Halls Of Heavens In The Echoes

THE SUPREME PURPOSE OF GOD

BY MIKE MAZYCK

“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, so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

In a passage containing enough spiritual meat for a lifetime of meditation, it may be the two most inconspicuous words that carry the heaviest weight. Like Christ Himself, they are lowly and overlooked, yet they point us towards the supreme reason for our existence – why we are breathing the air we breathe, why our hearts continue to beat, and why we were raised from spiritual death to eternal life in Christ:

“So that.”

Two words whisper to us…The words that follow will tell you the purpose of your existence — the “why” behind the entire story!

And here’s the startling truth, the one that 21st Century Christianity doesn’t want you to know: That purpose isn’t about me, and it’s not about you!

It is about Him. It is about His glory.

As it says, “…so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” From the opening words in Genesis to the final “amen” in Revelation, Scripture points us to one overarching theme: God acts for the glory of God.

Jonathan Edwards put it like this, “The great end of God’s works… is the manifestation of His [own] glory.” The great R.C. Sproul wrote, “The chief end of God is to glorify God and to enjoy Himself forever.” That is not ego — it is the very nature of ultimate perfection. God’s glory is the highest good in the universe, and therefore the greatest end of every divine act.

My friend, the supreme purpose behind our salvation is this — that “in the coming ages,” for all eternity stretching endlessly before us, we will become the radiant showcase of the immeasurable riches of His grace. Think of that for a moment. Forever — not for a season, not for a century, not for the first thousand years of glory — but forever. The redeemed saints will be the living, breathing display case of God’s infinite attributes: His unfathomable grace. His incomprehensible kindness. His unwavering mercy. His unquenchable love. His eternal power and might. We are the trophies of His grace, crafted by Him, so that we might be displayed in the halls of heaven for all of eternity.

I have found this truth to be ever so helpful when I find myself asking those difficult questions about this life. Questions like, Why Lord? Why all the pain and suffering? Why do we have to go through all of this? Why is there so much evil in this life?

As I’ve pondered those questions, I have found it helpful to imagine I’m reading a story — a story about a great warrior in a distant land.

Since childhood, he had been trained for war. His mental and physical discipline was unmatched by any of his counterparts. His mind grew sharp and his muscles grew strong. As he walked through the town square, people whispered about his skill and might, marveling at the promise of the young warrior. With each chapter, I’m given another glimpse of his rising greatness. But as I near the conclusion of the story, I realize something is missing: there has been no battle. No enemy. No conflict. No foe for him to overcome.

What kind of story would that be?

If you’re like me, you’d feel cheated. Something inside us knows instinctively that the greatness of a warrior is revealed on the battlefield. As a frame holds the picture, the fight itself becomes the display for all to see the quality of the warrior.

My friend, the story we live in is the battlefield upon which the glory of God is being eternally displayed.

We are the “damsel in distress.”

We are the rebel enslaved – the child who was kidnapped.

We are the prisoner trapped behind enemy lines.

And it is precisely in rescuing the helpless, pardoning the guilty, and defeating the serpent that God’s attributes are put on display.

His grace shines brightest against the backdrop of our rebellion. His love becomes all the more staggering when poured out on the wretched and unlovely. His patience and kindness become all the more incomprehensible when offered to those who resisted it at every turn.

When Paul says that God did all of this “so that in the coming ages” He might display His grace, he is revealing something that should cause unspeakable joy to rise within us. Every moment of our salvation story — our rescue, our regeneration, our sanctification, our perseverance — is part of a cosmic demonstration being crafted for the eternal enjoyment of heaven. For ages upon ages, all of heaven will behold the trophies of God — those radiant ones who shine like the sun, though they were once poor, wretched, and miserable. And as heaven beholds us, they will behold Him. And with one resounding voice they will cry out, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain!”

My friend, this is the supreme reason for our existence; that for all of eternity, the story of what God has done on the battlefield of time will echo through the halls of heaven.

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