The Oberlin Evangelist

March 27, 1839

Lecture VII.

Glorifying God

by the Rev. Charles G. Finney

Modernized by Cliff Collins

(I Cor. 10:31) “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (I Cor. 10:31)

In today’s discussion, I plan to show,

I. What should we understand by the glory of God?

II. How can we glorify Him?

III. To what extent should we glorify God in practice?

IV. What is the importance of glorifying God?

V. Whatever does not glorify God is enmity, or hatred, against God.

I. What should we understand by the glory of God?

Theologians speak about the essential glory of God and the declarative glory of God.

God’s essential glory is the excellence that His natural and moral attributes have all by themselves. His declarative glory is His renown, or reputation, or the ways moral beings view God.

The phrase “the glory of God” that is used in our passage today is a declaration of God’s glory. Our conduct has nothing to do with the essential glory of God. However, this passage has everything to do with declaring the glory of God.

II. How can we glorify God?

1. We can glorify God by exhibiting His spirit, behavior, and character, just as Christ did. The man, Christ Jesus, was a living illustration of the spirit, behavior, and character of the invisible God. As a man, Jesus was constantly engaged in glorifying God. And it is easy to see, that by representing God this way, He highly honored His Heavenly Father, and gave the world an opportunity to admire, love, and obey God.

2. We glorify God by illustrating, using precept and example, the excellence of His law and the glorious tendency of His government. We are to embody, in our lives, the very spirit and meaning of the law, and thus present to the world the idea that God is love. It is easy to see to what an extent this would constrain the world to acknowledge the glorious excellency of His “glorious majesty”.

3. We glorify God by holding up, in precept and example, the true light and doctrines of the gospel. The gospel can never be understood by rules requiring particular courses of action, without a corresponding example. By laying down a rule for a particular course of action, we lay down the principle of the law, and our lives are to be living illustrations of it. The truths of the gospel are very simple all by themselves. However, these truths are so greatly removed from the common prejudices of men, that there isn’t one truth in the world that needs to be illustrated as much in order to be understood; and the only illustrations that can be effective are the souls and spirits of Christians. Here lies the biggest source of the ignorance of unsaved men concerning religion. Many of them listen to the word being preached; but to them, it is something abstract. It is a dead message because of the lack of living illustrations among those professing Christians around them. It is impossible for the gospel to take effect without being understood; and it is impossible for the gospel to be understood by selfish minds without illustrations; and it is impossible for it to be illustrated without the lives of Christians. As a result, Christ’s life first illustrated the gospel to the Apostles. The lives of the Apostles and early Christians illustrated the gospel to the impenitent of their day, and wherever we find living illustrations of the gospel, people see that the gospel is the “power of God unto salvation”.

4. We can glorify God by acting the part of faithful witnesses for God. “You are my witnesses”, says the Lord. (See Acts 1:8) Now the appropriate business of Christians is to bear testimony continually for God; and the success of His cause on earth depends on the fullness, and faithfulness of their testimony. If His witnesses contradict by their practice what they instruct in precept, their testimony is destroyed. During a revival of religion, a Christian may live, talk, and act, so that he represents God in his practical daily living; yet, if at any time, he allows a some un-Christian reaction to come over him, he then contradicts his former testimony. And like a witness who contradicts himself on cross-examination, his testimony becomes worthless.

III. To what extent should we glorify God in practice?

1. We must glorify God In the arrangement of our business. We must make it clear to all those around us, that our business is calculated and designed to promote the happiness of our fellow men. If those around us don’t see this, we misrepresent God. It is clear, that all the works of God are designed to promote happiness; and if, in our works, the same purpose is not displayed, we are not glorifying, but dishonoring God. If, therefore, our business is of such a nature, that it shows that it is a selfish occupation; and especially if the business is naturally harmful to the interests of society, hardly a greater abomination than this can be found in a professing Christian. Is this like God? No! It is like the devil. It represents hell, not heaven.

However, if the business is naturally lawful, but it is conducted selfishly; if it is clear to those you deal with that your main purpose is to get and not to communicate good, to accumulate property and not to diffuse happiness around you, this is exactly the opposite of glorifying God. It misrepresents God’s character and religion; and the most effective agents of the devil are professing Christians who are selfish in their business transactions. God’s behavior and spirit is to give, give, GIVE. Their spirit and behavior is to get, get, GET. That is the exact opposite of true religion.

2. We are to glorify God in our houses, our belongings, and our furniture. We are to so arrange our houses, belongings, and furniture, that we show that our hearts are not set on these things, and especially to demonstrate that it is their usefulness, and not their appearance, that we desire.

By this, I don’t mean, that we are not to have correct taste in these things. In His works, God has everywhere displayed a most exquisite and infinitely refined taste; and to ignore this is to violate a fundamental law of our nature, and to misrepresent God.

We are to make sure that it doesn’t appear that our hearts are set on our possessions. Our happiness shouldn’t be in those things; but, on the contrary, we should show to the world that we only seek those things that have a purpose, and we have no fellowship with display, and useless, worldly ornaments.

There are two extremes on this subject, both of which are as ridiculous as they are wicked. One is to launch into all kinds of extravagance; and the other is to throw away all taste, decency, and usefulness, and rush back into ignorance. Now Christians must avoid both these extremes. While Christians don’t neglect the decencies and conveniences of life, they must avoid useless displays and ornaments.

3. We are to glorify God in furnishing our tables. In this, we must continually demonstrate that we are not creatures of appetite, that our belly is not our God, and that we don’t live like swine, merely to eat and drink. Hardly anything is more damaging to the cause of Christ, than for Christians to show that they are fond of high living. This tendency in some of the early professing Christians greatly distressed the apostle Paul, and caused him to say, “whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame who set their mind on earthly things.” Our passage clearly commands us to glorify God in eating, and drinking. This concerns the following:

(1) We are to glorify God in the quality of our food. The quality should be healthful, nutritious, and calculated, in the highest degree, to promote the proper activity of our bodies, and the clearness and energy of our minds. It is sin in us to eat and drink those things that we know will damage our health; and to eat and drink those things that violates the laws of life.

(2) We should glorify God in the quantity of food we eat. We are to eat no more, and no less, than our health requires. It is astonishing to see the extent that mankind is governed by their appetites, and how much time, thought, and labor is wasted, in buying things that will gratify their taste, regardless of health and duty to God or man. Some professing Christians are so much under the influence of a depraved and artificial appetite, that you can hardly produce a greater excitement on any subject, than will be created by calling into question the way they live concerning eating and drinking. You touch their tea, and coffee, those fashionable narcotics, and you touch the apple of their eye. They are ready to cry out, “The kingdom of God does not consist in food or drink; but in righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” Now quoting Romans 14:17 comes with a very ill grace from these people; because their practice suggests that their lifestyle consists in eating and drinking. In fact, their fierce arguments supporting the gratification of their tastes would seem to indicate that food and drink is, to them, much more important than “righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost”. Now it is obvious, that when Christians demonstrate that they are creatures of appetite, they strongly misrepresent and dishonor God. And we are required, if we value the honor, or regard the authority of God, to eat and drink in such a way that we show that we have a higher source of enjoyment than the pleasure of eating and drinking. We should also illustrate the truth of the words of Jesus, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. In short, it should be clear that we eat and drink, not to gratify our appetites, but that we may be able, in the best way possible, to do the work of God.

4. In the choice of our books, we are to glorify God. Our books are our companions, their authors are the spirits we hold communion with; and if a “person may be known by the company he keeps”, surely someone’s favorite books will tell the story of what is in his or her heart. Our books, therefore, should always be chosen with reference to the glory of God; to prepare our minds, in the best possible way, to serve Him. We should select our books in such a way that we show that we regard the knowledge of God to be infinitely more important than any other knowledge.

Few things are more dishonorable to God, than for a Christian to load down his table, or pollute his closet, with plays and novels, with Shakespeare, Byron and Walter Scott. Are these the spirits with whom Christians are to commune? Do these promote the knowledge of God? Can a Christian make these his favorite companions, and yet make the world believe that he considers the knowledge of God to be more important than anything else? The Bible represents the knowledge of God as the sum of all that is desirable in knowledge; and declares, that to “know God, is life eternal”.

Job 28:12-28 is an excellent passage declaring the importance of true wisdom; that is the importance of knowing God: (12) But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? (13) Man does not know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living. (14) The deep says, ‘It is not in me’; and the sea says, ‘It is not with me’. (15) It cannot be purchased for gold, nor can silver be weighed for its price. (16) It can’t be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. (17) Neither gold nor crystal can equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewelry of fine gold. (18) No mention shall be made of coral or quartz, for the price of wisdom is above rubies. (19) The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold. (20) From where then does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? (21) It is hidden from the eyes of all living, and concealed from the birds of the air. (22) Destruction and Death say, ‘We have heard a report about it with our ears’. (23) God understands its way, and He knows its place. (24) For He looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole heavens, (25) to establish a weight for the wind, and mete out the waters by measure. (26) When He made a law for the rain, and a path for the thunderbolt, (27) then He saw wisdom and declared it; He prepared it, indeed, He searched it out. (28) And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding’.

Now, how can a Christian believe this and spend his time in novels? He can hardly give a higher demonstration that he neither believes nor loves the Bible, than in choosing such companions for his closet. Certainly it is not paying God a very high compliment, nor attaching much value to a knowledge of Him, nor making the impression on mankind, that divine knowledge is infinitely more important than anything else, if Christians spend their time, in the light and miscellaneous reading that is so popular these days.

5. In all our occupations, spirit, behavior, and conversation, in everything we are to glorify God, by exhibiting that which is the very opposite of the spirit and behavior of the world. In other words, we are to represent God in everything as fully as possible.

IV. Is glorifying God important?

1. God’s government is moral. His government is a government of moral persuasion, and not force. As a result, the stability and strength of this government depends on His reputation, or how His subjects see or view Him. The devil ruined the world by shaking the confidence that our first parents had in God. As long as their confidence in God continued, their obedience was perfect. This is always true. The subjects of any government will naturally obey if they have perfect confidence in their ruler, while distrust, or unbelief, certainly must result in disobedience.

2. Unconverted men and women form their opinions of religion by the lives and behavior of professing Christians. Now it is as important, that your lives and behavior should be just what they should be, so that their opinions of God will be just what they should be. Their hearts can’t be right, unless their opinions are right, and since their opinions depend on your lives, if you sin, and display a wrong spirit, you are not only responsible for all the sin which is caused by your behavior; but their blood will be required at your hands.

3. The effectiveness of Christ’s death depends on you living in such a way that you illustrate its purpose. Unless your life is full of love, unless you breathe the spirit, and you demonstrate the behavior that led Christ to die for sinners, you misrepresent Him, you contradict the gospel, and you throw a cloud of impenetrable darkness around the cross of Christ.

On the other hand, if you display unselfish love in your life, you will be a living illustration of the spirit of the glorious gospel, and you will glorify God by your lifestyle.

4. Christians under God will save, or ruin the world, in proportion to how they live for the glory of God. Christ represents Christians as “the light of the world”, as “the salt of the earth”. Jesus teaches that if their light is darkness, and their salt has lost its savor, the world must sink down to hell in darkness. (Matt 5:13-16)

V. Whatever falls short glorifying God is enmity against God.

1. Not glorifying God is slandering Him. For a professing Christian to misrepresent God, is to do his utmost to dethrone Him. The highest influence that can be brought against any government is to misrepresent and slander that government. It is by slander and falsehood that Satan has always maintained his influence in this world. Therefore, whoever misrepresents and slanders God is in league with the devil against God.

The most efficient agents of the devil are inconsistent professing Christians. They are enemies in the camp. They profess that they are God’s children, and people assume that they know God and that they can rely on their testimony. And because they are seen as God’s own witnesses, if they testify against God and misrepresent Him, God’s cause must fail. It is more damaging than the slander of a legion of devils. It is not true that Satan wants to have everybody openly wicked. The testimony of one worldly professing Christian is more influential in favor of Satan, than a host of infidels. No doubt, Satan would be glad to have everybody claim that they were Christians, if they would be inconsistent enough to misrepresent, and thus betray God.

Now, this subject has no neutral ground. Christ has said, “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad”. (Matthew 12:30) It is impossible that you won‘t either honor or dishonor God in your life, walk, and spirit. Your whole spirit, behavior, and personal conduct, are watched and scrutinized by those around you; and conclusions are continually made, either in favor of, or against the God you claim to worship.

2. Whoever does not live to the glory of God, is the common enemy of the universe. Just as anyone who tries to slander, betray and ruin a government becomes a common enemy of that government.

REMARKS

1. You can see why the Bible represents God as seeking His own glory as the most important thing in the universe. Infidelity objects to the idea that God should seek His glory. Infidels act as if this would make God proud, jealous, and ambitious. However, when you understand, that by His glory we mean His reputation, it’s easy to see, that in a moral government of such an extent and duration as God’s, how the subjects view and esteem the great head of the government is infinitely important. And if God didn’t pursue His glory as the greatest good, He would not estimate things according to their real value.

Our scripture today lays down an easy rule to judge whether anything we plan to do is right or wrong. If it is business, the question is, is it an occupation that Christ would engage in under the circumstances? Is it that kind of business that you can reasonably expect to represent and honor God?

If any amusement invites us, the question is easily settled. Should anyone see me engaged in it, would it be honorable to God, and properly represent the spirit of His religion?

2. We are not only required to live for the glory of God, but to choose our occupations, and pursue them, in whatever way that will best glorify God. We should ask, what occupations are we best suited for? In what way can we not only do good, but also do the most good? And when we have understood ourselves, our compatibility, and our calling to any occupation, we should cheerfully, and with all our hearts, engage in it for the glory of God.

3. Here, we can see the difference between true saints and hypocrites. The true Christian loves God more than anything else in the world. God’s honor and glory are, of course, dearer to him than anything else. He just as naturally devotes himself to the glory of God, and lives only for that goal, as a person naturally pursues his or her supreme delight. If someone is not aware that this is the goal that they live for; that the glory of God is dearer to him than anything else, he certainly does not have the spirit of God, and it is preposterous to call him a Christian.

The hypocrite claims that he lives for the glory of God; but he certainly knows, or should know, by his own consciousness, that if he seeks God’s glory at all, it is a subordinate, and not the most important goal for him. He fully knows, if he will be honest with himself, that selfishness lurks in all the religion he has. Instead of having a strong, and permanent awareness that he is living for God, the most he can say is that he hopes he is covering up his hypocrisy.

4. From this subject, it is easy to see, how shocking and abominable, are the pretensions of many who claim to be Christians. How many of them are engaged in occupations, in which they cannot hope to glorify God, and can’t even pretend to glorify God, without making themselves look ridiculous.

5. Public opinion seems to restrict the obligation of this rule to ministers. People expect ministers to live for the glory of God. Everybody feels that a minister, in his particular occupation, should aim at the glory of God. And should a minister engage in many of the different occupations that laypeople think it’s all right to engage in, it would shock common sense.

It is remarkable, that where selfishness does not blind people, they are quite ready to form right opinions. Before the Temperance Reformation began, I remember hearing about a minister, who, because of ill health, or for some other reason, was prevented from preaching; and in order to support his family, he established a grocery store, where he sold alcohol. Even then, that was universally condemned. It seemed to shock the common sense of the whole community. And yet, multitudes of laypeople, and even Christian laypeople, were engaged in the same occupation, without even thinking that they were doing anything wrong.

Now why should public opinion of this rule be restricted to ministers? It certainly can’t be, unless salvation is also restricted to them. Everyone is required to observe this rule, and the same reasons that require a minister to obey, also requires everyone to obey. Now you would honestly say that a minister was not a Christian; that he couldn’t be saved, if, in his occupation, he didn’t aim at the glory of God. If his main goal were to support his family while pretending to comply with the command to provide for his own household, you would say that he couldn’t be saved. Now a minister may be, and is required to be, just as responsible to support his family, as any other man lawfully has to support his family. But neither of them has any right to pursue any worldly end, or any heavenly end, other than the glory of God. Everyone who has a family is required to make the support of his family one of the ways and one of the means of glorifying God. But to support his family as a goal all by itself, is ruin and death.

6. Everyone, not just ministers, must pursue the occupation that God calls him to pursue.

Just like a minister, each person must carefully and diligently determine his duty. He should pay attention to the leadings and providences of God concerning his lifetime occupation, just like a minister should. He has no right to pursue any business that he is not called to by the Providence and Spirit of God, any more than a minister has the right to preach without such a call.

7. Sometimes, it appears as if nearly all the laymen in the Church are going to hell. You find them driving in different directions, and pursuing almost every kind of business, and, in many situations, without even pretending that they were ever called to that particular occupation by the Spirit or Providence of God.

Some time ago, I asked a lawyer if he believed God called him to his particular occupation, and if he engaged in it with the same kind of motives that he thought a minister should have in the work of the ministry. He frankly said, “No”. “How then”, I continued, “can you be saved? Aren’t you required to live for the glory of God, as much as any minister? Aren’t you living in the habitual neglect your known duty? Isn’t the whole tendency of your life selfish, and an obvious violation of the commandment of God?” In the light of this passage in scripture, he could not deny that what I said was true. Now there are hundreds of thousands of such laypeople in the Church. They know that they are pursuing courses in life based on motives that they would totally condemn in a minister. And they would judge, and rightly judge, that if the minister based his life on the same motives that he does, the minister must have no religion at all. You can be assured, that in your occupation, no matter what it is, unless you have such an eye to the glory of God, as you know a minister should have in his occupation, you can’t be saved.

8. From this subject, you can see the great wickedness of dishonoring God in our methods of obtaining property, pretending that we will devote it to benevolent purposes. Unless we get money in a way that is honorable to God, it is useless to pretend to make any amends for the way we got it by the way we use it.

9. You can see how absurd and wicked engaging in any business that dishonors God is, simply because you want to pay your debts. Because it is dishonorable to God to be in debt, some people will engage in occupations that violate the law of love, and trample on God’s commandments for the sake of getting money to pay their debts. Now, why not simply steal to pay your debts, or commit highway robbery, or piracy? It is as just as much a violation of the law of God to obtain property by any selfish means, as it is to steal or engage in piracy.

10. Every pretended conversion that does not result in shaping the person’s occupation, life, and spirit, to conform to this precept, is a false conversion. Have you ever seen a person engaged in the selfish transaction of any business? Does he call himself a Christian? Now listen to me, if one of his first fruits is not the reformation of his business or occupation, that person is deceived. If his occupation is unlawful, he will completely renounce it. If the fault was in the way he conducted his business, but his business was lawful, he will instantly reform the way he does business. It is an outrage to common sense, to call that man a Christian when his life, thoughts, and especially his business transactions have not visibly turned into the channel of glorifying God.

11. The same is true of those times of religious awakening, in which great multitudes claim that they are converted to God. If the fruits of these excitements fall short of the principle laid down in today’s passage; if it does not break up and reform the selfish business transactions of selfish people; no matter how great their mental excitement may have been, they have fallen short of true conversion. They have not yet taken the first step in religion, and they still don’t understand what constitutes religion.

12. I would like to answer a question proposed by a brother since my last lecture. The question is, “Does the law of love, when it applies to business transactions, require that a man should merely support his family by his occupation, and have nothing more or less reserved for himself”? I answer:

(1) That the support of a man’s family is not to be the goal that he aims at; but, as I have already said, the support of ourselves, or families, is to be regarded by us, as one of the many means of glorifying God.

(2) The support of one’s self or family is by no means to be the criterion that we are to use to govern our business transactions. No matter how much it may cost to support ourselves, or our families, the need to support our families should not regulate the prices that we use to buy or sell. If you keep one cow, and under the pretence of that cow being the support of your family, you try to sell her milk at two shillings per quart, this certainly would be wrong. It would be just as wrong to keep one hen, and try, under the pretence of supporting your family, to sell her eggs for a dollar each. The truth is that no one has a right to attempt to support himself or his family this way.

So, on the other hand, if someone is engaged in an extensive business, the amount of what he needs to support his family, must not be the criterion that he uses to make his decision when he establishes his prices. But, in buying, and selling, he should have the same regard to the interest of every individual he trades with, as much as his own interest. He must sell as low as he can, without hurting himself more than he helps others. And, the amount that he makes must depend on the amount and nature of his business.

Suppose a wholesale merchant has a tremendous inventory and does a lot of business. Suppose that he supplies over one hundred country merchants with goods. Suppose that in this, he considers the good of each merchant equally with his own. In this case, his income would be equal to the total of all their incomes together. So that, in fact, he might become very rich. He may have tremendous power to exercise great hospitality and promote benevolent causes; and still consider every man’s interest that he trades with equally with his own interest.

13. Another question that has been recently asked is this: “if everyone is required to sell so low, as to consider every customer’s interest equally with his own, then those who have a small capital can’t live running their business. To this I answer,

That no man has a right to live, by running a business by which he can’t support himself and conduct that business on the principle of the law of God.

The other day, I was asked this question: “Suppose a certain man, who had a very large business, conducted his business on the principle of the law of God. In consulting his customers’ interests as much as his own, he is able to lower his prices and undersell all those smaller businesses, or sell at prices so low that they would become bankrupt trying to support their families, at those prices? Now, in this situation, that person, who has all that capital, will ruin everyone else’s business.” To this I reply,

It is every person’s duty to benefit the public as much as possible. And if one person can supply the market at a lower rate than other people can, he should supply it, and no one else has a right to complain. Individuals, and their families, should not be supported at the expense of public and higher interests. If other individuals can’t afford to act on the law of love, their business should shut down. And they are required to engage in any occupation that will allow them to conform to the law of God. This last question was based on the supposition that everyone has a right to engage in any particular calling, and support their family by it, whether it is consistent or inconsistent with the public good. However, this is the direct opposite of the truth.

If one person, therefore, is in a situation where he can supply all of the demand in any market, better than anyone else can supply that demand, then he not only has a right, but he should do so; and the other person is under obligation to retire.

Another question has been proposed, which is, “If persons are to sell as cheap as they can, without hurting themselves more than they help those they deal with, wouldn’t their profits be so small that it would prevent them from accumulating property with which to do good?” Now this is indeed a strange question. If a man is living, and conducting business, on the principles of the law of God, or of love, he is all the time doing good on the largest scale possible. And can it be imagined, that he would really do more good, by over pricing his customers for the sake of giving his property to others? Shall a man do injustice to one man, and violate the law of God, for the sake of giving to another man? A person might a well steal to give to the poor, or to support the gospel, under the pretence of doing good. It is wrong to violate the law of love, for the sake of acquiring property, to do good with. It should be understood, that the man who lives, feels, acts, and transacts business on the principles of the law of God, is continually doing all the good in his power. He is diffusing more happiness, by far, than if he were grinding the faces of his customers one day, to give to some benevolent cause the next.

It is as ridiculous, as it is wicked, for a person to violate the law of unselfish love, under the pretence of having something to give away. Suppose that everybody were conformed to the law of love; then everybody would be continually doing all they could possibly do for the benefit of those around them. And in this situation, where would the need be for one person to store up money, to give to these needs? He is already giving, as fast as he receives, for benevolent purposes. The fact is that, in such a situations, the coffers of all benevolent institutions would immediately overflow. The ice that has so long locked up the channels of love would be universally dissolved, and the streams of light, life, and love, would flow on until what are now commonly called objects of charity and benevolence would not be found.

14. I have often been led to ask, “What do Christians today think religion consists in?” It seems as though they think it consists in praying in their closets, reading their Bibles, attending church on Sunday, and occasionally giving something to support religious institutions. Now religion doesn’t consist in any of these things. Millions of these things wouldn’t make a particle of true religion. Religion consists in a true unselfish love of the heart. Religion is not just a desire to do good, but it is also a willing good; an unselfish love that controls one’s conduct. Religion is an unselfish love that is active, blessed, and God-like.

15. To glorify God, is the only purpose for which you have any right to live. You can’t live for any other purpose, and have any reasonable hope of being saved. If this is not the goal and the purpose of your life, I forewarn you, that your hope will perish when you take your last breath.

16. And now, beloved, let me ask you, have you ever laid your all on the altar, and rendered yourselves, a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God?

Is it your daily prayer, and constant efforts, used efficiently for God?

Do you conserve your time, your strength, and your all, in such a way that it makes the most of your influence for promoting the glory of God?

Is it really in your heart to live and die for Him?

Are you willing? No, do you desire more than anything else, and are you aware of this desire, to live or die, to be sick or well, to be rich or poor, or whatever that will make the most of you, and use you up with the greatest efficiency for God?

Do those who you eat with, see that you eat and drink for the glory of God; that you have made yourself acquainted with good dining, so far, at least, as to exclude whatever is harmful?

Do you prove to them, by the quantity, and quality, of your food, that you are not a creature of appetite; that you live, not to eat, but eat to live, and live to glorify God? “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God.”