"How much do you Value God?"


GREEK “doxa”
The English word “glory” is translated in the Bible from the Greek New Testament word “doxa” or its derivatives.  It occurs some 167 times in the New Testament.  The word “doxology” comes from this root Greek word and has come to mean a liturgical praise or response to God.  Short definitions might include the words “splendor, renown, or honor.”  So you can see how closely the word parallels the Lord’s “beauty,” a word I hope you are now most familiar with.    

In secular, classical Greek “doxa” meant “an opinion, a judgment, a view, or an estimate” of a person, whether that opinion is positive or negative.  “Helps Word-studies” defines “doxa” in its most foundational form as “exercising personal opinion which determines value” or “what evokes opinion, i.e. that something has inherent, intrinsic worth.” 

When we “give glory” to God we are exercising our personal opinion about His value.  It is our estimation of His worth to us.  So you can see how important it might be to our faith walk and our relationship with God.  Generally, we highly value those we love, and we grow to love those we truly value.   It is our created purpose and God’s express desire that we genuinely and purely and passionately love Him with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength. 
When we “doxa” or glorify God, at least according to the classical, secular, Greek definition, we determine God’s worth to us.  And (again within the confines of the secular definition) we “glorify” God by giving our opinion or estimate of Him (whether bad or good) by the words we say, the lifestyles we lead, the time we spend with Him, and the things we do.  Every day we “doxa” or glorify God in some way.  We determine how much value God will have in our daily lives. 

Now, in Koine’ Greek or Biblical Greek the word had derived to mean only the affirmative expression of “doxa.”  In other words, it kept only the positive aspect which meant to give a good opinion or estimate of someone, to value someone highly, or to praise them for who they are or what they do.  So, in the Bible, to give someone “doxa” or glory meant to praise or admire or honor someone.  To have “doxa” or “glory” meant to have honor or brightness or splendor or value. 

So, enough of the word study for now.  Let us use the classical definition for a moment and ask, “How much do you ‘doxa’ or glorify or value God in your personal life?”  How much, in the deepest recesses of your soul, does He truly mean to you?  NOT how much he “should” mean to you, but how much value do you place upon Him based upon your understanding of exactly who He is (his nature and attributes)?  How much is He worth to you based upon your conversations regarding Him, your lifestyle, the quality and quantity of time spent with Him, your goals in life, and the deepest desires of your heart?  You know.  I know.  Everyone knows if we are honest with ourselves and with God.