Acts 12:20-24 (ESV – italics added)
Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king’s country for food. On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. But the word of God increased and multiplied.
God’s word increases and multiplies while the prideful find themselves in direct opposition to God. Will you live your life for God’s glory or for your own? When we don’t give God the glory in our lives we’re not attributing Him the credit and honor He deserves for His beauty and greatness and the good He does. We take credit for our successes and our good attributes. But in living this way we stand opposed to God, who made us and deserves all glory for it. James 4:6 says “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” and we have to decide if we’re going to be with God or against Him.
The conclusion to the epic novel of man’s existence is already set in stone. No matter what you do, God will be successful in spreading His love and truth over the whole earth and having ultimate victory over evil. Those who give glory to themselves rather than God are doomed to failure. Yet those who choose to live their stories for God in multiplying His Word are promised ultimate success and eternal life as children of God.
The fact is that when you choose to live out a story within God’s story, you have nothing to fear. You are loved and have secured a happy ending. Paul says in Romans 8 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
So “choose this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:15). And choose every day whom you will serve. Living your life for Christ is a daily decision. When you choose to make the right decisions on a daily basis, you will find yourself living an amazing story with a happy ending. So what kind of story will you choose to live?
Author: Jeff Oleson