A few centuries ago, reformers like Martin Luther challenged the teachings of the Catholic church. He felt their abuses did more harm than good. Luther developed what became known as the five solas, including faith alone, Christ alone, and Scripture alone. One of the solas is Soli Deo Gloria, which means “glory to God alone.” Soli Deo Gloria teaches that all glory belongs to God, not to the church, religious leaders, or human ability. God alone deserves worship and honor in every area of life—faith, salvation, and daily living.
From this encouragement to live for God’s glory rather than fame or human recognition, artists like Johann Sebastian Bach would inscribe “SDG” on his compositions, dedicating his work to God.
Let's explore more about what it means to give all glory to God.
What is Glory?
The Bible defines “glory” as the weighty and radiant presence of God, his importance, and the honor due him. The Old Testament uses the Hebrew word kavod for glory. Kavod literally means “weight” or “heaviness,” but in context, the Scripture connects it with honor and significance. Here, we can think of God’s glory as the only substance, the only person of importance, and therefore all honor and praise are due to him. Exodus 24:17 describes God’s glory as a “consuming fire” on Mount Sinai. When the seraphim praise God in the Temple (Isaiah 6:3), they declare, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” God’s glory fills all creation. God is reality, and all we see exists from him.
In the New Testament, we translate the Greek word doxa to glory. For the Greeks, it originally meant reputation, honor, and illumination. The Christians used doxa to represent the divine, exalting God. Paul uses doxa to describe God’s glory revealed in and through Jesus. The writer of Hebrews calls Christ “the radiance of the glory of God” because Jesus fully lived out the Father’s character, message, and presence. The New Testament word for glory reveals how God’s presence radiates and enlightens.
God’s glory ascribes to him the only substance, importance, and reality. His substance enlightens and informs all creation. Therefore, he is due all honor and praise.
To give God glory means to recognize his worth and value in our lives. We love him wholeheartedly because he is worthy—and no one else is.
Why Does God Alone Deserve Glory?
The world gives glory (value and praise) to great leaders or those with fame. However, the Bible makes it clear—only God deserves glory. Anything else that seeks glory apart from God is a lie and an idol.
First, God alone gets glory because he created all things and sustains them with his power. Nothing exists apart from him. In Revelation 4:11, the 24 elders worship God on the throne saying, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” No human can claim to self-exist. Any human achievement relies upon God’s goodness and work. Idolatry is giving worship and glory to anything other than God (Isaiah 42:8), whether spiritual beings, humanity, or the work of our own hands in any respect. The Lord created all things with a purpose: to give him glory. God can’t share his majesty and glory with anyone or anything.
Second, God is truth, and he can’t agree with a lie. He is holy and perfect in all his ways. Humans sin and fall short; we are flawed and faulty. God remains pure, righteous, and just. Hannah prays to God in 1 Samuel 2:2, “There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.” Since he is completely holy, set apart from everything else, he alone deserves to be praised and honored. This truth brings life. Lies destroy. To deny God’s glory is to deny our own purpose and design, a self-destructive act.
Third, in order to live in truth, all things must point back to God’s glory. Paul writes to the church, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31) Even ordinary actions can reflect the awesomeness of God. Paul also makes this powerful declaration in Romans 11:36, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” Everything originates from God. He sustains all things. And everything returns back to him.
How Will God’s Glory Cover the Earth?
As we said, God created all things with a purpose: to glorify him. However, through the Fall of humanity, sin and corruption entered the universe. That disobedience leads to death, or what we call entropy. All things devolve into chaos and death. This wasn’t the original design.
God enacted a redemptive story to restore the original purpose for his creation. Through Christ, he establishes his Kingdom, dwells with his people, and removes the corruption from creation, making way for all people and things to once again give him glory.
The Bible prophesies this final culmination. Habakkuk 2:14 says, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” This verse expresses the inescapable reality and future. God will be glorified again through the earth, just like the waters cover the oceans. Similar declarations exist in Numbers 14:21, where God says, “But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of God.” Israel had rebelled, but God connects his very existence with the future promise. His glory will cover the earth.
Only God can do this. In the original design, through Adam and Eve, they had to rely completely upon God’s power and relationship. God meant for them to act on mission in partnership with him. The first humans lost this through their sin.
But God had another plan all along, established before the beginning of the world (Revelation 13:8). He was going to glorify himself through the only way that would work—himself. He sent his Son, and the Father glorifies himself through the Son by the Spirit. “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) In John 17:1-5, Jesus prays for the Father to be glorified through the Son. Through all of Christ’s work, he brought the opportunity to participate in God’s self-glorification through the Son (John 12:28).
Revelation describes this as fulfilled in the future. After chapters of judgment and disturbing imagery, Jesus returns and sets everything right. All who followed him become part of his eternal kingdom on earth. Regarding the New Jerusalem (God’s born again people), John says, “The city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.” The glory of God will fill the earth and be the source of all light and life. We won’t need lamps or the sun for God will be the light forever (22:5).
How Do We Participate in Glorifying God?
Adam and Eve’s mission was to have children and bring the earth under the Lord’s dominion. In other words, to fill the earth with his glory. God didn’t give up on that design or plan. His ways are the best. His redemptive plan restores that purpose to us through Christ, the new Adam.
First, since God is glorifying himself through the Son, we must repent and be one with Christ. Over 300 times, the New Testament encourages us to be “in Christ.” Jesus’ death and resurrection allow us to once again have a right relationship with the Father through the Son. Along with being in Christ, Jesus gives us his Spirit. He dwells within us by faith and grace, empowering us and living through us. We can then glorify God from the Spirit within us. Through walking in the Spirit, we align ourselves today with what will be manifest in the end—the whole world full of his glory.
Practically, we begin by obeying him. If we love God and seek to glorify him, then we keep his commandments (John 14:15). When we obey the Word of God, our actions bring him glory. These actions then point others to God, drawing them to the Father. What we say, act, and how we treat others should reflect God’s love and power.
Second, we worship God with our praise. “Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!” (Psalm 95:6) Worship begins in the heart, our whole being devoted to God. As Jesus notes the change when talking with the woman at the well (John 4:24), “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” We begin with sincerity and love, understanding from the heart God’s precious value and reality. From that whole-heartedness, worship and praise expresses our love, submission, and thankfulness to God.
Third, prayer glorifies God, as well. God sent his Son as the model, and Jesus continually intercedes before the Father and the throne on our behalf. Jesus is now the forever High Priest. As the example of what glorifies God, we follow Jesus in praying in his name. Prayer expresses the truth: all good things come from God. Only God can change anything. We then pray about everything, bringing our needs and requests before him with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6). We give him glory when we humbly place our dependence upon God in prayer.
How Does Giving Glory to God Benefit Us?
Have you ever done something (used a talent or gift), and thought, “I was born to do this!” A feeling of contentment and meaning comes with living according to our design. God designed us for a purpose, and when we fulfill that, we experience deep satisfaction and joy, now and in the life to come. Anything that doesn’t glorify God becomes empty and meaningless. When we repent of our own sin and selfishness, and we glorify God, we live as we were created to live. Our lives find true meaning when we honor him. As Jesus said, “If you seek to save your life, you’ll lose it; but if you lose your life for my sake, you’ll find it.”
Along with purpose and meaning, we live in peace and love. Living for God’s glory means we reject our own self-centeredness and worry. Instead of striving for our own lives, we rest in his plan and power. “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3). God actively grants us eternal peace and joy, a secure hope no one can take away because its source isn’t of this world.
We also get practical blessings in this life. God honors those who honor him. He provides for our needs, guides us in wisdom, and blesses us with his favor. “No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” (Psalm 84:11) When we glorify God with our lives, he guides us into his best for us and others. This doesn’t mean he’ll make us rich or wealthy or famous. God promises to provide for our needs if we seek him first (Matthew 6:33). Further, all things will work out for good for those who love him and seek his ways (Romans 8:28).
Finally, as we mentioned earlier, our greatest reward for glorifying God will be to live eternally in his presence, reigning with him forever and existing in his glory.
Peace.
Photo credit: Unsplash/Jametlene Reskp
