Soli Deo Gloria

Have you ever experienced someone else getting the credit for something you did? How did that make you feel? Way back in my college days, a group of us college students were traveling back to the college one Wednesday evening after doing a music ministry in a church in a neighboring town. As we approached our college town there was a sharp curve. As we entered the curve, an on-coming van started to lose control swerving into our lane, just missing us head-on. Over-correcting, the van swerved back into the opposite lane and then back into our lane right behind our car. A deafening crash sound occurred and the lights from the vehicle behind us went dark.

Making a quick U-turn, we discovered that the van had hit a chartered bus behind head-on causing the bus to land in the ditch with the van under it. Sadly the driver of the van was killed instantly. The bus was so damaged that the only way for the 40-woman lacrosse team from Wisconsin State to get out was through the side windows. We four college guys went to work rescuing the whole team through the windows as the front of the bus caught fire and eventually exploded into a fiery furnace. We were able to help the team up to a farmhouse a few hundred yards away where they received medical attention when the first responders arrived.

The next day, the frontpage headline of the local paper outlined how the couple who lived in the farmhouse had opened their home and rescued the team from the aftermath of the accident. There was no mention of the four college students that risked their lives rescuing the team from a burning bus! It was one of the first times in my life that I felt the sting of not be appreciated while someone else got the adulation.

It was the first of many times that the truth of I Corinthians 10:31 has impacted my life! “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (ESV). While it was true that the journalist at the Owatonna Press should have done a more accurate job in reporting the heroic acts of all those involved, none of us engaged in what we thought were “heroic acts.” None of us had moved into action for the praise and glory we might gain. It was just the right thing to do, and it was also an opportunity for four young men heading into vocational ministry to apply the awesome truth of living life for God’s glory rather than our own. The Latin phrase that summarizes this human flourishing truth is Soli Deo Gloria which translated means, “glory to God alone.”

As human beings who bear the image of God, we all have the same “doxological” purpose: to live for the glory of God alone! Our ultimate joy as His image bearers, our ultimate pleasure as His creations and our ultimate purpose and meaning in life is to give Him the attention for which He is worthy. Sadly many sell their souls for the momentary praise of others--for the momentary desire to be the smartest, prettiest, richest or whatever “est”! When we do so, we sacrifice the purpose for which we were made!

The term that is translated “glory” in I Corinthians 10:31 is a word from which we get our liturgical word “doxology.” In the New Testament time, the word was used to describe the spark that would fly off of a heated piece of metal when the blacksmith would hit the metal to shape it into a useful tool. The spark caught the attention of the passerby, much like a flashing red light does for emergency vehicles in our day. There is no greater satisfaction for humanity than to bring attention to the One who created us and died for us that we might have forgiveness, friendship, and a restored family relationship with our God forever!