Stealing from God's glory? I wanted to be famous for God.
In 1989, I went off to college at Liberty University to become a young champion for Christ. What I didn’t realize then that I realize now as a 54-year-old man is that my ambition may have been more selfish than noble. My goal was more misguided than godly. Truth be told, I wanted to be great for God for my own sake. I didn’t really want to magnify God’s greatness to the world.
I recently began this new Bible reading plan and came across Genesis 11:
“Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.’ And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And the Lord said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech.’ So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.”
Toward the beginning of time, humanity wanted to make a name for itself. If the truth be told, when I went off to college, I wanted to make a name for myself. I wanted to be famous for God. But did I want God to be famous in me?
Certainly, there are worse things to be famous for. But I have learned along the way that my desire to make a name for myself is futile, vain, and unproductive to the advancement of God’s Kingdom on earth. In Genesis 11, we see God sending a spirit of confusion over their lives so that they were dispersed and unable to do what they wanted to do. They wanted to make a name for themselves.
But God makes it clear in the book of Isaiah that He will give His glory to no one. He will share His glory with no one. Isaiah 48:10 says: “Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.”
It is an offense to God for us to seek to make a name for ourselves so that we can share the glory that only belongs to Him.
God brings confusion and affliction into our lives to get our attention because our reputation cannot support His glory. When our reputation tries to contain His glory or take credit for His glory in us, it only leads to self-destruction. We cannot steal from God’s glory and expect anything less.
God addressed the church of Sardis in Revelation 3. They loved their reputation over true godly character. Listen to what God said:
“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will comel ike a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.’”
Reputation is how others perceive you. Character is who you are and how God knows you.
The church of Sardis was like the people of Babel. They wanted to make a name for themselves. But the desire to make a name for yourself is not from God. The desire to make Jesus famous is from God.
Confusion and affliction are the constant state of your life if you live to make a name for yourself, even if, supposedly, you’re doing it for God.
God confused the people at Babel because they wanted to make a name for themselves. Now lest you think God is insecure, just one chapter later God comes to Abram and says, “Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.’”
God calls Abram and tells him to go from his father’s house to the land He would show him. And He gave Abram a promise. If he would obey and go, God would bless him and make his name great. Why? So that, in turn, Abram could be a blessing too.
Abram pitched his tent East of Bethel and built an altar to God. Genesis 12:8 says, “he called upon the name of the Lord.” Abram lived to call on the name of the Lord instead of making a name for himself. How about you?
If we respond to God’s calling and make His name the focus, He will take care of making our name great so that we can be a blessing to others for Him.
See, my desire at 18 was not all bad — just misguided. And over the last 36 years, God has taught me to simply live to make His name famous.
God allows confusion and affliction to purify our motives so that His glory can shine through us to others, and they can receive blessings from Him through us.
Whose name are you living for?
Kelly Williams is co-founder and senior pastor of Vanguard Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. His books include: The Good Pastor, The Mystery of 23, Friend of Sinners and Real Marriage. He also maintains a blog.
