After hitting a home run or scoring a touchdown have you ever seen an athlete point to the sky? Or maybe you’ve seen a grammy award winner give thanks to God and those who helped her along the way. Whether they really realized it or not, all these people are in effect saying that the ability that they have comes from above.
The fifth and final solas is Soli Deo Gloria, or “Glory to God Alone.” This recognizes that the whole of salvation, or being in a right relationship with God, is from Him alone and completely apart from our works. All glory is due to God. The Westminister Shorter Catechism says: “What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.”
When this slogan was used during the reformation, and even today, the Roman Catholic church saw life as divided into the sacred and the secular. They saw the work that the pope and the priests did throughout the week as spiritual and to be praised, but the rest of our menial work was not really glorifying or pleasing to God.
But in actuality, the Bible says something completely different about our lives. According to 1 Corinthians 10.31 all that we do in our work or our day to day lives can be done for the glory of God. Whether it is shining shoes, bar tending, teaching a class or running a Fortune 500 company, all of our life can be pleasing to God if you believing in him as your Savior.
In his book, Don’t Waste Your Life, John Piper says, “Desire that your life count for something great! Long for your life to have eternal significance. Want this? Don’t coast through life without passion.” According to Christianity, the greatest thing to live for and be passionate about is the man who split time in two, Jesus Christ. If you say that you are a Christian, how do you glorify God in your life?
