In Romans 11:36 we read, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” What an amazing statement. Then to read almost the same words in 1 Corinthians 8:6, “yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” What does this mean for the human race today?
“FOR FROM HIM.”
God is the source of all that exists in today’s world. Humans have cleverly manufactured many products but they have used existing materials to do so. Scientifically that is recognised in what is called The law of conservation of energy. This states that “energy can neither be created nor destroyed – only converted from one form of energy to another.” Humans may be able to harness all the different elements that constitute the human body, but they cannot breathe life into them to form a human. That is God’s prerogative alone.
“AND THROUGH HIM.”
The universe came into being through God’s initiative in His words and actions. In fact, the Bible shows that His Son Jesus was His instrument in creating the universe. For example, we read in the Gospel of John, these words, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.“ John 1:1-3. John then shows that this Word was Jesus as he wrote in the same chapter, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14.
St Paul echoed the same truth when he wrote of Jesus, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.“ Colossians1:15-17.
The writer of Hebrews also wrote of Jesus, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” Hebrews 1:1-2.
The whole universe and we ourselves as individuals owe our origin to Him.
“AND TO HIM ARE ALL THINGS.”
Humans were created for a purpose! God’s purpose!
The Bible makes it clear that God created humans and that He created them for His glory. Therefore, the ultimate purpose of humans, is simply to glorify God. God did not create us to bring glory to the creation, but to the Creator. “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” (Isaiah 43:7). We are created to do everything to the glory of God. Since God has created us for His glory, we are to glorify God in all that we do with our lives. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
We need to recognise that we belong to God in a twofold way. We are His by right of creation and we are His by right of redemption. That is brought out by St Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” And in 2 Corinthians 5:14, “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”
What a privilege it was to know, when we chose to give our lives to God, that He had already chosen us to belong to Him, to the praise of His glory, “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:11–12).
The question every human must answer is this, “Am I living my life to the glory of God and fulfilling His purpose for me, or am I living my life for my own purposes?
The right answer to the question brings us from spiritual death to eternal life in this life and the assurance of eventually being with our believing loved ones in His presence in glory forever.
The wrong answer to the question unfortunately brings very bad news. It means we remain spiritually dead in this life and miss out on the life God could have brought us. Worse still there ultimately awaits a life in the absence of any goodness and the absence of Christ’s presence, forever.
BUT WAIT! The Christian gospel has good news for those who will receive it. Such people will see the need to repent for living life apart from God and not seeking to glorify Him in their lives. Repentance means a change of mind accompanied by a change in behaviour. The change in behaviour comes as we yield our lives to God and ask for His forgiveness and His gift of eternal life. Then we will know the truth of St Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” God is the Creator. But He can also bring about a new creation, in which every believer has become a new creature in Christ.
May it be so, to the glory of God! And to our benefit!
Blog No.569 posted on Tuesday 25 March 2025.
holbeck 
569. OUR GOD IS THE SOURCE, INSTRUMENT AND DESTINATION OF ALL THINGS. Romans 11:36 and 1 Corinthians 8:6.
In Romans 11:36 we read, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” What an amazing statement. Then to read almost the same words in 1 Corinthians 8:6, “yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” What does this mean for the human race today?
“FOR FROM HIM.”
God is the source of all that exists in today’s world. Humans have cleverly manufactured many products but they have used existing materials to do so. Scientifically that is recognised in what is called The law of conservation of energy. This states that “energy can neither be created nor destroyed – only converted from one form of energy to another.” Humans may be able to harness all the different elements that constitute the human body, but they cannot breathe life into them to form a human. That is God’s prerogative alone.
“AND THROUGH HIM.”
The universe came into being through God’s initiative in His words and actions. In fact, the Bible shows that His Son Jesus was His instrument in creating the universe. For example, we read in the Gospel of John, these words, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.“ John 1:1-3. John then shows that this Word was Jesus as he wrote in the same chapter, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14.
St Paul echoed the same truth when he wrote of Jesus, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.“ Colossians1:15-17.
The writer of Hebrews also wrote of Jesus, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” Hebrews 1:1-2.
The whole universe and we ourselves as individuals owe our origin to Him.
“AND TO HIM ARE ALL THINGS.”
Humans were created for a purpose! God’s purpose!
The Bible makes it clear that God created humans and that He created them for His glory. Therefore, the ultimate purpose of humans, is simply to glorify God. God did not create us to bring glory to the creation, but to the Creator. “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” (Isaiah 43:7). We are created to do everything to the glory of God. Since God has created us for His glory, we are to glorify God in all that we do with our lives. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
We need to recognise that we belong to God in a twofold way. We are His by right of creation and we are His by right of redemption. That is brought out by St Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” And in 2 Corinthians 5:14, “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”
What a privilege it was to know, when we chose to give our lives to God, that He had already chosen us to belong to Him, to the praise of His glory, “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:11–12).
The question every human must answer is this, “Am I living my life to the glory of God and fulfilling His purpose for me, or am I living my life for my own purposes?
The right answer to the question brings us from spiritual death to eternal life in this life and the assurance of eventually being with our believing loved ones in His presence in glory forever.
The wrong answer to the question unfortunately brings very bad news. It means we remain spiritually dead in this life and miss out on the life God could have brought us. Worse still there ultimately awaits a life in the absence of any goodness and the absence of Christ’s presence, forever.
BUT WAIT! The Christian gospel has good news for those who will receive it. Such people will see the need to repent for living life apart from God and not seeking to glorify Him in their lives. Repentance means a change of mind accompanied by a change in behaviour. The change in behaviour comes as we yield our lives to God and ask for His forgiveness and His gift of eternal life. Then we will know the truth of St Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” God is the Creator. But He can also bring about a new creation, in which every believer has become a new creature in Christ.
May it be so, to the glory of God! And to our benefit!
Blog No.569 posted on Tuesday 25 March 2025.
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About Jim Holbeck
Once an Industrial Chemist working for the Queensland Government but later an Anglican minister in Brisbane, Armidale and Sydney. Last position for eighteen years before retirement in 2006 was as the Leader of the Healing Ministry at St Andrew's Cathedral Sydney.