COMMUNITY GROUP/FAMILY AND DAILY STUDIES BASED UPON OUR PREACHING SERIES AT COMMUNITY CHURCH PUTNEY
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The Westminster Shorter
Catechism (1646-47) begins by asking the question, 'What is the chief end of man?’ the answer,
'Man’s chief end is to glorify
God, and to enjoy him forever.'
John Piper in his book Desiring God changes one word, ‘the
chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever’. It’s
our very enjoyment (Christian hedonism he terms it) that brings God the
greatest glory and our greatest satisfaction in life.
As
we end this series I want us to see that God, in His attributes that we have
considered, is to be enjoyed and be our satisfaction now and forever.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR GOD
TO BE BEAUTIFUL AND SATISFYING?
Wayne
Grudem summarizes this attribute: 'God's beauty is that attribute of
God whereby he is the sum of all desirable qualities.'
St. Augustine poetically puts it, “You
have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless, until they can
find rest in you.”
LET’S LIVE LIKE GOD IS
BEAUTIFUL AND SATISFYING
Hear the heart of the Psalmist and let
God burn such desire in us:
Read and Psalms 42:1-2
and 63:1-2
and discuss:
Ø
What does the writer need in order to
be satisfied?
Ø
Where does He find His satisfaction?
Ø Where do many people seek to find beauty and satisfaction?
Read Isaiah 55:1 and John 7:37-38 and discuss:
Ø
What invitation does God give to the
dissatisfied?
Ø
What is ‘water’ a metaphor of?
Ø
What is the overflowing result of those
who seek satisfaction in God?
Ø
Let’s come to church, Community Group,
prayer, bible reading with a desire and expectation of meeting with God. Is
this your approach?
Let’s
finish this series with the example of David. May this be our heart,
Psalm 27:4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this
only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my
life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
GOING DEEPER PERSONAL DAILY STUDIES
Monday: God is our
satisfaction
The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1646-47) begins by
asking the question, 'What is the chief end of man?’ the
answer, 'Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.'
John Piper puts it ‘the chief end of man is to glorify God by
enjoying him forever’. It’s our very enjoyment (Christian hedonism he
terms it) that brings God the greatest glory and our greatest satisfaction in
life.
Let’s pray for God, by His Spirit, to teach us to love Him above all
things.
Tuesday: God is my only desire
God’s word
is given to us to teach us about God and how to enjoy Him. Meditating on
(reading slowly, repeatedly and prayerfully) is a skill to develop in regard to
enjoying God. Take some time to meditate on this text.
Ps. 73:25 Whom have I
in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
Wednesday: I have seen you in the sanctuary
Meditate on this
scripture,
Psalm 63:1-5 You, God,
are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for
you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the
sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better
than life my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the
richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
We can
take ‘sanctuary’ (the temple) as going to church, Community Group, our personal
devotions. Let’s be full of faith of meeting God when we spend time with Him.
Those who are unfaithful in spending time with God will lack the satisfaction
He wants to give them.
Thursday: Do not love the world
1 Jn. 2:15-17 Do not love
the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for
the Father is not in them. For everything in the world – the lust of
the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from
the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but
whoever does the will of God lives forever.
‘How
many make it their chief end, not to enjoy God, but to enjoy their lusts!’
(Watson, Thomas)
Too many of us allow our fire for
God to be extinguished by giving affection to other things and even sin. One
grows in love for what one gives focus to. Without a radical re-direction of
attention and time we will miss God’s beauty and our satisfaction.
Friday: The beauty and
satisfaction of God in what He has written
Psalm 19:7-8 'The law of
the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul...The commands of the Lord are
radiant, giving light to the eyes.’
God’s
word, in its perfection and wisdom show us the righteousness, wisdom and glory
of God. It’s only those who drink deeply from God’s Spirit-inspired word who will
learn to see God’s beauty and enjoy the satisfaction He promises. As is
promised in Psalm 1,
Psalm 1:1-3 Blessed is
the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the
way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose
delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law
day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of
water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not
wither – whatever they do prospers.
If we lack
passion for God and contentment it is because we are listening more intently to
voices other than God’s. His word and presence are freely available because He
has paid the price for our sin; but His word and presence are only useful to
those who will receive it, value it, and not neglect such precious things.
Saturday: The beauty and
satisfaction of God in Christ
Hebrews 1:3 'The Son is the
radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining
all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins,
he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.'
Colossians 2:9-10 For in Christ
all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and
in Christ you have been brought to fullness.
More than
any other revelation, Jesus displays the worth and beauty of God – He is fully
God!
God’s word
and God’s world show us His worth, but the Son of God adds to this by showing us
God’s magnificent holiness, hatred for sin and love by His death.
Only in
God, through Christ is perfect beauty and peace found as C. S. Lewis wrote,
‘The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will
betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only
came through them, and what came through them was longing. These
things — the beauty, the memory of our own past — are good images of what we
really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into
dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the
thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo
of the tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.’
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