How Do I Glorify God?

How Do I Glorify God?

Psalm 57

Main Idea: God receives glory when we seek him and make him known.

How do I glorify God? Is there a more important question we could ask as Christians? We have a whole Bible that speaks to that question. Though this passage doesn’t cover all Scripture says about a life that glorifies God, it does cover a lot of ground in a short space. It answers the question from a place of difficulty—from the valley rather than the mountaintop

In the superscription, “Do Not Destroy” seems to have been a well-known tune in ancient Israel, applied to various works of poetry, including Psalms 58 and 59. Given the name of the tune, I’m guessing this wasn’t a happy-clappy song. The choir director only pulls this melody out and attaches it to psalms that have some dark overtones. Despite its darker aspects, this psalm has a discernable thread of trust in God, even a note of joy toward the end.

I was studying this passage when a text came from my wife asking me to go read my email. She had forwarded something from some dear friends of ours.

Hematology has contacted me with a plan of action for [name of her daughter whom they adopted in the awareness of very serious physical issues]. We are holding her medicine until she is transfused next week, and they want her pediatrician to check her out this morning to make sure that this rash is not the serious condition which can be caused by the medicine [she] has to take. Prayers for wisdom for the pediatrician would be greatly appreciated . . . the condition that they are checking for is very rare, but almost always (from what I’ve been told) fatal. God’s grace is always sufficient and He has shown us that repeatedly.

Take that in for a minute. How do you move from “almost always fatal” to “God’s grace is always sufficient”? How do you live in the face of danger or disaster? How do you glorify God and have joy in God while your circumstances call for a tune titled “Do Not Destroy”?

We’re also supposed to read this thinking of David hiding in a cave, being hunted by King Saul. The full story is told in 1 Samuel 22. We might be wondering where this hostility came from. Why is a king taking time from his busy schedule to hunt a young man down? Well, that hostility had been building over time (1 Sam 9–10). Saul had been chosen and anointed as Israel’s first king. He looked like the perfect man for the job. Everyone kept talking about his height, his shoulders, how handsome he was.

A few chapters later we find out that he’s disobedient to God; he directly disobeys the command given through the prophet Samuel. When confronted, Saul doesn’t repent or humble himself. He minimizes his disobedience, saying something like, “I know I didn’t obey everything to the letter. I know I was supposed to wait for you to come and offer the sacrifice. But in my defense, Samuel, you were late, the people were scattering, and the Philistine armies were mustering strength. I had to call an audible. Practical leadership had to be given. And yes, I know that technically I was supposed to destroy everything when we conquered Amalek. But think about it: I mean, why slaughter all those sheep when they could be offered as sacrifices to God? Those burnt offerings weren’t for me ; they were for God!”

Whatever reasons or excuses Saul offered, at the end of the day, there was just one problem: that’s not what God told Saul to do. God didn’t say, “This is roughly what I want you to do, but, you know, play it by ear. Improvise. Surprise me with something special.” God didn’t want Saul to think practically. He wanted Saul to obey.

This is where we encounter the famous words, “To obey is better than sacrifice.” The prophet Samuel informs Saul, “Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king” (1 Sam 15:22-23). As a result, Saul becomes increasingly obsessed and paranoid about who will replace him as king.

So a little later when David, a shepherd boy, shows up to the battlefield with bread and cheese for his brothers and hears Goliath taunting the Israelite army, and when David asks why they’re all sitting down while this giant talks smack to the God of Israel, and when David goes out to fight Goliath in 1 Samuel 17, and when that same David comes back with Goliath’s sword in one hand and his head in the other, this obviously gets Saul’s attention. We have the beginnings of Saul’s nasty jealousy toward David. Then, when Saul makes rounds through the cities of Israel and the women come out to meet him singing songs, he hears faintly, from a distance, the words of 1 Samuel 18:7, “Saul has slain his thousands [he loves this song!], but David his tens of thousands” [he hates this song!].

Jealousy has poisoned Saul’s heart and mind. Through a series of events, this hatred led to an all-out manhunt for David, who is at once Israel’s future king and the most famous fugitive in Old Testament history, which brings us to this song that was inspired when David was on the run.

In the most significant ways, the world hasn’t changed since Psalm 57. The outward stuff changes: the names of global leaders, the forms of government, the territories and boundaries, the technology. But the world remains fundamentally the same.

How do we live for the glory of God in a fallen world—a world that hates God? How do we live for the glory of God in a fallen body, with anxieties and pressures and a heart that easily drifts toward unbelief?

Seek His Mercy

Psalm 57:1-2

In verse 1 David prays, “Be gracious.” The grace and mercy David seeks in Psalm 57 is not exactly the same as the mercy he seeks in other places. In Psalm 51, for example, after sinning with Bathsheba and killing Uriah, David needs forgiving and cleansing mercy. He pleads with God, “Completely wash away my guilt and cleanse me from my sin” (51:2).

In Psalm 57 it’s not that David has committed some grievous sin. No, he’s in trouble. He needs refuge (v. 1). His enemy threatens to trample him underfoot (v. 2). When he lies down to rest, he feels like he’s “among devouring lions” (v. 4). His enemies have set nets and traps to capture him (v. 6). So this is not so much “please forgive me” as “please get me out of this!” We should get encouragement from the fact that the psalms are filled with those kinds of prayers—prayers for personal help.

I’ve often been refreshed by a quote from the great theologian and early president of Princeton Theological Seminary, Charles Hodge. He spoke this way about prayer as a child.

In my childhood I came nearer to “pray without ceasing” than in any other period of my life. As far back as I can remember, I had the habit of thanking God for everything I received, and asking him for everything I wanted. If I lost a book, or any of my playthings, I prayed that I might find it. I prayed walking along the streets, in school and out of school. . . . I did not do this in obedience to any prescribed rule. It seemed natural. . . . I thought of God as an everywhere present being, full of kindness and love, who would not be offended if children talked to him. I knew he cared for sparrows. I was as cheerful and happy as the birds and acted as they did. (Hodge, quoted in Miller, A Praying Life, 71–72)

As Christians, sometimes we not only lack gentleness in helping fellow believers, but we neglect important biblical truths. We can accidentally give people the impression that God only gives two kinds of comfort: he comforts us with assurance when we confess our sin, and he comforts us in heaven as he wipes our tears away (Rev 21:4).

When our daughter, Ellie, was three years old and wasting away day after day, week after week in Children’s Hospital, and they were loading her up with powerful antibiotics that were burning through vein after vein, until there were no more places they could stick her, if you came in and said, “Well, at least your sins are forgiven,” I hope I would have been sanctified enough to say, “And that’s the best news in the world,” but I doubt it. I probably would say, “Are you serious? So is there no help with this? Is there no presence to comfort? Does God only come when we plead for forgiveness, or does he come when we’re falling apart?” And there’s great news in the Psalms. Believer, you get to say, after you’ve sinned grievously, “God, wash away my guilt. Restore the joy of your salvation to me.” And you get to say, when life is too heavy, “God, I can’t breathe. I can’t sleep. I have no idea what to do. Please come!” If we ask the question, “Are there many mercies that come to us from the throne of grace?” Psalm 57 is a resounding yes!

How do you live for God’s glory in the face of harsh realities in the world? Seek his mercy. But also trust his salvation.

Trust His Salvation

Psalm 57:3-7

David isn’t pretending that his life is free of trouble. He’s not denying reality. But neither is he nurturing despair. Notice his trust in God. He speaks of God as the one who “fulfills his purpose for me” (v. 2), and he considers God’s power and grace to “reach down from heaven and save” (v. 3).

Is this a guarantee that everything that opposes us will lose? That Christians always come out on top? On top of our temptations? On top of those who oppose us? On top, when the Supreme Court is battling over something that directly relates to biblical truth? No. Psalm 57 isn’t a one-way ticket into a life of triumph and unending bliss. However, we can have this confidence: God is good, and God is sovereign. God is big, and God is wise. He loves you. And from the moment you turn and trust in Jesus for salvation, you’ll never live another day alone.

So, what does it mean for us to put this truth on? To “trust his salvation”? It means praying even though it seems like you’re just talking to the walls. It means if God says this book is profitable for teaching, rebuke, correction, instruction, and training in righteousness, then we will read it. It means if God tells us that by the Spirit we put to death the deeds of the flesh, we should fight as if we believe that’s true. And if my feelings are telling me that God has forsaken me, my feelings are lying.

Paul uses this phrase: “Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar” (Rom 3:4). And that’s a useful statement in the fight of faith. The fight of faith is contending to believe that whatever contradicts God’s Word is a liar. God is true; and every man, every humanistic philosophy, every cheap thrill, every nude image, every rival god, is a liar.

We have it on the authority of Scripture that this is the narrative sweep of our lives: God will send from heaven and save all who have trusted in Christ. If you have trusted in Christ, that’s your life story. Christians are convinced of this: at the end of the day, every false refuge will cave in, and Christ will be seen as the one, true hope of the world.

Rebellion against him will not go overlooked or unaddressed. God will judge human sin. The reality of judgment against sin is one of the central claims of Christian faith. However, another central claim of Christian faith is this: God has provided a Savior. Jesus came and lived a perfect life. He died on the cross to pay for our sins against a holy God. He rose from the dead, and full forgiveness and new life are given to all who trust in what Jesus Christ has done! This is the message the Bible calls “the gospel.” The psalmist speaks of a God of salvation who “reaches down from heaven and saves”—a God who “sends his faithful love and truth” (v. 3). The New Testament gives this Savior a name—Jesus. God reached down, through Christ, to save his people from sins. Jesus came “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). God did in fact send his faithful love and truth in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ. Every passage in Scripture whispers this grand story and points to this great hero (Luke 24:27,44; John 5:39-40)!

Another feature that points to the psalmist’s trust in God’s salvation is a literary device called epizeuxis that involves repetition. You see the first one in verse 1. Why is this here? Because I need to remember daily to ask for every grace God would give. I need to pray for forgiveness. I need daily bread. I need protection from temptation.

The second epizeuxis is in verse 3. The ESV draws it out: “He will send . . . God will send.” We need this truth on repeat mode. Why? Because I need to believe that God answers when I call, that no prayer for mercy goes unheeded. It needs to be said that God may give a different mercy than I asked for, but that would only be because there’s a better mercy than the one I asked for.

The third repeated phrase occurs in verse 7. What a timely reminder to us about the vital place of confident perseverance. The Christian life is not one epic “seeking of mercy” and one epic “trusting his salvation.” It’s a daily seeking and a daily trusting.

Some of my favorite moments in family worship over the years have been our prayer times—to watch our children grow up and learn how to speak to God. It’s an awesome thing! Several years ago we started something that would become a tradition. We took missionary photos off the refrigerator and passed them out. We took turns and prayed through the names of our friends who were serving Christ among the nations. That first night, our son, Hunter, mentioned the names of some friends and said, “God, I pray that you would help them to cling to Christ.” I didn’t hear a word after that because I was so deeply affected. As soon as the prayer was over, I raved about it in front of the whole family. I told him he was onto something huge. I told him I needed him to pray that regularly for me and that he should pray that for our family and for himself—that we would all “cling to Christ.”

Where are we leaning, Christian friend? Is our confidence in ourselves, or are we boasting in him alone, confident that he who has begun a good work in us will complete it (Phil 1:6), just as he promised? This phrase has become a daily prayer I have for myself, for family, and for friends: God, help me cling to Christ today, for life, for righteousness, for joy, for purpose. In other words, help me trust your Word implicitly. Help me be able to say, “My heart is confident, God, my heart is confident.”

According to the Bible, these things are the essence of what it means to live all of life for the glory of God: “The righteous will live by faith” (Rom 1:17).

This passage has one more thing for us. We are called to seek his mercy. We are called to trust his salvation. And we are called, friends—every Christ follower—we are called to wake up and make him known.

Wake Up and Make Him Known

Psalm 57:8-11

The central refrain and concern of this psalm is the proclamation of God’s glory. You see the refrain in the middle and at the end (vv. 5,11). This shouldn’t surprise us. Many of us are familiar with the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism—“What is the chief end of man?”—to which the answer is given, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

We know from Scripture that to see God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ is to live: “This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent—Jesus Christ” (John 17:3). This is the only life that lasts forever. To miss knowing God through Jesus, whatever else we might have gained in this life, is to die empty. To die unfulfilled. It is to miss out on the purpose for which we were created. That’s why Paul said, “For me, to live is Christ” (Phil 1:21). Paul counted everything else as garbage compared to knowing Christ. And Paul stated his ambition in Romans 15: he wanted to know Christ and make Christ known!

Remember those literary devices where words are repeated? The final epizeuxis is in verse 8: “Wake up! Wake up!” In verse 9 off he runs to praise the Lord among the nations, to the end that God’s glory will be “over the whole earth” (v. 11). There’s a note of joy.

If you follow NFL sports, you know the New Orleans Saints (the city where I was born) went through a rough patch for about, well, forty years. They stunk. Then something changed. The 2009–10 season was a winning season. The Saints went all the way to the Superbowl that year. The city halted while that game was played. As you came to the closing minutes, we were behind. The Colts, led by Peyton Manning, had possession. Manning was driving toward victory, and the Saints were one touchdown behind. Then, with three minutes and twenty-four seconds left on the clock, our own Tracy Porter intercepted the ball and ran back seventy-four yards for a touchdown.

Our family and a bunch of college students were in our house. As soon as the game was over, without any advanced planning, everyone in our living room ran out of our front door, yelling and screaming for joy. And when we got to the front yard, guess what we found? Our neighbors had done the same thing! Music was blaring. Mr. Dan, the safety engineer from across the street, was doing the robot in his front yard. This was a side of Dan I had never seen. Our college-student friends were dancing with our kids in the driveway. You could hear the blaring as people just sat on their horns throughout the city.

It was an unscripted, citywide response. It was an eruption of joy. But, on reflection, what was fascinating was that the joy had to be shared. Practically no one stayed inside. The joy of the city spilled out into the streets. And that’s the picture in this psalm. The psalmist reaches for the harp and lute—instruments of joy and praise—and he sings God’s praise among the nations (v. 9). He wants God’s glory to cover the earth (v. 11).

As we strive to live for the glory of God, to fulfill our primary purpose, I hope you hear God inviting you to seek daily mercies from him, to trust him and cling to Jesus, and to spread the good news of what he has done to the ends of the earth!

Reflect and Discuss

1. What excuses are we prone to make when we disobey God? What is one area in which you have been justifying sin by minimizing your disobedience?
2. What does David’s relationship and emotion toward God in this psalm reveal about God’s personal care and relationship to his children—to you?
3. How have you asked God, unashamedly, to pour out mercy in your life recently, believing he cares for you?
4. Why are we so prone to turn away from God when things aren’t going our way or when we are hurting beyond description? How can we remain firm in the truth of God’s character and his word when life is falling apart around us?
5. If everything were taken away from you except what you cling to, what would be left? What does this reveal about our confidence in God’s sovereign goodness and faithfulness in our lives?
6. In the midst of David’s enduring struggle, what does his main purpose—to continue glorifying God—reveal about (1) our struggles and (2) our purpose?
7. How would you describe your purpose in life? How does that influence the decisions you make every day—from how you spend your money to how you spend your time?