Amen.
Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to the book of Psalms.
The book of Psalms.
We're going to be in Psalm 34, verse 3 this morning.
We've been going through the Gospel of John,
and we're going to take just a brief break from the Gospel of John for the month of January
to remind ourselves of our mission and vision as a church.
So this morning we're in Psalm 34, just one verse, verse 3.
And when you've found that in your Bibles, I ask that you please, if you're able,
let's stand together for the reading of God's Word.
Psalm 34, verse 3.
It says,
O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.
Let's pray.
Lord, this is a life-defining verse for me and for us.
So I pray now as we begin the new year together in your Word
that you would draw our hearts to affirm this verse with everything we are.
And we ask this by the power of your Spirit at work in us.
In the name of Christ, our Savior.
Amen.
And please be seated.
There are not many verses that stir my heart the way that this one does.
Not many verses that compel me to worship and to exalt in the glory of God the way that this one does.
It is a powerful verse.
And my family knows that I love this verse.
In fact, one of the gifts that I received for Christmas this year was a framed picture where each of my three children had handwritten this verse out.
Each one of them by hand.
I had it framed as an absolute masterpiece.
And they said that it's for me to hang up in my office here at church.
Although, to be honest, I'm having a hard time deciding where to put it.
Because to be truthful with you, it could just as appropriately be hung up in my home.
This is a family-defining verse for my family.
It's a life-defining verse for me.
And it has become for us a church-defining verse for our church community.
This has become our verse.
Our mission statement as a church is drawn from this verse.
Psalm 34 verse 3.
The call that David makes is,
Oh, magnify the Lord with me.
Let us exalt His name together.
That's the call.
And our mission as a church family is to answer that call.
So our mission as a church family is,
We exist to magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It is a church-defining, mission-defining, identity-defining, direction-defining verse for us.
If you or anybody else ever asks,
Well, what is Sea Wee Bay about?
This verse is the answer.
So my prayer for you and for us together as we begin a new year, 2024, together,
is that we would hang this verse as a purpose-defining banner over every facet of our lives.
That's my prayer for us.
And so my aim today, very simply, is just to remind us of this mission.
To remind us of our purpose to magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
And so I have just two observations to make this morning from verse 3 of Psalm 34.
Two observations to make this morning.
First, is that the name of the Lord is worthy of exaltation.
The name of the Lord is worthy of exaltation.
And to state the obvious here, with David calling us to magnify the name of the Lord,
to magnify His glory, to exalt in His name,
David clearly believes that the name of the Lord is worthy of exaltation.
That He is worth being magnified.
Meaning, David believes that God is worthy of all of our praise.
You know, we should be clear what we mean when we say words like magnify and glory and exalt.
These are very Christian words.
It's kind of Christianese.
And sometimes we speak this way.
And the meaning gets a little bit lost when we say these things over and over and over and over again.
And so we need to be careful to define and to clarify,
well, what exactly do we mean when we say magnify the glory of God?
Well, to magnify His glory means to make a really big deal out of who He is.
It means to make Him central.
To make Him not just an accessory to your life,
but to make Him primary in your life.
To make Him and His glory your ultimate boast.
To make His glory your ultimate aim.
To make Him the ultimate deepest delight of your heart.
Your ultimate joy.
And so what this looks like practically for you
is that now all of your speech is aimed towards magnifying the glory of God.
And now if this is your aim,
what this looks like is all of your thoughts are taken captive and made obedient to Christ.
It looks like all of your actions,
all of your motives,
everything that you do throughout your day-to-day life
is aimed towards this great end.
To magnify the glory of God.
That we would live as if this were the greatest thing in the universe
because our heart is convinced that it is.
That's magnification.
That's exaltation.
That's what David says God is worthy of.
And that, I believe, is meant to be the aim of your life.
John Piper says it like this.
You've heard me quote this before.
He says that there are two types of magnifying.
There is microscope magnifying,
where you make something that's very small appear to be big.
And then there is telescope magnifying,
where you make something very big appear to you as big as it actually is.
And so you take a microscope and you aim it at an ant,
and that tiny little ant becomes much bigger in your sight.
Bigger than it actually is.
You take a telescope and you point it upwards at the moon,
and now you begin to see with greater clarity
the shape, the color, the brightness, the texture.
All of it is seen more clearly.
All of a sudden it is magnified.
That's what we mean when we say we want to magnify the glory of God.
We want to make the biggest, greatest thing in the universe
big and great in our lives,
in our hearts,
in our families,
in our church,
in our community,
because we believe from our heart
that He is worthy of complete and total exaltation.
I want you to just take a minute
as we begin the year together
and take an honest assessment of your heart right now.
As you hear this call from David
to come to magnify the Lord with me,
let us exalt His name together.
This call to make God's glory primary in your life.
I want you to ask yourself,
does your heart agree
that the Lord is worthy of this type of magnification?
Does your heart resonate with this call on your life
that God is worthy of not just part of you,
but all of you?
And if not,
then I want you to ask yourself,
well, what is taking His place?
The truth is,
your heart will worship something.
It will worship someone or something.
Our hearts are made,
we are created to worship.
It will magnify someone or something.
Our problem tends to be,
because of the effects of sin in our lives,
our problem is that
our hearts tend to microscope magnify
small, trivial, passing, fading things.
We microscope magnify small things,
and in doing so,
we fail to look up and realize
that there's far greater glory to be enjoyed.
That's what sin is.
That's what sin does in our hearts and in our lives.
Sin is giving anyone or anything other than God
the honor that God alone is due.
Sin is pointing the telescope of our hearts
at small things and making much of them
when God alone is worthy of all honor and praise.
C.S. Lewis, in his book,
The Weight of Glory,
he says it like this.
It would seem that our Lord finds our desires
not too strong but too weak.
We are half-hearted creatures
fooling about with drink and sex and ambition
when infinite joy is offered to us.
We are like an ignorant child
who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum
because he cannot imagine
what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea.
We are far too easily pleased.
So I'll ask you again this morning,
Church,
is your heart convinced
that God is worthy of all praise?
You might be coming into the new year
with a bit of a spiritual limp.
You believe, you profess with your mouth
that God is worthy of all praise.
Yes, he's worthy of all honor.
But if we're honest,
maybe your heart is a little bit slow this morning.
If that's you,
well, how do we stir our heart up
to magnify his glory?
How do we stir our heart up
to exalt in his name
the way David's calling us to do?
How do we begin to point
the telescope of our hearts
upward at his glory of God
so that we might see him more clearly
and love him as he deserves?
Well, let me make a few suggestions
for you this morning.
First, consider his attributes.
Consider his attributes.
Who else is perfectly holy?
Where else can you turn?
Anywhere on the earth
to find someone
or something completely pure,
the fount of all goodness,
totally, completely good and pure.
Where can you find that
anywhere in the world?
Who else is all powerful,
without rival, without equal?
Who else is all knowing,
the fountain, the source,
the giver of all truth
and wisdom and knowledge?
What other pleasure,
what other joy
is infinite,
eternal,
unchanging?
We praise good things here on earth
despite their flaws,
but the God we worship
is flawless,
eternally,
totally good.
That's who he is.
There's no one like him.
Consider his works of creation.
How easy is it
to just ignore the miracle of creation?
And how foolish are we
that week after week,
day after day,
we spend our lives
in God's creation,
yet we're so dull
to the glory
of what God has made.
We're so blind
to the creator of it all.
Consider,
who else created all things?
Who else holds all things together?
Who set the sun
and the moon
and the stars in their place?
Who knit you together
in your mother's womb?
Who commands the wind
and the waves?
Who tells the waters
where to go,
where to stop,
and to go no further?
Church,
if your heart is slow
to exalt in the Lord,
find in any part of creation
something that's worthy
of admiration
and trace it all the way
back up to the source.
Consider his work of creation.
But don't stop at creation.
Consider his works of redemption.
who else is so full
of mercy
and grace
towards sinners?
Who else is
so full of justice
and loving kindness
to not spare his own son,
but to graciously
give him up for us all
that sinners like us
might be saved?
Now, there's a reason
why we focus our aim
at the gospel,
that we exist
to magnify the glory
of God
specifically
in the gospel
of Jesus Christ.
Why do we do that?
Why do we say
in the gospel
specifically?
Well, it's because
we believe that
the gospel of Jesus Christ
is where the glory of God
is most clearly seen.
This is where our hearts
are transformed
to love Him.
This is where you and I,
as we explore the depths
of the love of God
for you in Christ,
this is where we grow
in Christlikeness.
This is where we will spend
the rest of eternity
delighting in God's kindness
to us in the gospel.
If you're slow this morning
to praise Him,
if you feel that your heart
is dull towards the Lord
this morning,
fix your mind
on the cross.
Remind your heart
of God's love for you
in the gospel.
Set your mind
on things above
where Christ is,
seated at the right hand
of God,
risen,
reigning,
ruling,
and returning.
Consider His work
of redemption.
And last suggestion
here on this point,
to consider His purpose
in all of these works.
Consider His purpose
in all of these works.
Do you ever wonder
why does God do any of this?
Why does God create the world
to begin with?
Why does God bother
to save unworthy sinners
like you and me?
And why does God do
anything that He does?
I'll tell you,
the answer that the Bible gives
is that God's highest aim
in everything God does
is the magnification
of God's glory.
That is why He does
what He does.
There's no higher purpose
than this.
If there were a higher purpose
than this,
God would be all about that,
but there's not.
So everything He does
is to the great end
that His name
would be magnified
in all the earth.
It is to that end
that He made the world,
the heavens declare
the glory of God.
And it's to that end
that He redeems sinners.
If you are a Christian,
we need to know
His glory
is the goal
of your salvation.
Did you hear that great purpose
as Randy read
from Ephesians chapter 1
this morning?
I hope you heard it
just over and over
and over and over
and again
throughout the book of Ephesians
like a beating drum,
that great purpose
that Paul lines out
for our salvation.
Listen to this.
He says,
He predestined us
for adoption
to Himself
as sons
through Christ Jesus
according to the purpose
of His will
to the praise
of His glorious grace.
Do you hear that?
In Him
we have obtained
an inheritance
having been predestined
according to the purpose
of Him
who works all things
according to the counsel
of His will
so that we
who were the first
to hope in Christ
might be
to the praise
of His glory.
In Him
you also
when you heard
the word of truth
the gospel
of your salvation
and believed in Him
were sealed
with the promised
Holy Spirit
who is the guarantee
of our inheritance
until we acquire
possession of it
to the praise
of His glory.
Do you hear it?
Chapter 2
We were all dead in sin
but God
being rich in mercy
because of the great love
with which He loved us
even when we were dead
in our trespasses
made us alive
together
with Christ
by grace
you have been saved
and raised us
up with Him
and seated us
with Him
in the heavenly places
in Christ Jesus
Why?
Verse 7
chapter 2
So that
in the coming ages
He might
show us
the immeasurable
riches
of His grace
in kindness
toward us
in Christ Jesus
Did you hear that?
Our eternity
Christian
will be spent
exulting
in the limitless
depth
of God's love
for you
in Christ Jesus
All of eternity
will be spent
magnifying
His glory
in the gospel
of Jesus Christ
exulting
in the gospel
of His grace
every day
if there is such a thing
in eternity
every day
will be filled
with new reason
to praise Him
for His kindness
to praise Him
for His goodness
to praise Him
for His undeserved
mercy and grace
towards us
who believe
to the praise
of His glory
forever
we were saved
for that
you were created
for that
that is why
God chose you
that is why
Christ died
for you
that is what
we have to look
forward to
in eternity
that is what
this church
is about
and so the question
again
are you living
in line
with that purpose
right now
let me humbly
suggest to you
that you will
never be satisfied
with your life
until the glory
of God
is its ultimate
purpose
you will never
be satisfied
with anything
else you find
on this earth
you will never
be satisfied
with your life
until God's glory
and the magnification
of His glory
is your highest aim
let this verse
define your life
church
magnify
the glory
of God
exalt
His name
but as you do
as you
as you consider
how you might
orient your life
around this great aim
let me draw
your attention
to my second
observation
which is that
second
we are called
to exalt
His name
together
this is a
corporate
summons
to exaltation
when you read
this verse
it is good
it is right
and it is appropriate
to think
how can I
make this the aim
of my life
that is good
but what I want
you to notice
here is that
the call here
is not primarily
for you
alone
this call
is not just
for scattered
individuals
to magnify
the glory
of God
in their own
way
on their own
terms
on their own
time
as individuals
sadly
that is how
many think
about the
Christian life
I don't know
if you have
noticed this
but
individualism
has just
consumed
American
Christianity
and that
makes sense
doesn't it
because that is
the American
way
we are
independent
we think
we are
self sufficient
we do
what is best
for us
and then we
take that
independent
mentality
into our
lives
as Christians
and we
think
wrongly
we think
well
my relationship
with God
that is on
my own
terms
it is in
my way
it is by
myself
that is my
business
and then we
treat the
church
in those
terms as
well
so long
as it
benefits me
so long
as I like
the songs
that are
being sung
so long
as I
understand
and I
appreciate
what the
pastor
has to
say
that Sunday
so long
as I am
getting
something
out of it
then I will
come on
my terms
in my
own way
our own
spiritual
growth
well that is
my business
as my
personal walk
with the
Lord
it is nobody
else's business
what I do
how I think
how I practice
my Christianity
how I handle
my personal walk
with the Lord
it is all
very personal
and individual
we should know
that that may be
the American way
but church
that is
totally
foreign
to how the Bible
speaks about the
call to follow
Christ
Christianity
is inherently
corporate
do you hear that
in the call of
David here
he says
magnify the
Lord
with me
let us
exalt his
name
together
you may have
heard it said
before that
faith is always
personal
but it is never
private
have you heard
that
and that's
true
you should
absolutely
you should
have personal
individual
faith in
Jesus Christ
you must
have personal
faith in
Jesus Christ
if you're
going to be
a genuine
Christ follower
but don't
for a second
believe that
that personal
faith is a
totally private
matter between
you and God
that doesn't
involve anyone
else
far from it
Christianity
is not
an individualistic
religion
it is a
corporate
religion
and sure
you can be
a Christian
without ever
being a part
of a church
of course
you can
the same
way you
can be
an arm
and not
be attached
to a body
the same
way you
can be
a brick
and not
be connected
to a
building
of course
you can
be those
things
but you
were not
meant
to be
you were
not made
to be
that's not
the purpose
for which
you were
made
an arm
or a
brick
it may
be
that the
building
could benefit
from you
and you
from the
building
the body
could benefit
from you
and you
from the
body
you can
tell
this strikes
a nerve
with me
I'll be
honest with
you church
I'm
I'm tired
of seeing
American
Christianity
the way
the songs
on the radio
the way
that people
speak about
their relationship
with the
Lord
and their
relationship
if there
is one
to the
church
they speak
about it
as if all
God wants
is a million
only children
but the plan
of God
from before
the ages
began
was not
to adopt
just a million
only children
it was to
form a
family
of many
brothers
and sisters
throughout
the world
not only
you
but you
and you
together
there's a
story of the
great evangelist
D.L. Moody
was visiting
a church member
who had been
absent
for some time
and like a good
pastor does
he noticed
and he went
to go speak
with him
and when he
found the man
he was outside
sitting by a fire
and as Moody
sat down
the man
told him
he said
I believe
I can be
just as good
of a Christian
outside the church
as I could be
inside of it
that's a common
line of thinking
maybe you felt
that way
and so Moody
did better
than I would have
he said
nothing at all
instead
he reached
for a pair
of tongs
and he grabbed
one burning
coal from the
fire
very quietly
set it off
to the side
and they sat
there in silence
as they watched
that one coal
go from
red hot
to totally
cold
while the rest
of the gathered
coals
in the fire
burned on
and once
that one coal
had clearly
died out
still not saying
a word
D.L. Moody
grabbed the tongs
once again
picked up
the cold coal
placed it back
alongside the others
in the fire
and sure enough
what happened
the black coal
steadily began
to turn orange
and began
to warm again
Moody got up
without saying
a word
to go home
and the man said
pastor thank you
for the sermon
I'll see you
next Sunday
church if you
feel a little
bit cold
in your
affections
for the
Lord
I don't know
if there's a
better way
to warm
the affections
of your heart
than to gather
together with
God's people
I can't tell you
how many times
your faith
has encouraged
me
as I hear
you sing
songs of
worship
as I
speak with
you
as I hear
your words
of encouragement
as I hear
the ways
you're struggling
with this
you're succeeding
in this
the Lord's
working in
your life
here
you want
to learn
this
you have
this
question
your faith
encourages
me
I know
you've felt
some of that
same stuff
haven't you
even if
you're doing
great
spiritually
and you
don't see
what in the
world you
could possibly
gain from
being a part
of a church
I would
challenge that
thought
but could I
just suggest
that maybe
others could
gain from
you
and maybe
your spiritual
well being
isn't only
about you
maybe others
could gain
from what the
Lord is doing
in your life
maybe you
could be blessed
and be a
blessing as a
part of
a family
in ways
that are far
greater than
just on
your own
we have to
remember that
when we're
called into
union with
God our
Father through
personal faith
in Jesus
Christ
we are also
called into
union with
all of our
brothers and
sisters in
Christ
that's the
universal
church
the invisible
church
brothers and
sisters from
every tribe
tongue and
nation who
will spend
eternity
exalting in
the glory of
God together
but do you
know where
that invisible
unity is most
clearly seen
and most
clearly experienced
on this side
of eternity
it's right
here in the
local church
right here
in the local
church
now I just
fear that
many of us
have simply
lost the
meaning and
the purpose
of the local
church
the local
church is
meant to be a
foretaste of
the glories of
eternity
glory of
God
we offer
one another
forgiveness
and mercy
we comfort
one another
in our
affliction
we encourage
one another
and build
one another
up
and we lift
up our
hearts together
to magnify
the glory of
God
that's what a
church is
for
and if you're
a part of
this church
I know you
know what I
mean
church we
are blessed
here
this church
is a
family
there are
many
metaphors
throughout the
New Testament
that give us
pictures of
what a
church
is
I'll have you
know none
of them are
individualistic
we are
the bride
of Christ
we are
the temple
of the
living God
we are
a priesthood
we are
a kingdom
of priests
we are
a spiritual
army at war
with the
powers of
darkness
but you know
most fundamentally
the most common
way that the
New Testament
speaks about
the church
is as a
family
the church
is a
family
of the
redeemed
I went
home
for Christmas
you all know
I wasn't
here
last week
I missed
you
I wasn't
here
but I
went home
and I
gathered
with my
physical
family
three sisters
on one
side
two on
the other
lots of
nieces and
nephews
grandparents
uncles
aunts
cousins
all of us
have different
places that we
call home
we have
different tastes
different
personalities
we've all
had different
experiences over
the past year
but we come
together because
we share a
common bond
we're
family
the church
at a
basic
fundamental
level
is a
family
much
truer
than
flesh
and blood
and as
a family
as diverse
and as
distinct
as we
may be
as
individuals
as a
family
we share
several
key things
in common
think about
this with
me as we
close
as a
family
every one
of us
shares a
common
past
we were
dead
in our
trespasses
and sins
in which
we once
walked
every one
of us
we have
different
stories of
what that
looked like
in your
life
we have
different
experiences
of what
that looked
like in
your own
rebellion
against the
Lord
but we
share a
common
past
we know
what we
have been
saved
from
but praise
God
that we
share a
common
salvation
we share
a common
hope
a thousand
unique
different
testimonies
but one
common
theme
the word
of God
came to
you in
power
and you
believed
by the grace
of God
that Christ
Jesus came
to save
sinners
of which I
am the
foremost
that Christ
Jesus
has lived
and died
and risen
to save
you from
your sin
by the grace
of God
you believed
and you were
washed
you were
sanctified
you were
redeemed
by the
power
of God
every
member
of this
church
says
yes
that's
my
story
because
of this
church
we
share
a
common
aim
it's
the
family
motto
we
exist
to
magnify
the glory
of God
in the
gospel
of Jesus
Christ
together
this
is the
great
banner
that hangs
over
every
ministry
of this
church
the
great
banner
that
hangs
over
every
member's
life
as
individuals
the
great
banner
that
hangs
over
our
identity
together
corporately
as
Sea Wee Bay
church
how will
you make
this your
aim
this year
to magnify
the glory
of God
I should
probably ask
first
are you
a part
of a
local
family
of
believers
it
doesn't
have
to be
here
but I
would
encourage
you
if you're
not a
member
of a
church
somewhere
meaningfully
where you
can link
arms
together
and be
a part
of the
family
consider
how you
might do
that
this
year
and for
those
who are
a part
of this
church
Sea Wee Bay
how do
we plan
to magnify
his glory
this
year
well we've
identified
three ways
we'll explore
them throughout
the rest
of January
we aim
to enjoy
God
to equip
the saints
and to
evangelize
the lost
those are
our three
buckets
to enjoy
to equip
and to
evangelize
but over
the next
three weeks
I've
I've felt
compelled
to explore
how we might
accomplish
these aims
more specifically
through
prayer
my desire
for us
as we go
into 2024
is that we
would enjoy
him
in prayer
and that you
as a church
family would be
equipped
to pray
and that we
would pray
and desire
and ask the
Lord earnestly
to send laborers
into his harvest
field
that we would
commit
to magnify
his glory
through prayer
and that's where
we're going
Lord willing
in the weeks
to come
let's pray
Lord there is
nothing greater
that we could
give our lives
to than
your glory
we confess
the tug
and the
pull
of so many
worldly
desires
and worldly
pleasures
fleeting
things
we microscope
magnify
small
things
and ignore
the call
on our lives
to magnify
your glory
so we pray
Lord if there
are any here
who have
not yet
tasted
and seen
that the
Lord is
good
would you
draw their
hearts
to the glory
of God
and the gospel
of Christ
even now
as I pray
and Father
we ask
that together
as a church
family
as we step
forward
into the new
year
Lord
that we
would be
defined
by this
great call
would you
do it
in us
we pray
in Jesus
name
amen