How to Give God the Glory in Living

Author: Michael Gott

After you have received the Lord Jesus as your Savior, it is vital that you glorify God in your life. We are to be captured with the lifelong desire to bring honor and praise to His name. “Glory to God in the highest . . .” said the Christmas angels (Luke 2:14).

God is glorified each time we bow before Jesus and confess Him as Lord (please read Philippians 2:9-11). Let me suggest some very practical ways to continue to glorify God.

• Aim your life for that purpose—from the biggest things to the smallest. Jesus did this too; He said so in John 8:50. And Paul did this as well; he said so in I Corinthians 10:31. In all things let this be the purpose of your life.
  
  Things which glorify God are things which show the character of God – such as love, mercy, goodness, holiness – to others through you. They observe you and glorify Him. We are to desire to exalt God through Jesus Christ in all we do and say.
  
• Stay clean for that purpose—Stay close to God, and that is impossible with a long list of things that you have never asked God to forgive. Never excuse your sins. Here is what we must do. When we do wrong things, never blame anyone else. We admit it is all our fault and ask for forgiveness.
  
• Act in faith for that purpose—To glorify God, we must be strong in faith. So, God is glorified when we trust Him. Realize, doubt is caused when we question God, but, conversely, when we believe in Him, and when we rest in confidence in Him – He is glorified. Trusting Him.
  
• Bring forth fruit for that purpose—Remember, Jesus said that very thing to us. Read it in John 15:8. Notice, “. . . bring forth much fruit.” We are to be filled with the fruits of righteousness (Philippians 1:11). But also, fruit is good works – living a life of good works brings God glory (Colossians 1:10).
  
• Live in a spirit of praise for that purpose—The Lord says,

  . . . true praise is a worthy sacrifice; this really honors me . . .    Psalm 50:23

  Offer praise to God by telling others the good things He has done for you. Speak of “. . . the wonderful works of God” (Acts 2:11). That is, give God credit for everything including your accomplishments.

• Be willing to suffer for Him for that purpose—Peter said,

  Be happy if you are cursed and insulted for being a Christian . . . it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege . . .    I Peter 4:14, 16

  When we suffer for being a Christian and do so with courage and patience, we glorify God. This is an honor that brings reward in eternity.

• Pray for that purpose—With our praying we will bring God glory. Let me explain. First, in your prayers actually tell God how you honor Him. Second, Jesus promised God will answer our prayers. For this reason,

  “. . . that the Father may be glorified in the Son    John 14:13

  Remember, when God answers, it is common for people to explain, “Praise the Lord!” God displays His glory and gets the glory when He answers prayer. So He gains glory.

• Proclaim God’s word for that purpose—God wants to communicate to men – when we speak it in humility, He is glorified. For example,

  Pray first that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and triumph . . .    II Thessalonians 3:1

  In Acts 13 we are told that when people heard the word of God spoken, “they were glad and glorified the word of God.” That is, they gave glory to God. You honor Him when you speak His word. Please do it.

• Give testimony for that purpose—Relate to others that He has become personally real to you by repentance and faith. Michael Green, a well known Christian evangelist in England, reminds us of the power of Christians’ telling their story. He says, “. . . it is intriguing. It always is to hear someone else’s experience. It is delightful . . . what is more, it is easy to do. We can all speak about ourselves and our experience . . . so why should we find it difficult to say that our greatest discovery in life has been that Jesus is alive and can be met?”

  “That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ...    Ephesians 1:12

  And again,

  . . . unto the praise of his glory.    Ephesians 1:14

  You became a believer to give God glory – that is the purpose of your existence and the reason you are a Christian. So give an open witness of what He has done for you. It will give Him glory!

• Bring others to Him for that purpose—God gets glory when others turn to Christ and come to know Him like you have. The Bible speaks of this,

  . . . the more of you who are won to Christ, the more there are to thank him for his great kindness, and the more the Lord is glorified.    II Corinthians 4:15

  Think of it; one person comes to Christ – that person praises God, others of us praise God for His conversion, and the praise spreads so that thousands may praise God for one conversion. So, help others come to Christ – it brings glory to God.

• Show contentment for that purpose—In our world full of discontented people it is a welcome relief to meet happy, contented people. Paul testified,

  . . . I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.    Philippians 4:11

  Your situation may not be pleasant, and all things might not be good, but in the Lord show great contentment. Bless the Lord; He is a good god, and He really can be trusted and followed in life. Therefore, show contentment to others. David said,

  The Lord himself is my inheritance, my prize.    Psalm 16:5

  In our situation, praising God means that we praise Him with a full heart and with absolute contentment, knowing that God is caring for us – we give Him glory.

• Let love reign for that purpose—The world is full of discord and division. God wants us to love each other. By doing this, those without Christ will know that we belong to Jesus. Our example of love makes an impact. Paul pictured the whole church of new believers, and he reminded them of the powerful witness of love between them.

  That you may with one mind and one mouth glorify God . . .    Romans 16:5

  So, by our unity we bring Him honor and glory.

Top of Page