Glory To God
“Whether therefore you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God.” —1 Corinthians 10:31
At the heart of the Christian life lies a question of purpose: Why are we here? Thomas Aquinas, one of the Church’s great theological minds, answers with stunning clarity and depth. He teaches that we exist to glorify God—not because God needs our praise, but because in glorifying Him, we are drawn into our highest joy and deepest fulfillment. That is, an abiding relationship with God where experience his presence and participate in his will.
Aquinas teaches that “man’s ultimate happiness consists in the contemplation of God, which is an act of the intellect” (Summa Theologiae, I-II, Q.3, a.5). This contemplation is not abstract theology or cold study, but a vibrant, relational knowing of God—a seeing of His beauty that surpasses all earthly pleasure. Aquinas says, that humanity was made to rest in God, to gaze upon His majesty, and to delight in His truth. That end, the beatific vision, is the crown of Christian hope.
But how do we begin to glorify God now, while we walk in the world of shadows and struggle? Aquinas helps us here too. He writes, “The more a man is united to God, the more he shares in His goodness, and the more he glorifies Him” (ST, II-II, Q.81, a.1). To glorify God, then, is to reflect His goodness in our ordinary lives—by loving our neighbors, acting justly, pursuing holiness, and ordering our desires toward Him. These are the very things we have heard Jesus teach in the Sermon on the Mount.
God’s glory is not a distant, lofty concept. It is revealed in the parent who faithfully prays, the worker who acts with integrity, the friend who forgives when it hurts, and the disciple who seeks God through their day. Each of these moments, offered in love, demonstrates God’s greatness to the world.
It’s also crucial to remember that we glorify God not by adding to His perfection, but by participating in it. Aquinas distinguishes between God’s essential glory—which He possesses eternally and immutably—and the glory we give Him by our recognition and worship. God is not glorified because He is lacking, but because He is overflowing. His love draws us in, transforms us, and then sends us out as bearers of His light.
In this way, glorifying God is both a calling and a gift. We cannot attain it by effort alone; we need grace. Yet, by grace, our whole lives can become doxology—a song of praise to the One who made us, saved us, and abides with us.
To live for God’s glory, then, is to live for what is most real and most beautiful. It is to echo the prayer of Jesus: “Father, glorify Your name” (John 12:28). And it is to prepare our hearts for that final day, when we shall see Him as He is, and rejoice with unending wonder in the fullness of His glory.