The great end or goal of all of life and existence is the glory of God. God created everyone and everything in this universe for His own glory. In this final article on the solas of the Reformation, we will consider the motto Soli Deo Gloria (glory to God alone) in two areas, namely, salvation and worship.
Glory to God Alone in Salvation
Since salvation is by the grace of God and not the works of man (Eph. 2:8-9), God alone should have all the glory, not man. Elsewhere in Romans 3:27-28, the Apostle Paul wrote, “Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law (or principle) of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”
The Protestant doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone gives God alone all the glory. The Roman Catholic doctrine of justification by grace through faith plus human works or merit not only contradicts Scripture but fails to give God alone all the glory. If man’s works or merit contribute in some way to his salvation, then at least some glory must go to man, and man would have some reason to boast of his salvation. But according to the Apostle Paul, ALL boasting by man is excluded.
Sadly though, there are some (perhaps many?) who claim to be Protestant but who have not really understood the implications of Soli Deo Gloria in the area of salvation. Many years ago, I had a friendly debate with someone who did not agree with the Five Points of Calvinism. When I asked him how he could account for the fact that some people who hear the gospel believe and are saved while others who hear the same gospel do not believe and perish in their sins, he said that we all make choices in life and our choices have consequences, whether good or bad. This is also true in the area of salvation. The person who chose to believe the gospel made the right choice whereas the person who chose not to believe made the wrong choice and he would have to suffer the consequences of it for all eternity.
I then asked him why a person would choose to believe the gospel and whether his choice to believe makes him a better or wiser person than the one who chose not to believe. As far as I remember, he was somewhat non-committal in his reply, but the conclusion was inevitable. If a person’s choice to believe is what ultimately makes the difference between him and an unbeliever, then without doubt, he is the wiser and better person at least in that one particular decision – a decision with eternal consequences. And if that is true, then he can rightly claim the credit for himself in making that right decision and boast about it for all eternity. The glory for his salvation would not belong entirely to God for some of it would have to go to the man himself.
However, if that man’s choice to believe in the gospel may be traced back to the sovereign grace of God, then all glory would indeed go to God alone. Dr RC Sproul wrote, “What Reformed theology teaches is that it is true the believer makes the right response and the non-believer makes the wrong response. But the reason the believer makes the good response is because God in His sovereign election changes the disposition of the heart of the elect to effect a good response. I can take no credit for the response that I made for Christ. God not only initiated my salvation, He not only sowed the seed, but He made sure that that seed germinated in my heart by regenerating me by the power of the Holy Ghost.”
And so it is the Reformed or Calvinistic Doctrine of salvation, in contrast to Roman Catholicism and Arminianism, that gives to God all the glory in salvation.
Next, let’s consider Soli Deo Gloria in the area of worship.
Glory to God Alone in Worship
Worship is both a duty and a privilege, and it is the most important thing that we will ever do whether in this life or in the life to come. Sadly though, there is a great deal of indifference and ignorance among Christians and Churches today with regard to this all-important subject. Many have never given sufficient thought to the question of how God is to be rightly worshipped. Yet others have so gotten into the routine and habit of worship that they no longer give any conscious thought to what they are doing in worship and why they are doing it. It is important for all involved in Christian worship, whether ministers or lay persons, to be well instructed and regularly reminded of the nature, importance and manner of worship so that the worship that is offered week after week will be truly meaningful to them, and even more importantly, truly glorifying to the One who is worshipped.
The most important single statement in the Bible concerning worship is found in the conversation between the Lord Jesus and the Samaritan woman. Jesus said to her, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
The phrase “worship him in spirit” conveys several thoughts. First, it means that we must worship God in a way that is consistent with His character and nature. God is a Spirit and thus it is a great sin to use images and other representations of God in worship, whether inwardly in our minds or outwardly (Deut. 4:15-19). Second, it means that worship must be done in the power and enablement of the Holy Spirit. Natural men have neither the ability nor willingness to worship the true and living God. It takes nothing less than the Holy Spirit’s work of animating, motivating, and guiding men in worship for true worship to take place. Third, it means that worship is concerned not just with the external actions and form but with the heart and mind as well. Those who focus only on the externals of worship fail to worship God in spirit.
As for the phrase “worship him in truth,” it likewise conveys more than one thought. First, it means that worship must be done in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 14:6, Jesus identifies Himself as the truth and He goes on to say that no man can come to the Father except through Him. Second, it means that worship must be according to God’s will as revealed in His Word. John 17:17 identifies the word as truth. Only God has the right to determine what truth is and what true worship looks like. Without God’s revelation, no man will be able to worship God aright. This is true prior to the fall and this is especially true after the fall.
The regulative principle of worship may be set forth in three simple propositions. First, whatever is commanded by God in Scripture concerning worship is required. Second, whatever is forbidden by God in Scripture concerning worship is prohibited. Third, whatever is not commanded by God in Scripture concerning worship is forbidden.
Practically all Christians would agree with the first two statements but many will take issue with the third. They would replace it with: whatever is not forbidden by God in Scripture concerning worship is permitted.
During the time of the Reformation, these two approaches to worship were found in the two leading characters of the Reformation – Martin Luther and John Calvin. Horton Davis explains, “Luther will have what is not specifically condemned by the Scriptures; whilst Calvin will have only what is ordained by God in the Scriptures…Luther would admit in his worship any liturgical elements that were not inconsistent with the teaching in the Bible. Calvin would only accept what the Bible specifically warranted. If the Bible was the revealed will of God, he contended, then only Biblical ordinances could be acceptable to God. Human additions were therefore to be utterly abhorred, for God had made known his will in the Scriptures.”
Later on during the Reformation in England, the Anglicans took up Luther’s position on worship whereas the Puritans followed Calvin’s. This led to the fierce liturgical controversies on the British Isles during the 16th and 17th centuries. Joe Morecraft wrote, “From 1660 to 1688 in Scotland, over 18,000 Presbyterian men, women and children – whole families and congregations – were brutally tortured and murdered at the hands of the bloody Stuart kings for one reason: they would not submit to the king’s liturgies and inventions in their worship services. They would not give up the regulative principle of worship!”
The basic problem with the Lutheran or Anglican principle of worship is that it is not the principle taught in God’s word. Deuteronomy 12:32 states, “What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.” Note that the whole of that chapter has to do with worship. The principle of worship that we find in Deuteronomy and in other passages (e.g. Exo. 20:4, Matt. 15:7-9, Acts 17:25, Col. 2:23) is clear, that is, we are to be so careful in our obedience to God’s word concerning worship that we do not add to it or subtract from it.
We must always remember that the great goal of all worship is the glory of God. Ultimately, what matters in worship is not whether we feel good or enjoy it, but whether God is pleased and God is glorified in it. Morecraft wrote, “In worshipping Him…our concern must always be to please Him, not to please ourselves or to please others.” The fear of God and the desire to glorify Him must ever be our chief consideration and motivation in worship for God alone is to have all the glory in worship. Soli Deo Gloria!
May the Lord enable us to do that. Amen.
—Linus Chua
Edited by: LPS