The Driving Force of Your Life

Purpose: the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists.

Psalm 86:9
All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify Your name.

Romans 15:6
That together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Revelation 15:4
Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. All nations will come and worship You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed.

These and many other Scriptures make it plain that the purpose of all human beings is to glorify God.

How do we glorify God?

All of nature except humans glorify God naturally.
Birds glorify God by singing.
Flowers glorify God by blooming.
Fruit trees glorify God by producing fruit.
The sun glorifies God by shine and giving light and warmth.

We as humans are to glorify God by being who God created us to be. We do need to remember that we are each created uniquely. No two human beings are exactly alike and so we glorify God by being the unique creation that God made us to be.

In John 12 there is a great example of this truth in the person of Andrew.

John 12:20-21
Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”

Some people had come to celebrate the Passover and they heard about Jesus. They come to Philip and ask him to arrange a meeting with Jesus.

Sounds like a simple request. But Philip does an interesting thing.

John 12:22
Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.

Why did Philip go and get Andrew?

In John 1:40-41 we are told that Andrew encounters Jesus and the first thing he does is go and get his brother Peter and bring him to Jesus.

In John 6 Jesus feeds five thousand people. He does it with five barley loaves and two fish. Jesus got the bread and fish from a boy that Andrew brought to Him.

Philip went to Andrew because Andrew took things to Jesus. And the things he took to Jesus, Jesus used to accomplish the Father’s will. Andrew glorified the Father.

Jesus took Peter and used him to change the world.
Jesus took the bread and fish and fed over five thousand people.
Jesus took the Greeks and shared some awesome truth with the crowd.

Jesus tells us in John 12:24 that unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

Jesus then connects the seed being planted with our willingness to lose our lives for His sake.

John 12:25-26
Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will My servant be also. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

If my life is focused on glorifying Jesus and not focused on me then I will experience eternal life. If I am going to serve Jesus, I have to follow Him. Following Jesus means I will be where Jesus is, doing what Jesus is doing. The Father will honor Jesus’ servants.

When we glorify God by fulfilling His purpose for us it also results in three things:
Honor to God
Growth of God’s Kingdom
Benefit for us

Andrew glorified God by bringing whatever came into his life to Jesus.

The driving force our lives is meant to be bringing glory to God by being who He created us to be.

We have to ask the question: What is the driving force of my life?
Many people are driven by guilt. (This is one the church has unfortunately used.)
Many people are driven by resentment and anger.
Many people are driven by fear.
Many people are driven by materialism.
Many people are driven by the need for approval.

All those driving forces are negative and they lead to living lives of defeat and desperation.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is making glorifying God the driving force of your life.

There are great benefits to letting this be the driving force of your life.

When glorifying God is the driving force of your life, your life has meaning.

This is an eternal purpose. If life is driven by guilt or anger or fear then, when those feelings go away, so does what drives your life.

Glorifying God gives life eternal meaning.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing your life has an eternal purpose.

Knowing your purpose will simplify your life.

When I know my purpose, my driving force, I can then evaluate what is essential and what is not.

If I am driven by the need for approval of others, I am constantly having to figure out want “they” want me to do. I have no clue as to what is really essential.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about life being simpler.

Having glorifying God as the driving force of your life allows you to focus your life.

I know that multitasking is encouraged by our culture, but Jesus was focused. He was singled minded in who He was and what He came to do.

John 8:28
Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own authority, but speak just as the Father taught Me.”

Jesus was not directed by anything but what the Father wanted. it freed Him to live a focused life.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living a life focused on Jesus.

When we have glorying God as our driving force, it motivates us to live life with godly passion.

If fear or anger or guilt is my driving force, I am going to very reluctantly do anything because all my motivation is negative.

When glorify God is my motivation, then I can passionately pursue God and His kingdom.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is passionately pursuing God and His kingdom.

God has created all of us differently, but He has wired each of us in our own unique way to glorify Him.

We don’t have to do it like anyone else.

God created Andrew to be Andrew and to glorify Him by bring people to Jesus.
God created you to glorify Him just like you are.

SO DO IT!

Uniquely Glorifying Jesus by Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls
                                                  Joe