日期： 01/31/10

經文：提摩太前書 1 ： 17

題目： 讚美頌

主旨：因為神有崇高的屬性，所以應得讚美。

引 言

在 1980 年時代，美國電視有一個非常熱門的節目，就是在晚上的 Jonnie Carson show, 在他慶祝節目 27 週年的時候，特別採訪了當時很有名的一位投手，叫做 ？ 在這個採訪要結束的時候， Carson 就邀請這個投手唱幾首他平常在球賽時，用來平靜他心情所唱的歌，事後 Carson 說他沒有預料並且也非常驚訝的聽見這一個投手竟然唱了三一頌，但是他也補充說他也被這首歌所感動，試想在一個晚上的節目裡，在許多人面前，這一位信徒竟然唱出了三一頌用來讚美他的神。

   在兩個星期前我們研討了保羅的見證，在這見證裡他說他自己曾經是一個褻瀆神的人，他是一個逼迫教會的人，他出盡所有力量就在逮捕信徒，並且要毀滅這一個耶穌的運動，他是一個非常強暴、反抗福音的人，他恐嚇基督徒，只要 一提到他的名字就會造成信徒中間莫大的恐懼，然而神對他有忍耐，神也向他施憐憫，保羅說耶穌來到世界上為的是要拯救罪人，然後他加一句「他就是那最大的罪人」，不但如此，神也揀選了他作祂的使徒，作祂的代言人，作祂的代表。試想像保羅這樣的一個罪人，神仍然伸出祂的手把他帶起來，沒有一個人可以墮落到一個地步是神不能拯救的。難怪當保羅想到這一點的時候，他就從他心裡面發出了一個對神的讚美，就是今天我們剛才念的第 17 節「但願尊貴、榮耀歸給萬世的君王，就是那不朽壞，人不能見獨一的神，直到永永遠遠」阿門。

   雖然這是一句話的讚美，但是裡面卻告訴了我們許多有關神的屬性，這位神是永恆的君王，是不朽壞，是不可被看見的，是唯一的神。首先我們先看神是那永恆的君王。

I.    神是永恆的君王

   在猶太人的思想裡只有兩個時代：現在和將來。神是現在和將來這兩個時代的君王，因這個緣故，這一個句話也往往被翻譯成「神是永恆的君王」。

   世上的君王來了也去了 , 在世界的歷史裡，我們有統治只有 13 年的亞歷山大大帝，或是北韓的偉大領袖金日成，死後也被成為共和國永遠的總統，他也來了也走了，大概 40 多年而已，在中國的歷史有偉大的秦朝，我們有大明帝國，我們有大清帝國，這些與其他的偉大的帝國，他們的年日大概從一百到三百五十年左右，而且其中被皇帝統治最長的有 60 多年而已。在美國這一個國家裡，有總統在那裡領導，從四年，最多也不過八年而已。世上的君王來了也走，但是神這一位的創造者，祂的統治是從一個時代一直到下一時代，他是永遠的在那裡治理，祂是永恆的君王，沒有其他的君王能夠說這種的話語，做這種的宣告，甚至在我們人類歷史最黑暗或者是最光明的時刻，他也是那一個的君王。

   有時我們會看見車後貼了這樣的一個標語「神是我的副駕駛員」，我們往往願意坐在駕駛位上，讓神坐在我們的旁邊，當我們遇到困難遇到為難的時候，我們就讓他來開車，不然的話我們要做一位駕駛員，去我們所要去的地方，按著我們的方式，但是當祂是這一位永恆的君王的時候，祂不是那一位的副駕駛員，祂是那一位正駕駛員。

   我們理性都知道祂是一位永恆的君王，但是我們有沒有讓他來管理我們的生命呢？要祂在我們生命為君王的意思，是讓祂來管理我們的道德行為，我們要讓祂來管理我們工作的處境，和我們事業的方向，我們要讓祂來管理我們的財物，也要讓祂來管理我們的家庭，祂是那一位王，他也是管理教會的君王，當祂是君王的時候，在那裡管理我們，我們事實上要問的問題乃是「這是不是他喜悅的？」「這是不是祂要我或是要這一個教會去做的事？」他不是那一位副駕駛員，他乃是那一位的正駕駛員 !

II •  神是不朽的君王

不朽這個字的意思是不會滅亡也不會改變的，今天我們並沒有看見太多不會變不會朽壞的東西，你剛來買的那一件非常美麗的鞋子、那一件襯衫、那一個皮包，你好好的去照顧他，但是幾個月甚至幾個禮拜之後，他已經失去了他的新鮮感，成為另外的一雙鞋子，另外一件衣服而已。你還記得兩三年買的電腦現在已經是非常落後了，你要買一台新的、更快的。我們人的身體也會慢慢衰退下去，有人告訴我們說當你一過了 18 歲 ，你的身體健康就開始走下坡。我們有一些人經常飛東南亞，你還曾經記得有一個時候，你回來了之後在一兩天就可以克服你的時差，但是現在可能一兩個禮拜甚至兩個到三個禮拜，你才可以開始恢復正常，難怪有人說我們的身體像以前了。我們的科學家仍然在嘗試尋找有沒有任何的基因或者是蛋白質是在那裡開始這一個老化的過程，如果有個話那我們是不是可以操縱這些的基因或者蛋白質，使他們延遲或者緩慢開始這一個過程呢？我們也有人買各樣的油膏，或者是注射？來除到身上隨著年齡而來的皺紋，我們要吃最新介紹的維他命或者是水果來延遲老化的過程。

但是只有神是不改變的，只有祂是不會朽壞的，祂昨日、今日、到明日都是一樣的。在幾年前，我透過讀了今日基督教週刊，認識了一位畫家叫做？？在他的圖畫裡，神和神明總是以黃金來代表，用銀來代表人類，這個原因是金是長存的，但是銀隨著年日會變質會變黑，在亞洲許多的佛像就是用金來塗抹，在北京郊外的 成德祠 ？那裡有許多的廟宇，他們的屋頂都是用金來塗的，在第二次世界大戰的時候，當日軍開始他們的撤退，他們盡量的去這些廟宇的屋頂，把這些金刮下來要帶回去。神就是像金，祂是不會朽壞的，祂是不會滅亡的。

當我們怎麼樣可以體會神的不朽壞的屬性呢？這就是在耶穌基督的復活上，在詩篇 16 篇第十節「因為你必不把我的靈撇在陰間，也不容你的聖者見朽壞」，當神將耶穌從死領復活的時候，神就將一個永遠不朽的身體給了祂，但是我們也要注意，祂是那首先復活的，也因這個緣故，神也要將那個不朽壞的身體賜給他的兒女們。在哥林多前書十五章 42 跟 53 節這裡說，「所種的是必朽壞的，復活的是不朽壞的，這必朽壞的必須穿上不朽壞的，這必死的必須穿上不死的」，因為神是那不朽壞的，祂將耶穌從死裡復活，好叫那一些相信祂的人，以後他們也會被從死裡復活過來，用那一個永恆不朽壞的生命，這是我們活在世上的盼望，在這個世界裡，沒有一樣東西會長久的存留下去，但是我們確有這樣的一個應許，當我們相信神的話，當我們有一天死了，他必定將我們從死裡復活，給我們那一個永遠永恆的生命。

III •  神是 看不見 的君王

神是看不見的，他不能被人看見，在提摩太前書第六章 16 節又繼續擴充擴大這個觀念「只有他永遠不死，住在潔淨的光裡，沒有人見過他，人也不能看見祂」，祂是不能被看見的，但是我們都很想看見祂，我們總是想要切開那隱藏的，要看那不能看見的，大衛王在詩篇 27 這樣說「有一件事我求過耶和華，我還要尋求，我要一生一世住在耶和華的殿中，瞻仰祂的榮美，在祂的殿中求問」。大衛要見這一位神，但是卻沒有看見，摩西所看見的是神榮耀的一部份，以利沙看見了以色列的火車火馬，但是沒有看見以色列的神。約伯失去了一切之後，當他要見神，在生的時候，他也沒有看見。在 兒童教裡 問答裡有這樣的一個問題，你能不能夠看見神？答案是「不，我不能看見神，但神確時常的看見我」。

是的，我們不能看見神，但我們可以認識他。在禮拜五的早上，我注意我們門前的兩個花盆倒在地上，我知道一定是晚上風把他們吹倒的，我沒有看見風，但是我確知到他的影響。同樣地心吸引力也是如此，每一天也是如此，我看不見但是我每一天卻能經歷到他的作用，如果沒有地心吸引力的話，那你和我不能坐在這裡也不能站在這裡，我們會滿天在飛，我們也看不見在我們四周圍各式各樣的電波，比如說藍芽、 wi-fi, 或是 At &T 、 Verizon, Sprint, 這些網路的電波，如果你把你的手機打開，你可以收電話也可以打電話出去，雖然我們看不見這一些的電波，但是知道在這個建築物裡到處都是。

神也是如此，我們不能看見他，祂卻將他自己向我們顯明了。當我們看見了我們的宇宙和我們的自然界，我們就知道這是一位創造者的傑作，當我們看見自己身體的奇妙，看見腦細胞如何跟其他細胞在傳遞信息，我們就知道我們人是神奇妙可畏的被祂所創造。

神也在聖經裡面將祂自己的事向我們顯明了，用人能夠明白的話語告訴了我們有關祂自己的事。最後神也透過耶穌基督將祂向我們顯明。在約翰福音第一章 18 節「從來沒有人見過神，只有在父懷裡的獨生子將祂表明出來」，這愛子是看不見的，神的形象是首先的，是在一切被造之上。是的，神是看不見的，但是我們也不需要就停在這裡，當約伯失去了一切東西之後，他說「我知道我的救贖者活著，最後他必在地上興起，我的皮肉遭受毀壞之後，這事就要發生，我必在肉體以外得見神，我必見他在我身邊，我要親眼見祂，並非外人，我的心腸在我裡面渴想極了」。約伯知道在他死後他會親眼看見這一位神，使徒約翰在約翰一書的第三章第 2 節說「親愛的現在我們是神的兒女，將來怎麼樣還沒有顯明，然而我們知道主若顯現，我們必要像他，因為我們必要看見他本來是怎樣的」，然後我們也知道，如果我們透過耶穌基督相信了神，耶穌在馬太福音第五章第 8 節這樣的應許「那清心的人有福了，因為他們必看見神」。當我們的心被祂的寶血所潔淨，在他回來的那一天，或者我們透過了死亡進到他那裡的時候，我們必要面對面的看見他。

IV •  神是唯一的君王

神是永恆的君王，是不朽的君王，是看不見的君王，他也是那一位獨一無二的君王。第一條的誡命「除我以外你不可以有別的神」，在申命記第六章第 4 節「以色列阿你要聽，耶和華我們的神是獨一的耶和華」。這是猶太人信仰的核心，「以色列阿你要聽，耶和華我們的神是獨一的耶和華」，因此他們要聆聽他，要順服他，除了祂之外沒有另外的君王，祂是唯一的王。人可能會敬拜許多的形象，或者是教條，或者是一些的神，但是只有一位的真神。當然在今天這個社會的文化，這不是很受歡迎的觀念，我們要包容萬有，我們要條條道路通羅馬，但是在基督教的世界觀裡，這卻不是這樣，只有一位的神，祂是那永遠的，祂也是不朽壞的。佛不是一個神，印度教的許多神明也不是神，只有一位的真神。

我知道這對我們當中很多的人說並不是陌生的事，在過去幾個月在這個講台不同的信息裡，我們都提到這一點，但是我們一直要回到一個很基本的一件事，除了這一位的真神祂是永恆的君王、不朽壞的、看不見的、獨一無二的，我們有沒有將任何其他的物件當作是生命裡的神呢？ 我記得我曾經跟一對夫婦在談話，丈夫說他不拜任何的神，聽到這一句話之後，太太馬上說你拜的是金錢。那些認識我們的人會怎麼說呢？我們拜的是錢嗎？是不是在那裡拜我們的工作事業？是不是在拜我們的服飾？或者有沒有在那裡拜我們的家庭，有沒有在拜自己呢 ?

經常有人問，怎麼樣可以有一個更深的屬靈的生命，或者是說我如何經歷與神有一個更深的關係，或者我們如何能有一個更深刻的屬靈的真實性，這是一個不容易回答的問題，因為當我要嘗試去回答的時候，我可能只不過反映出我自己屬靈的貧乏。但是最近當我在想到屬靈的真實性的時候，我會覺得是不是首先要檢討和反省，看看在自己的生命裡有沒有在拜任何的東西，有沒有任何的物件、任何的人，我們在不知不覺當中把他當作神在敬拜。金錢、家庭、事業，有沒有在我們生命中取代了神的那一個位置，今天你在拜的是什麼？如果要經歷那一個屬靈的真實，那一個與神更深的關係，會不會首先要再一次肯定神在我的生命裡是那獨一無二的真神。

結論 :

   每當我看見年輕的男女，他們如何跟隨基督的時候，我的心中往往得到鼓勵和更新。他們對神信心的表現和我的是不一樣，但是他們對神的愛和委身卻是清清楚楚，他們有些人受到訓練，學習如何在購物中心，或者是在公車上與陌生的人談話傳福音，帶領他們信主。這一個星期，我讀到有關 Florida 的一個足球員名叫 Tim Tebow, 他也是一個足球 Heisman 的獲獎者，他和他的母親將會在下星期，超級足球賽的一個 30 秒的廣告裡出現，我們也在禱告中紀念這一個廣告使他們可以如期的被廣播出來，但是令到我注意的是這一個足球員的信心信仰。

   當他在球場上的時候當然都是帶著足球員該穿的制服，但是他的特色乃是將祂眼睛的周圍塗黑，然後在裡面有白色聖經的經文？ Tebow 不打足球的時候也有一些非常特殊的表現，當他在大學的時代，每到春天和夏天假期，他都會在菲律賓服侍一些孤兒，當他在美國的時候，週末的時間，你往往會看見他到監獄作義工跟囚犯談話傳福音，我想在這裡看到的是一個年輕人知道他的定位，也知道他生命中的優先次序，他是在這一位永恆的君王之下被管理的。

   當保羅回想到他自己的生命，他看見了自己的敗壞，也是罪人中的罪魁，然而神在他莫大的憐憫裡向他身出手來，讓他從神的憤怒中拯救出來，不但如此他也被分派為耶穌基督的使徒，當他面對這樣的憐憫、慈愛、和恩典，他從心中就表達了對神的那一個讚美，他將一切的榮耀和尊貴都歸給神。尊貴乃是神該得的尊重和敬畏，將榮耀歸與神乃是在那裡印證和肯定神就是那一位榮耀的神，祂是那一位偉大的，祂是那一位重要的神，在保羅的稱讚裡，他也告訴了我們神就是那一位永恆的君王、不朽的君王、不可看見的君王、以及獨一無二的君王。

   是不是有時候當我們也在那裡檢討反省自己生命的時候，看見像我這樣的一個罪人，神竟然向我伸出他憐憫的手，將我從罪裡挽回出來，救我脫離神的憤怒，並且不停的在我的生命裡彰顯他的恩惠他的憐憫和慈愛，那是不是我們也就很自然要從心中向神發出我們對祂的讚美呢？請我們一起的低頭禱告。

Date:   01/31/10

Text:   1 Timothy 1:17

Title:   Doxology

Theme: Because of God's lofty attributes, He is to be praised.

Introduction:

  In 1989, on celebrating the 27 th Johnny Carson's Late Night show, there was an interview with Orel Hershiser. He was the pitching ace for the LA Dodger, in winning the 1988 world series. At the end of the show, Carson asked Hershiser to sing a couple of songs which he sang to calm himself between the innings. Carson recalled that Hershiser caught him a bit off guard by actually singing the Doxology on the live program, but added that he was moved by it. Carson chose the taped segment to conclude his primetime television special. Can you imagine, singing the Doxology in the Late Night Show?

  Two Sundays ago we studied Paul's testimony. He said he was a blasphemer of God. He spoke evil against God. He was a persecutor. He went all out to arrest the Christians with the intent to crush the church and the Jesus movement. He was a violent opponent of the gospel. He intimidated the Christians; and the mention of his name brought great fear to them. Yet, God was patient with him and merciful to him. Paul wrote that Jesus came into the world to save sinners. He was the number 1 sinner. Moreover, God chose him to be His apostle, His spokesman and representative. Imagine, to a sinner like him, God reached down to pick him up. No one is so low that God could not reach. No wonder, with this realization he had to stop what he wrote and burst into this praise: “To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”

  Even though it is a one sentence praise, it tells us so much about this God. This God is the king of ages, incorruptible, invisible and one and only. First

 I •  God is the King of Ages.

In the Jewish thinking, there are only two ages: the present and the future. God is the king of both the present and the future age. For this reason, some translations rendered it as king eternal..

Human kings come and go. In world history, we have Alexander the Great, who ruled for only 13 years. In N. Korea there was the great leader   Comrade   Kim Il-sung  , who was later held in high esteem as the eternal President of the Republic. He lasted about 40 years. In our Chinese history, we have the great Qin empire, the great Ming empire and the great Chin empire. These and many other great empires lasted anywhere from 100 to 350 years and those great kings ruled at the most for 61 years. Here, our presidents will govern, not even rule, for 4 years or at the most 8 years. Human kings and rulers come and go. But God, the creator is the king, the ruler from this age to the next, He rules eternally, He is the true eternal king. In the darkest and brightest hours in human history, he is the King.

We may have seen this bumper sticker: God is my Co-Pilot. We want to sit on the driver's seat, with God by our side. So when we fly into turbulences, we want him to take over, otherwise, we pilot to where we want. However, if He is the King eternal, then, He is not the co-pilot, He is the pilot.

We know intellectually that He is the King eternal, but do we let Him rule in our lives? To be the king in our lives means He is the king in good times as well as in those rather dark hours. To be the King, he will rule over our moral behavior. We will let him take control of our work situations and career direction. We'll let Him rule over our finances and also our families. He will also be the king, the ruler of this church. When He is the king, ruling in our lives, we are to constantly ask this question: is this pleasing to Him? Is this what He wants me to do or is this what he expects from this church. He is the pilot and not the co-pilot.

  II •  God is the King Immortal.

The word immortal is also translated as incorruptible, imperishable or unchangeable. We don't see too much of this around us. You bought that pair of really cool shoes, shirts or purse. You take good care of it. But a few months or even weeks later, it has lost its newness, it's just another piece of clothing or shoes. They are worn out. You remember the computer you bought two or three years ago. Now it's so outdated, so old. You want a newer, faster one. Human bodies also wear out. We are told that after you turn 18, your body starts to go downhill. For those of us who go overseas once in a while, there was a time, we had little problem with jet lag. Within a few days we were back to normal. But now, it takes one week or even two or more weeks to be fully recovered from the trip. We say our body is not as it was before. We are still trying to discover if there are any genes and proteins that turn on the aging process. If so, then we'll be able to manipulate such genes and proteins that they may turn off this process. We put on creams, inject Botox to remove the wrinkles that cover our face. We want to take the latest recommended vitamin or fruit to slow down the aging process.

But God is immortal. He is incorruptible, He does not change. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Several years ago, through reading Christianity Today, I learned of this artist, Mako Fujimura. In his paintings, God and divinity are always represented by gold and, humanity, by silver. The reason is that gold lasts but silver tarnishes and turns dark with age. In Asia , the Buddha statue is often painted with gold. In Chengde( ??? ) city, near Beijing, many of the temples' roofs are painted with gold. During the WWII, the Japanese soldiers would scrape the temple roof to remove the gold and bringing it home. God is like gold, he is immortal, incorruptible.

How or where do we recognize God's immortality? It is in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In Ps.16:10, king David said, “ For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption.” Then when Jesus was raised from the dead, he was given the eternal and incorruptible body. But note, he is the first one and because of his resurrection, God also gave his children immortal bodies. In 1Corinth 15:42,53 “So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable…..For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.” Because God is immortal, he raised Jesus from the dead so that those who believe in him will also be raised from the dead and have eternal, incorruptible life. This is our hope. In a world where nothing lasts, we have this promise that when we come to faith in God, he will raise us from the dead, giving us that eternal, immortal life.

  III •  God is the King Invisible.

God is invisible, He cannot be seen. 1Tim 6:16 further expands on this truth, “who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see….” He is invisible, yet we all have the desire to see Him. As humans, we want to uncover what is hidden and see the invisible. King David said, Psa 27:4, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” David wanted to see but did not. Moses saw a glimpse of God's glory. Elisha saw the Chariots of Israel but not the God of Israel. Job, after he had lost everything, he wanted to see God, but he did not see God in his life time. In Children's Catechism there is this question: “Can you see God?” Answer, “No, I cannot see God, but he always sees me.”

We cannot see God, yet he is knowable. On Friday morning I noticed a flower pot lying on the ground near the garage door. I knew the wind must have blown it down. I could not see the wind, but I could see its influence. I could not see gravity, but every day I see and know its impact on us. If there is no gravity, then you and I will be floating all over the place. W cannot see the various kinds of electronic waves around me; the Bluetooth, wifi, AT/T, Verizon or T-mobile's network wavelength, but if you turn your cell phones on, we can call out and receive calls. Even though we cannot see the wavelengths, we know they are everywhere in this building.

The same is with God. We cannot see him, yet he made himself known to us. when we see the universe and the nature around us, we know it is the creator's handiwork. When we see the wonder of our body, how brain cells communicate to other cells in our body, we know there is a God who has wonderfully and fearfully created me.

God made himself known by telling us about himself in the Bible, in words that we can understand. And finally, God made himself known through Jesus Christ. John 1:18, “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father 's side, he (Jesus) has made him known. ” Col 1:15, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.” When we see Jesus, we see God.

Yes, God is invisible, but we don't stop here. Job, after he had lost everything, said, Job19:25-27, “ 25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. 26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!”Job knew after his death, his eyes, very own eyes will see God. Apostle John wrote, 1John 3:2, “ 2 Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” And then lastly, if we know God through faith in Jesus Christ, Jesus promised in Matthew 5:8, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” When our hearts are cleansed by his blood, on the day he returns, or when we through death return to Him, we will see him face to face.

IV •  God is the Only King.

God is the eternal king, the immortal king, the invisible king. He is also the Only King. The first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before me.” Deut 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” This is the essence of the Jewish faith. The Lord God is one, therefore, they are to listen to Him. There is no other King besides Him. People may worship many other images, dogmas, or gods, but there is only one true God. This doesn't go well in today's society and culture. We want to be all inclusive, all roads will lead to Rome . But in the Christian world view, this is not so. There is only one God who is the eternal and immortal. Buddha is not a god. The many gods of the Hindu religion are not God. There is only one true God.

We have heard this message on different Sundays in recent months. The question we would always go back to is: besides this true God, the God who is king eternal, immortal, invisible and one and the only one, do we treat anything else as if they are gods in our life? I remember a conversation I once had with a couple. The husband said that he didsn't worship any gods. Upon hearing this, the wife shot back, “but you worship money.” How would people who know us well will say? You worship money; you worship your job, you worship your ministry, you worship your family or you worship yourself.

From time to time you have asked, how can we have a deeper spiritual life? Or how can we experience a deeper relationship with God? Or how can we experience a deeper spiritual reality? It is a difficult question to ask. For in trying to answer, I may be revealing my own spiritual poverty. However, lately I wonder in our search for spiritual reality, shouldn't we first examine to see are there any other things that we are worshipping? Is there anything that we have unknowingly treated as God? Has money, family or career taken the place of God in our lives? Who or what are you worshipping nowadays? Is it not true that the first step to restore that spiritual reality, that deeper relationship with God is to acknowledge Him as the only God in our lives?

Conclusion:

  It is always encouraging and refreshing to see how young men and women follow Christ. Their expression of faith in God is different from mine, but their love for God is unmistakably clear. Some of them would be trained to share the gospel with strangers in the shopping malls or on the bus. This past week I read about the University of Florida 's quarterback, Tim Tebow, a Heisman winner. He and his mom will be featured in a 30 seconds ad in next week's Super Bowl football game. (We want to pray that this ad will be aired on TV as originally planned.) However, what caught my attention is his Christian faith.

   When he's not wearing shoulder pads and his famous eyes-black interlaced with Bible verses, Tebow is also shining off the field. During his college career, he spent spring breaks and summers ministering to orphans in the Philippines . Meanwhile, on free weekends, you could often find him behind bars, reaching out to prisoners. Here is a young man who has his priorities in the right places. He is under the rule of the king eternal.

When Paul reflected upon his life, he saw his corruption and being the chief among the sinners. Yet God in His great mercy reached down to him and saved him from God's wrath. Not only that, he was appointed as Jesus' apostle. As he was struck by this mercy, love and grace, he burst out in praise. He offered all honor and glory to God. Honor is the respect and reverence God deserves. To give God glory is to testify, to acknowledge He is the glorious one. To say he is great and important, or literally, he is heavy. And in Paul's praise, he tells us that God is the king eternal, king immortal, king invisible and the Only King.

  Isn't it true that as we look at our own lives, seeing how God has reached down to a sinner like you and me, we, too, can't help but burst out in praise? Shall we pray: