GOD OVER EVERYTHING- SOLI DEO GLORIA BY PASTOR GREG ELKAN.

Gloria_Soli Deo Gloria_ is  Latin for _“to the glory of God alone.”_ It is the 5th of the five “solas” that summarize the key issues the Reformers of the 16th century had against the backslidden Church of their day. 

Their cry of _“Soli Deo Gloria”_ was to oppose the practice of venerating Mary, Peter, Paul, and other so-called “saints”, and angels that was rampant in the church of their day. As far as the Reformers were concerned, _only God_ was deserving of all glory and no one should share in it.

The scope of _Soli Deo Gloria_ goes beyond veneration, however. To the Reformers, _Soli Deo Gloria_ was at the very heart of the Gospel message. This is because they observed from the scriptures that Salvation, the true regeneration of the human spirit, (not the works-based contraption that the Church had enslaved people in ), was God’s doing from start to finish. 

Salvation was God’s idea, not Man’s. When Man fell at the Garden of Eden he never offered an apology, he never asked for mercy, he never asked for a resolution. What Man did instead was to try to cover his sin up. It was God that offered a solution to sin in the form of the “Seed of the woman”; (Gen 3).

Indeed, it was God that eventually came to die in Man's behalf, (1Pe 3:18), it was God that saved Man (2Pe 1:1), and it is God that preserves the saved Man (Eph 4:30). Throughout the whole process, Man is just a recipient of God’s loving grace. 

Salvation is a gift; we did nothing to “merit” it. Salvation was God’s sole doing; no one helped Him in the entire process. Hence, the Reformers asserted that it was absolutely unacceptable for Christians – whether individually at home, or collectively in church – to praise, honour, respect, or venerate any other personage other than God.

Today, with the rise of celebrity preachers, “called” prophets, and “anointed” artistes; when it is increasingly becoming difficult to tell who the people's eyes are really focussed on, I pray that we be reminded of Paul’s admonition to us in 1Cor 10:31, that _whether we eat or drink, whatever we do, we must do “all to the glory of God“ – Soli Deo Gloria.

AMEN

GREG ELKAN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

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