“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes.”‘
– Ezekiel 36:22–23
Ezekiel 36:22–23 is one of the clearest depictions of a reality we see all over the Bible that we must not miss. It is central to, I would argue the entire story of the Bible, from cover to cover, and it is clearly depicted here. What God does, God tells His people, I am about to act. I’m about to act to show My discipline among you for your sin, ultimately My love for you, because the discipline of God is a reflection of the love of God.
Our motivation must be in step with God’s and His motivation as shown in Ezekiel 36:22–23, is the glory of God covering the earth as the waters cover the sea.
But the point is, God says, I am about to act, not for your sake, ultimately, but for the sake of My holy name. For the sake of My name specifically among all the nations. God acts. Ezekiel 36:22–23 could not be any clearer. God acts for His glory among the nations, that ultimately, this is what God does, all that He does for.
And just in case that seems like, “Okay, are you sure about that? All that God does, He does ultimately for His glory among the nations?” Look at the end of the book. The Bible culminates in all nations, all nations. Every tribe, tongue, people, gathered around the throne of God, giving Him glory, for His salvation, for His action, on behalf of sinners.
So, life changes when you realize, this is the ultimate purpose of God. Your life, your family, your view of the church, your view of everything changes when you realize that God does what He does ultimately for His glory among the nations. It changes the way you pray. Now, you start to pray exactly how Jesus taught us to pray, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. This is what drives all of our praying. God, for the sake of Your name, we ask for this. For the sake of Your name among the nations, we ask for that. This is what drives our motivations, because this is what drives the motivation of God.
May Our Lives Be Used By God
So, we pray right now. God, our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Cause Your name to be worshiped and praised and known and enjoyed among the nations. We pray for that today, all of us. We pray for that today. Not just missionaries, God, we all, every child of Yours, we pray, we plead for Your glory to be made known. For the fame of Your name to be known and enjoyed and spread among all the nations. We pray for that today. And we pray that You would use our lives today toward that end.
Use our lives today, wherever we go, in this classroom, this workplace, this restaurant, this shop, this … Whatever we do today, in our homes, in your church, wherever we are, whatever we do, God, we pray today, use our lives to make Your name known as great. And use our lives to make Your name known as gracious and good and merciful and just and righteous and loving. Please use our lives today. Use our families today. Use our churches to make Your name known where we live and around the world.
The Spread Of God’s Glory and Prayer For Brahim, Bangladesh
God, we pray today. We pray for the Brahmin in Bangladesh. These are a people half a million strong, much like Brahmin in India, but Brahmin in Bangladesh. Hindu men and women who are following, worshiping all kinds of different gods. God, cause Your name to be made known as supreme among them. We pray, cause Your glory to be made known among Brahmin in Bangladesh. And send people there, or any followers of Jesus that we know among the Brahmin of Bangladesh. Please cause the name of Jesus to be made known among them. We pray for that. God, we plead for that today.
We pray that You would send out workers to the Brahmin of Bangladesh, toward that end, and God, that You would spend our lives, every one of our lives, my life, every life, the people who are listening to this right now. Use every one our lives, we pray, in all that we do. In all the different work we do, in all the different places we live, use our lives, our families, our churches to make Your name known among the nations.
We look forward to the day when we will gather with all the nations and give You glory. We praise You for saving us. For acting on our behalf to bring us to a relationship with You. That we might be giving You glory right now. We pray that You would do it more and more and more. Cause Your salvation to spread for your glory among the nations and do it through us, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
