How to Glorify God

1 Corinthians 10:31
So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

If you have been in a Bible-believing, Bible-preaching church for long, I’m sure you have heard that verse quoted or taught in some way, shape, or form. Maybe you were told this by a biblical counselor or a mentor, or maybe just by a Christian friend, to encourage you to live for God in specific areas of your life. Maybe it was even in a Sunday sermon, calling us as believers to give glory to God in all that we do. The command to “do all to the glory of God” is what we’ll be looking at together today, and my goal is to address the difficulty of explaining this command, the purpose of it, and how God helps us to obey it. I think this can be one of the harder commands to practically apply and grow in, but it is an essential part of being a child of God.

Even though I’ve heard 1 Corinthians 10:31 countless times, I have often found it hard to know how to “do all to the glory of God.” I understand that that phrase can be equated to “give God glory” or just “glorify God,” but I think part of my struggle with knowing how to apply this command to my life is because that verb “to glorify” is rarely used outside of Christian circles. Even among Christians, I know I’m not alone in finding it hard to truly define this verb, let alone what this command means for the different areas of my life. Yet all throughout Scripture we see the call to “give God glory”:

Psalm 72:18-19
Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does marvelous deeds.
Praise be to his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.

Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

1 Corinthians 6:20
For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Revelation 14:7
And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

So how do we know what it actually means to “glorify God,” to give Him glory? Oxford Languages lists one of its definitions of the verb “to glorify” as to “acknowledge and reveal the majesty and splendor of (God) by one's actions.” Merriam-Webster’s defines “to glorify” as “to make glorious by bestowing honor, praise, or admiration.” Taking into account these dictionary definitions, we can conclude that at least part of glorifying God involves us using our actions to make God known and honored. However, when you take into account the verses I’ve already shared today, I believe a biblical understanding of how to obey this command involves honoring God and making Him known by everything about us: in the way we eat or drink, the way we relate to others, the way we take care of our bodies, the way we speak and think, and how we view life and the world around us.

This is not a light or easy command to obey, but it’s also not a take-it-or-leave-it command either. It can seem overwhelming and even impossible to know how to apply a command like this to our lives, but our God does not give us impossible tasks. He has equipped us to obey Him, which means He has also equipped us to grow in glorifying Him in all we do.

2 Corinthians 3:18
So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

This verse from 2 Corinthians is written in the context of Paul instructing the believers of Corinth on how they are not like Moses, who had to veil his face to protect the Israelites from the reflection of God’s glory (3:13-15). Now, all who are saved by faith in Christ can see and reflect the glory of our great God! God has given us His Spirit to make us more and more into the image of our Lord, Jesus Christ, so that we may reflect Him and bring Him glory. What a blessing and a privilege! This salvation and relationship with the Lord restores us back to the original purpose God had for human beings:

Genesis 1:26-27
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.

My purpose, your purpose, humanity’s purpose, is to reflect the image of God to the world around us and bring glory to Him. We were created to acknowledge Him, to praise the works of His hand, to show Him honor and admiration. But how do we, as sinful, flawed people, successfully live that way? Even with God’s Spirit in us, what does it look like to glorify God in all we do?

Well, part of it does include praising Him with our words in worship (think of songs or Psalms of praise). But it also involves us honoring Him in how we speak to and treat others, what we think quietly to ourselves, and the way we view the mundane tasks in our lives. It means choosing to give thanks instead of joining in the complaining at work. It looks like publicly acknowledging God’s work in your life when given compliments about something you’ve accomplished. It requires us to pursue living righteously, even if that means giving up some fun things. It involves us always seeking to do what’s right and not just what’s easy or feels good. Take a look at these two different verses from Colossians:

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Colossians 3:23
Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

We are God’s image-bearers, His representatives! In order to obey the command to glorify God in all we do, we need to start by asking His Spirit to give us the desire to live this way—to live as a representative of the Lord Jesus, to work willingly (or “heartily”) at whatever task is required of us. I have tried to make it part of my regular prayer routine to ask God to first give me a desire to change and grow, and then to ask for His help in obeying. When it comes to this area of how to glorify God, I’ve realized that He is so faithful to answer those prayers, because this is what He desires for me (Luke 11:9-13). It’s what is truly best for me!

As I continue to study the book of Psalms in my daily time in the Word, I’ve learned that one way to start glorifying God more is by talking more about Him and what He has done for me in conversation with others, rather than just talking about myself and what I’ve been doing. The Psalms are full of praises to God for His mighty works and marvelous deeds, and I want to be better at following that model in my own life. As I’ve studied God’s Word and come under sound biblical teaching at my church, I’ve also learned how keeping my priorities in check is a great way to glorify God in my daily schedule. Can people see that I love and serve God by looking at how I spend my time? Or does my planner reveal my selfish desires? Another lesson I’ve learned is by studying the life of Jesus: my need to humble myself and not seek to be recognized. We live in a culture where we’re told to fight for what we deserve or have earned, and that we should be recognized for our efforts. Choosing not to act and react in those ways to the situations around us really makes us stand out and look different. What a great way we can point others to our Savior, the Lord of our lives!

Please hear me, friend, I am not perfect at glorifying God in everything I do, or even at thinking about how to glorify Him throughout my day. But the more I seek to apply the commands found in Scripture to my life, the more I see how He is the One who will enable me to keep growing in sanctification. I can lean into Him and ask for His help, and He is so faithful to grow me through that. To end this topic, I want to leave you with a couple of verses explaining why we should seek to bring bring glory to God in all we do:

Romans 11:36
For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.

Revelation 4:11
“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”

God calls us to glorify Him in everything we do, because everything we are able to do comes from Him. We are to glorify Him because He created all things, and all things were created by Him for His glory. Everything exists by His power and is intended for His glory. When we remember our purpose is to represent God in every part of our lives, we can have faith that our God will equip us to fulfill that purpose as we seek Him and grow in obedience.

The final post in this series on application of common commands found in Scripture will be over forgiveness. I look forward to digging through that command found throughout Scripture together, and I want to thank you again for taking the time to support this newsletter by listening or reading. If there are ever any questions or topics you’d like to see answered or discussed in Speaking Truth, please respond to this email, post a comment, or reach out to me directly. Praying for you to seek God’s glory this week!