homecoming. Quite a story, huh? What forgiveness. What grace. What a moving display of unconditional love. For sure. But here’s my point: the point of the story is, what a father! What a father! And what a Father we have in heaven! His grace, his mercy, his love—they are amazing, indeed, but they exist to point to a Person! And the Person to whom they point passionately wants us to relate to Him, to commune with Him, and to only utilize the stuff of Him as a means to get to Him!

There is a Creator behind the creation, a Giver behind the grace, a Great Physician behind the healing, a Prince behind the peace, a Savior behind the salvation.

Oh that we would not be so childish as to miss the majesty of Him for the fondness of the finger.

Grace to you, to behold the Blessed behind the blessings,

Voice of another