Intertwined: God’s Glory and Our Good (A Poem)
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. . . . It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.- Ezekiel 36:22-32
When I look at my failures, now all I see is your faithfulness,
When I feel the shame of my wicked ways, I stand amazed at your graciousness.
For your name’s sake you did what can never be undone,
For the sake of your great glory, you gave me a new heart through the gospel of your Son.
It wasn’t because of my effort, my great remorse or even my pain,
You gave me a new spirit, cleansed me with clean water, all for your endless fame.
The world sees you as selfish, narcissistic, megalomaniacal, egocentric, and therefore not real,
But I know your commitment to yourself is what drives your love to heal.
The fact that you are most concerned with your honor, love, and respect,
Does not contradict your passion to save us, it is the only reason your love is what we can expect.
If your mercy and grace was not based upon your value and right, but instead on our own worth,
Then we would never have one good thing upon the face of this whole earth.
Since our good is tied to your glory and fame,
Your pursuit of your own good and ours is one in the same.