The End For Which God Created The World
God’s Passion For His Glory
Just as surely as God is gloriously happy, He is passionate about showing His glory to others and being honored thereby. As He spoke with Moses, the LORD stated that His name would ever be remembered. “Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” (Ex 3:13-15) KJV God will ever be remembered and glorified as the great “I Am.” He alone exists by His own power and might. He has stated “as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” (Num 14:21) KJV God’s determination is that His great joy in Himself be known to all creatures. He has also told us “ I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” (Isa 42:8 ) KJV
Is it any wonder that God is passionate for His glory? His very nature is eternal and His glorious joy lasts forever. “His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.” (Ps 72:17-19) KJV The Psalmist is declaring that the glory of God will be recognized by men in all ages. Not only so, but the glorious name of God will endure forever and ever. This means that the fame of God will be broadcast, recognized, and enjoyed in all eternity. It is for this reason that God does all that He does. “Praise ye the Lord. I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation. The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. His work is honourable and glorious: and his righteousness endureth for ever. He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” (Ps 111:1-4) KJV God works for the express purpose of being remembered. All that God does is for His glory and fame.
God’s Purpose In Creation
God’s creation of the world was also calculated to demonstrate His glories. “ O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Rom 11:33-36) KJV The eternal self-sufficiency of God as well as His infinite wisdom and knowledge are displayed in His creation to the end that man will see His greatness. The cycles of the seasons demonstrate the goodness of God (See Acts 14:17). The fact that man is unable to search out all of the mysteries of the universe is a testimony to the unsearchable wisdom and knowledge of God (Rom 11:33-36). When we receive rain and sunshine from Heaven and are not sent a bill for it we are reminded that we cannot give God anything to make Him indebted to us (Matt 5:44,45 cp. Rom 11:35). God created all things for the pleasure of honoring His own name. “ The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Rev 4:10,11) KJV This pleasure in His name being honored is seen in the statement “ He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered…” (Ps 111:4) KJV Let us, as we wander through this world, never cease to remember that the beauty, order, and power that are on display in this world point us to the matchless beauty and glory of God.
God’s Purpose For Mankind
Man, being the crown of God’s creation, was created for a special purpose. That purpose is to glorify God in a way that all other creatures cannot. “God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (Gen 1:26-28 ) KJV Man, being made in the image of God, is to show forth the nature and character of God in an intelligent, personal manner. Man is the only creature who was made with personal intelligence. Man is bears the imprint of God upon his person. Man is uniquely able to interact with God and is thus uniquely able to represent God to the world by showing the personal, glorious attributes of God to the world. It is for this reason that we read of God saying, “
I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” (Isa 43:7) KJV
Having created man to give Him glory, God righteously condemns all who do not give glory to Him. “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” (Rom 1:18-21) KJV Why is man condemned for not giving glory to God? Man is not thankful for all of the good things that are given to him by this benevolent Creator. In fact, he does not even honor this Creator as God. Yet man knows that there is a glorious God; man knows that this glorious God is his Creator and is to be honored. It is for this reason God’s wrath is upon those who do not glorify Him. This, too, points to the fact that God created man to give Him glory.
God even works in men’s lives for the purpose of being glorified. “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.” (Ps 30:11,12) KJV God works in the lives of men to give them joy that He might receive the praise and honor for His goodness toward men. The very reason that the Psalmist’s grief was replaced with great joy and gladness was so that he would sing praise to the Lord. Let us not forget that, while we live in a world that is cold, dark, and filled with trouble and grief, God is at work to glorify Himself by giving great joy to all who trust Him. That is why the child of God can say with assurance “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Rom 8:28 ) KJV It is often difficult to trust in God and His wise plan for our lives. It is a matter of fact that human nature revolts against pain and suffering and often wonders how a good God can permit (and even send) these things. In the end, however, God is able (and will) use all of these things not just for His glory, but for the eternal joy of His people. That is His promise and His passion. He will not fail to do so. Paul spoke with confidence saying “I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 8:38,39) KJV We, too, can rejoice knowing that neither cancer, nor heart disease, nor death of a spouse, nor death of a child, nor any other catastrophic even shall be able to prevent our loving God from glorifying Himself by giving us His joy forever. With this confidence we can obey the command “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thess 5:18 ) KJV
Application
What, then, is the duty of man in response to this truth? Charles H. Spurgeon’s Puritan Catechism speaks of man’s duty in this manner: “What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.” [ (A PURITAN CATECHISM compiled by C.H. Spurgeon
AGES Software Albany, OR USA Version 1.0 © 1997) ( See here also.)] We have indeed seen that this is the purpose for which God has made us. How shall this then be lived? How do we act upon this truth? First of all, we must rid ourselves of human pride as much as is possible and rejoice in the LORD. “Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.” (Jer 9:23,24) KJV We must always remember that all that we have is a gift to us from God. Our joy and rejoicing should not be in the gifts, but in the One who gave us the gifts. The gifts simply represent a small portion of His glorious greatness. His gifts are given to us that we might enjoy Him and trust in Him (See 1Tim 6:15-19). We should be grateful for the gifts given to us, but we should only rejoice in the fact that we know God. God is exalted when we rejoice in Him. In fact, prayer is given to us for our joy and God’s glory. Jesus said, “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:24) KJV We are to pray that we might rejoice. Jesus also told us “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (John 14:13) KJV Not only should we pray that we might rejoice in receiving that for which we prayed, but we also are to pray that we may receive that for which we asked to the end that God would be glorified. Thus, God is exalted when we rejoice in Him.
This of course brings us to another crucial issue: faith. If we are to please God we must have faith in Him. “Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Heb 11:6) KJV Faith gives glory to God (See Rom 4:20). Why is this so? Faith gives glory to God because it is trusting God’s wisdom, goodness, power, will to bless us, and His faithfulness to His Word. When we have faith it also means that we are not lifted up in ourselves and our abilities (See Hab 2:4). Faith does not exalt self, but it exalts God. It is no wonder, then, that God will not be pleased except we have faith in Him. Let us fully trust in the Lord that He is indeed the gloriously happy God who does all things well for those who trust Him.
Finally, we should praise God. “Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.” (Ps 29:1,2) KJV Praise is not something that is perfunctorily given. Praise that is done for sake of duty alone is hollow and hypocritical. We praise that which we enjoy. Thus it is that the Psalmist said “ My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.” (Ps 63:5,6) KJV True praise is born out of joy. When we enjoy something, or when we love someone, praise comes easily and naturally. It is common to say “Wasn’t that a beautiful sunrise? Or “Isn’t she a lovely baby?” We praise because we have joy in the object which we praise. Praise is, in a sense, the consummation of the joy we have in something, or someone. Joy is not complete unless we share it. Thus it is with praise to God. When we enjoy God we praise Him. It is not only a duty to praise, but true praise is also a delight.
There are many other ways in which we can give God glory. Let us seek to heed the admonition of the beloved apostle who said, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor 10:31) KJV
