Whose glory do you seek? It is very important who we choose to bow before; and thus assign glory. (Revelation 19:9-10) There are many who mislead, by seeking your worship and that of others. (Matthew 4:8-9 ; John 12:43) We can also prove a danger to ourselves in regard to who we give glory to. (Acts 12:21-23) It leads us to suggest a sobering question: Do we seek accurate Bible knowledge so as to give glory to our Creator based upon that knowledge; (Romans 10:2-4) Or do we seek to be held in esteem as a learned man [or woman]? Since it is easy for us to view ourselves as more upright than we actually are, (1 John 1:8 ; James 1:26 ; John 16:2 ; Proverbs 12:10) how can we really be certain if it is God's glory we seek? Jesus indicated many would fool themselves! (Matthew 7:22) It is the Bible of course, that can help us to know even our own desperate heart. (Jeremiah 17:9 ; Hebrews 4:12) The Bible is thus the tool that can help us view ourselves in an accurate light. (James 1:22-25) Learn what the Bible teaches, and you will be set free of the lies of others, and even of the trickery of your own heart. (John 8:31-32)

We can learn foremost through our great exemplar Jesus Christ: As even Jesus came seeking his Father's glory and not his own. (John 4:34 ; John 5:30 ; John 6:35-40 ; Hebrews 5:4-6 ; Matthew 5:16) Jesus then taught us a simple method by which we can know whose glory it is we seek: Jesus said anyone speaking of his own initiative, or of his own originality, was seeking his own glory. (John 7:18) That defines whose glory it is we seek, then: It is whose message we convey? Jesus said he came speaking only what his Father taught him. (John 7:16-18) [Jesus does have his own glory of course: The glory as God's own son. (John 1:14 ; Ephesians 1:17-21 ; 1 Corinthians 15:24-28) What was and is most important to Jesus, however, is glorifying his Father's name. (John 12:27-28)] The Jews realized what Jesus told them was true: That someone seeking his own glory [by promoting his own teachings] had nothing of value to give; And so they quickly tried to use Jesus's words against him by asserting he was teaching about himself, and therefore seeking his own glory. (John 8:13) Jesus corrected them in verses 17 and 18, (John 8:17-18) as he reminded them his Father had indeed born witness about him. The Hebrew Scriptures [the Old Testament] from which Jesus quoted so often, and which the Jews claimed to have faith in, had their very existence largely to provide witness to Jesus's coming; And to identify Jesus as the Christ [the anointed one]. Jehovah bore witness about Jesus through those Hebrew writings, and directly from heaven as well. (Matthew 3:16-17) Clearly identified by God as God's own son, Jesus in turn gave witness to the glory of his Father. (Galatians 1:3-5 ; Romans 16:25-27) [In this way God and Christ fulfilled God's own law which Jehovah had given the Jewish nation: that it took two witnesses to establish a thing. (Deuteronomy 19:15 ; John 8:18)] Jesus demonstrated over and over he was seeking his Father's glory. (Luke 10:16) Jesus taught his followers should likewise give glory to his Father Jehovah. (Matthew 5:14-16 ; Ephesians 4:13-14) The Bible indicates it is those contrite and humble individuals seeking truth from the Bible who are proving acceptable to God; and who will in turn be blessed by him. (Isaiah 66:2 & 5) Such faithful persons show it is God's glory they seek; as they prove themselves noble minded by teaching only what the Bible teaches. (1 Corinthians 4:6) Jesus's true followers walk in the steps of the Lord, by never teaching of their own initiative. They teach only what God gives them to teach from the Bible. (Luke 2:46-49 ; John 5:36-44 ; Matthew 11:27 ; Matthew 10:32-33) The reason Jesus always sought to do God's will is so very simple: It is because Jesus long ago realized all his Father's teachings are perfect, (Hebrews 11:6) and any deviation from God's way of doing things would, therefore, be less than perfect. (Deuteronomy 32:3-4)

We should all do our utmost to imitate that perfect example given by Christ Jesus himself: We must teach as truth only what we learn from the Bible, and what we understand the Bible clearly teaches. Others may aid us by directing us to what the Bible says, but what we teach must never be the teachings of men, or what we personally believe to be truth [when there is no direct scriptural support for such belief]. As Jesus made clear: If we teach what we believe, we are seeking our own glory. (John 7:18) It is just that simple! You must be able to support what you teach using the Bible. Our very life rests in our recognition of the Bible as the word of God; (John 15:10 ; John 8:31-32 ; John 12:46-50) and then in our appreciation for [and our obedience to] those Bible teachings. (John 5:24 ; John 3:16 ; John 17:17) It is our obedience to Bible teachings that demonstrate whether we love God. (1 John 5:3) [We can say we love our Creator as much as we want of course; But if we do not obey, we clearly do not love him.] It is love shown for others, demonstrated in what we teach as truth, that defines and helps us know who we give glory to: The conclusion of the matter, everything having been heard is, fear the true God and give him glory. Knowing and loving our Heavenly Father, and then having a fear of displeasing him born from that love, is the whole obligation of man. (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14) Whether you build a personal faith in the Bible then, is what determines if you are a friend of God. It determines whether you are able to view mankind's dealings from God's perspective, or if you retain the perspective of our fellow grasshoppers. (Isaiah 40:22) Without some understanding of God's word, you remain among those who know and understand only what they can learn from their peers - you remain as a grasshopper among grasshoppers. Learning what the Bible teaches sets you free from such ignorance. (John 8:31-32) Bible truth allows you to soar above the treachery in the teachings of men. (Isaiah 40:31 ; Mat_7:15 ; 1_Pet_5:8)

Peace to all who love the truth as defined by our Creator's Word: To those who avoid being followers of men by showing themselves lovers of truth as they can directly support with the Bible. (Luke 10:5-6 ; John 17:17)

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