Today we will continue reading the Rev. Louis de Boer's book, God's Great Salvation, Chapter 12, Soli Deo Gloria. What was the purpose of the original creation? What was Satan's purpose in corrupting that creation? Why did God purpose to redeem the creation? What is the connection between the work of creation and the work of redemption? Which view of God's salvation gives God all the glory? And which view of salvation dishonors God and robs Him of His glory in the great work of salvation? These are the questions we will deal with in this chapter. What was the purpose of the original creation? It was to reflect and show the glory of God. It was to demonstrate His greatness and goodness, His almighty power, and to bring glory to his name. As the psalmist stated it in Psalm 19 verse 1, the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament show it his handiwork. Even the sin-cursed remnant of God's original creation that we now inhabit has such a powerful testimony to God's power, greatness, and goodness that it will be sufficient to convict men on the Judgment Day. As Paul puts it in Romans 1.20, for the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. And especially man, as the apex of God's earthly creation, created in His image was to glorify Him, and the Scriptures incessantly proclaim man's duty to glorify his Creator. Psalm 145 verse 5, I will speak of the glorious honor of thy majesty and of thy wondrous works. Revelation 4 11, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. The Westminster Standards address this issue in the very first question and answer of the Shorter Catechism. It teaches, question one, what is the chief end of man? Answer, man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever, and is supported by such scripture proofs as 1 Corinthians 10 31 whether therefore ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." Psalm 29 verse 2, Give unto the Lord glory due unto his name. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. It is hard for us to imagine today what the creation could have been and should have been. Myriads of angels and supernatural beings that we can scarcely imagine, cherubim and seraphim continually praising God in His presence in the heavens of heavens, and on earth a glorious and perfect creation glorifying the Creator. This entire creation, animate and inanimate, is reflecting and demonstrating the glory of God. Imagine a creation filled with an unfallen humanity, with all the holiness and righteousness of our first parents in the state in which they were created. And this glorious humanity is living and laboring for the honor and glory of God, praising Him in all its ways and doing all things according to His holy will and to His honor and glory. It is a glorious and blessed creation that transcends what we can even imagine. This was the original purpose of God. This is why He created all things. This is why we were created. Oh, how have we fallen! And how far short we have come! And why did we fall? Why did Satan rebel and seek to corrupt God's original creation? And why did he tempt our first parents, Adam and Eve, to obey him and join him in his rebellion against God? Satan was one of the most marvelous creatures that God had created. He was the apex of the supernatural beings that inhabit the heavens of heavens, in the very presence of God. He was one of, and possibly the highest of, the archangels, but he aspired to be more. He aspired to be God. Specifically, he desired to be the object of the praise that the entire creation was directing to God. The entire creation was created for and had one purpose, to glorify God. Satan conspired and rebelled that that entire creation might instead glorify and worship Him. This is manifest from Satan's confrontation with Christ in the wilderness. Satan tempted Christ. He offered Him another way than the way of the cross. He offered to give Him all the kingdoms of the world without having to redeem them by His blood. He offered to give Him all the kingdoms of the world that were in rebellion against the true God and His Son Jesus Christ. He offered to give Him all the kingdoms of the world that lie in the hands of the wicked one, that worship and serve Satan rather than God. And what did Satan want in return? All he wanted is that Christ bow down and worship him. If Christ receives the allegiance, obedience, and worship of all the nations as Satan's viceroy, and then worships Satan, then Satan has accomplished his objective. Then he is receiving the worship and allegiance of the entire world. Satan has already accomplished much of his objective. Paul says in 1st Corinthians 10 20, But I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils and not to God. And I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of devils. Ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table and of the table of devils. According to Paul, all the pagan religions, with their sacrifices and their religious feasts, are serving and worshiping demons. Demons are fallen angels in the service of Satan. This worship of the entire non-Christian pagan world is directed through these demons to their overlord, Satan. The Apostle John teaches the same truth when he states in Revelation 9.20, And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood, which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk. The wicked, according to John, are worshiping devils. and he relates this to the worship of idols of gold and silver and brass and stone. The reference is, as taught elsewhere in scripture, that the worship of these idols ultimately devolves on demons and thus through them to Satan. Satan's rebellion against God and his motives are dealt with in two passages of scripture. The passages are prophecies or woes against the kings of Tyre and Babylon. However it is clear from the context that it is not against these pagan kings but against Satan their overlord that they are really directed. Ezekiel 28 12-17 Son of man take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God. Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden, the garden of God. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth, and I have set thee so. Thou wast upon the holy mountain of God. Thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in all Thy ways from the day that Thou wast created till iniquity was found in Thee. I will cast Thee as profane out of the mountain of God, and I will destroy Thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of Thy beauty. Thou hast corrupted Thy wisdom by reason of Thy brightness. I will cast Thee to the ground. I will lay thee before kings that they may behold thee." This passage is clearly speaking of Satan. It is Satan who was in Eden the garden of God. It is Satan who was perfect until he fell into sin and rebelled against God. And tellingly it is Satan whose heart was lifted up with pride. Proud of his own beauty and perfections, he aspired to be the object of praise and adoration of the entire creation that was being directed to God. That thou shalt take up this proverb against the King of Babylon, and say, Thy pump is brought down to the grave, and thy noise of thy vials. The worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee, How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning? How art thou cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations? For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High. yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit." This passage of scripture reinforces the earlier one about Satan's fall and the cause thereof. It refers to his pomp indicative of his pride, and in his pride he aspired to greater things than his already exalted position in the order of God's creation. He aspired to the very throne of God, he aspired to be like the Most High. In his limitless pride, he aspired to be the object of the praise of the entire creation. The futility of Satan's conspiracy to subvert the creation from its original purpose is evident from a remark made by our Lord Jesus Christ. At the triumphal entry, when he was being lauded as the Son of David, the Messiah, the religious leaders, the Sadducees and Pharisees bade him to silence the multitude. They, rejecting his deity, considered the honors being accorded him as blasphemous. As Christ had previously told them, ye are of your father the devil, and the lust of your father ye will do. They were serving Satan, and were infuriated that Christ was receiving the adoration of the multitude. Christ responded saying, Luke 19.40, and he answered and said unto them, I tell you that if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out. The inference here is that the purpose of God's creation cannot be frustrated. If man will not praise God, then God will raise up praises to himself, even from the inanimate parts of his creation. and the very stones will burst out in the praise to God, to the Creator. God will be praised and as the scripture said, His glory He will not give to another. There is a real connection between the work of creation and the work of redemption. The latter could be ascribed as the work of re-creation. The Bible says that God so loved the world, the cosmos, the creation, that He gave His only begotten Son to die for it. The divine work of redemption will culminate in a new creation. It will produce the new heavens and the new earth, populated by a new humanity, redeemed, sanctified and glorified. And all this will be accomplished by the work of God's Holy Spirit through the merits of Christ's atoning The purpose of this new creation is to fulfill that which the original creation failed to do. It will glorify God for a future eternity, as the original creation was intended to do. The following scriptures set forth the purpose of the original creation, a purpose that we are still to seek to fulfill today. Isaiah chapter 44 verse 23, Sing, O ye heavens, for the Lord hath done it. Shout, ye lower parts of the earth, break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein, for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob and glorified himself in Israel." Then Ephesians chapter 1 verse 6 verse 12 and verse 14, "...to the praise of the glory of his grace wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved that we should be to the praise of His glory who first trusted in Christ, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of His glory. Bless the Lord all His works in all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Psalm 103 verse 22 And these scriptures set forth the purpose of the new creation that will come to pass in the eschatological future. Isaiah 60 verse 21, Thy people also shall be all righteous, they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of my planning, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. Revelation 4 11, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created." Revelation 14 verse 7, saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come, and worship Him that made heaven and earth and the sea and the fountains of water. especially the following passages, speaking of the new heavens, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem, show how the glory of God will be manifested therein. Isaiah 65 17 and 66 verses 18 and 19. For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former shall not be remembered, nor come to mind. I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Jabin, to the isles afar off, that have not heard of my fame, neither have seen my glory, and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles." Revelation 21 verses 22 through 26 And I saw no temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither the moon, to shine in it. For the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it. And the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day, for there shall be no night there, and they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it." The purpose of the new creation as that of the old is to glorify the Creator. The Scriptures are filled with repeated references, dozens of them, to the fact that the Lord is the Creator of the heavens and the earth. This is repeatedly how God identifies Himself to the men that he is addressing. This is his testimony to his power and greatness and to his rights over them. First Chronicles 16 26 For all the gods of the people are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Nehemiah 9 6 Thou, even thou, art Lord alone. Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their hosts, the earth, and all the things that are therein, the seas and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all, and the host of heaven worshipeth thee." Job 38, 4. Where was thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding. Psalm 148, verse 5. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and they were created. Proverbs 16 verse 4, The Lord hath made all things for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. The last verse is especially telling, as the scriptures say, Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain. God has made all things for himself, for his own pleasure, and preeminently for his own glory. Even the wrath, the worst works of wicked men, will but advance the working out of God's glorious plan and will abound to his glory. Satan's enmity, Judah's betrayal, the hatred of the Jewish leaders, all contributed to the fulfillment of God's purpose and to accomplishing that redemption for which we will praise Him for all eternity. God has made all things, even the wicked, for Himself, for His own glory. Even the existence of hell, where His holy judgments on the wicked are carried out, where the eternal punishment of His enemies is exacted, abounds to His honor, majesty, and might, and to the praise of His glorious justice. and most of all his glory will be magnificently manifested in the new creation. There God will be forever glorified as never before. There the glory of God will be openly manifested as it never was in the old creation. Oh may the Lord hasten that day. Now if all this is for God's glory, how does this relate to the issue before us? the Calvinist-Arminian controversy. If God does all things for his own glory, which system, which plan of salvation brings the greatest honor to God? And which one brings dishonor to his great and glorious name? Examined strictly on the merits of their respective theologies, there is a vast difference between the God of the Arminians and the God of the Calvinists. Thankfully, in practice, this is not so, and they can worship together as brethren, glorifying the same God. Yet, let us examine the view of God that each side to this controversy holds according to their doctrine. The God of the Calvinists is great and glorious and triumphant. He is omnipotent, accomplishing all his holy will and good pleasure. He triumphs over all His enemies and laughs at them. The conspiracies of Satan, the rebellion of man, are as nothing to Him. He is in absolute control of history. He is sovereign over all that takes place in His creation. Not a hair can fall from our heads unless it be His holy and most perfect will. He is the potter and we are the clay. His eternal decrees stand and no one can challenge Him or frustrate His plans. Nothing is contingent to Him, not even the salvation of any of His creatures. Man's will is no impediment to His will. He doesn't merely hope for man's salvation. He doesn't merely make their salvation possible. He actually redeems them. He does it all by His power. Through the work of His Son and by His Spirit, all to the praise of His glorious grace. This is a God that is worthy to be adored and worshiped for all eternity. He truly is the Lord, and salvation truly is of Him and of Him alone. And let us take a hard, logical look at the God of the Arminians. His will, His purpose, is to save all humanity. He sent His Son to die for them all. However, because of the slothfulness of his servants, multitudes that he desires to save never even hear of his offer of salvation. Multitudes more that do hear it scornfully reject it. The grace he offers is constantly spurned and rejected. He is very much hostage to the will of his creatures. He has done all he could. He has even offered up his only begotten and beloved son and now he can do no more except to wait and see what his creatures will do. Will it all be worthwhile? He sits and waits, he stands at the door and knocks, but he is impotent to do anything more. This God cannot come crashing into your life as he did to the Apostle Paul on the Damascus Road and dictate that he, Paul, was a chosen vessel to bring the gospel to the Gentiles and to convert Paul in spite of himself and his enmity to the Christian faith. No, this is only a weak caricature of the mighty God that reveals himself in the scriptures. Thankfully, many, if not most, of modern Arminians do not believe in such a God. Thankfully, there is a happy inconsistency in their thinking. There is a disconnect between their mind and their heart. Yet the logical implications of their theology bring up a view of God that is very dishonoring and that robs God of His glory. Arminianism is essentially humanist. It is man-centered. It is mainly concerned with man's needs of salvation. It has great concerns about being fair to sinful men. Calvinism is God-centered. It is chiefly concerned, not with man's needs, but with God's glory. If God has really done all things for his own glory, if the work of redemption, of the new creation, is really to magnify the glory of God, then God has saved man according to the Calvinist model. Anything less is dishonoring to God. and robs him of that glory that he is worthy of, and which the great work of salvation is designed to restore. Amen.