In the first fourteen verses of Ephesians, Paul makes abundantly clear what is God's ultimate purpose in salvation: "...the praise of his glorious grace...the praise of his glory...the praise of his glory" (vv. 6,12,14). As clear and inspiring as this purpose is, it presents a bit of a problem because it forces us to deal with a God who ultimately does all things for his glory and not for his people. Or to put it another way, we are forced to deal with the God-centeredness of God.
Some years ago, to help me grapple with this problem, I turned to the master-theologian, Jonathan Edwards, specifically to his essay, “The End for which God Created the World." What follows in the next couple of posts are some of the thoughts that emerged from my reflection on his work. Today we will begin by seeking to understand why God values his glory above all other things. Then tomorrow or the next day, we will grapple with how God can be God-centered without being a massive egomaniac.
In chapter 1, section 1.4 Edwards writes, “The worthiness of others is as nothing to his [God's]; so that to him belongs all possible respect.” Okay, let's work this out step by step. I encourage you to carefully read each point and ensure that you understand it before moving onto the next point.
1. Every being and thing outside of God has a measure of worth.
2. The worth of every being and thing outside of God is derived from God and is thus finite.
3. The collective worth of every being and thing outside of God is as nothing before God because it is derived and finite, whereas God’s own worth is underived and infinite. In other words, God is the source of his own worth and of the worth of every other being and thing.
4. Therefore, it is absurd to think that God would have as his ultimate and highest end in creation the praise or exaltation of any thing other than himself. It is utter nonsense to think that God, who is of infinite worth, would exalt that which is, by definition, infinitely less worthy than him.
5. Since God is infinite in his perfections, he is not and cannot be improved by the praise of his worth among finite beings. Put another way, because God is infinite in his perfections, he is not and cannot be self-centered in the way we are self-centered.
This leads to another series of reflections which I will save for the next post. For now, I want to encourage you to meditate on what I've written until you understand and delight in it.
Some years ago, to help me grapple with this problem, I turned to the master-theologian, Jonathan Edwards, specifically to his essay, “The End for which God Created the World." What follows in the next couple of posts are some of the thoughts that emerged from my reflection on his work. Today we will begin by seeking to understand why God values his glory above all other things. Then tomorrow or the next day, we will grapple with how God can be God-centered without being a massive egomaniac.
In chapter 1, section 1.4 Edwards writes, “The worthiness of others is as nothing to his [God's]; so that to him belongs all possible respect.” Okay, let's work this out step by step. I encourage you to carefully read each point and ensure that you understand it before moving onto the next point.
1. Every being and thing outside of God has a measure of worth.
2. The worth of every being and thing outside of God is derived from God and is thus finite.
3. The collective worth of every being and thing outside of God is as nothing before God because it is derived and finite, whereas God’s own worth is underived and infinite. In other words, God is the source of his own worth and of the worth of every other being and thing.
4. Therefore, it is absurd to think that God would have as his ultimate and highest end in creation the praise or exaltation of any thing other than himself. It is utter nonsense to think that God, who is of infinite worth, would exalt that which is, by definition, infinitely less worthy than him.
5. Since God is infinite in his perfections, he is not and cannot be improved by the praise of his worth among finite beings. Put another way, because God is infinite in his perfections, he is not and cannot be self-centered in the way we are self-centered.
This leads to another series of reflections which I will save for the next post. For now, I want to encourage you to meditate on what I've written until you understand and delight in it.
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