👆Click and listen to this training as you get ready or drive somewhere.
When readers open Chapter 4 of Wayne Grudem’s Christian Ethics, they immediately discover that the question at the heart of morality is not first about rules, nor even about consequences, but about purpose. Why do we exist? What is the end toward which every ethical decision, every habit, every thought, and every desire is meant to point? The chapter’s answer is unmistakable: the goal of ethics is to live for the glory of God.
This is not an abstract theological claim, nor a slogan to be admired from a distance. It is the beating heart of the Christian life. Grudem insists, and Scripture confirms, that the deepest purpose of human existence is that everything in life should honor, magnify, and reflect God. The prophet Isaiah captures it in God’s own words: “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made” (Isaiah 43:7). Paul echoes this when he tells the Corinthians, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). And again in Ephesians, he insists that we were chosen in Christ “so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:12).
For the reader, this means that ethics is not ultimately about becoming a “better person” in a cultural sense. It is about aligning every part of life with the glory of God. Morality divorced from this aim becomes sterile and self-serving. But when ethics is understood as the pursuit of God’s glory, the entire Christian life takes on coherence and significance. Every virtue is valuable because it points beyond itself to God. Every act of obedience is important because it displays God’s worth.
The Westminster Larger Catechism summarizes this beautifully: humanity’s chief and highest end is “to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever.” Grudem places this conviction at the center of Christian ethics. For readers, this is both liberating and challenging. It lifts ethics above the narrowness of rules and dilemmas and places it within the grandeur of worship. Yet it also confronts us with the searching question: does my life, in all its parts, truly glorify God?
The chapter next helps the reader understand what it means practically to live for God’s glory. Grudem points out that this goal can be seen from three complementary perspectives, each of which sheds light on how ethics works in practice.
First, glorifying God means developing a Christlike character. Ethics is not only about external behavior but about inward transformation, becoming the kind of people who reflect Christ’s likeness. Second, it involves producing results that honor God and advance his kingdom, bearing fruit that points others to him. Third, it requires actual behavior that accords with God’s commands, the concrete acts of obedience that mark the life of faith.
Together, these three perspectives prevent a reductionist view of ethics. If we focus only on character, we risk neglecting action. If we focus only on action, we risk superficial legalism. If we focus only on results, we risk pragmatism. But when all three are held together—character, results, and behavior—they form a rich vision of what it means to glorify God in daily life.
The first and perhaps most foundational dimension of glorifying God is the transformation of character. Ethics is not only a matter of what we do but of who we are becoming. Scripture makes it clear that God’s intention for his people is to be conformed to the image of Christ.
Paul tells the Romans that those whom God foreknew he also predestined “to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29). To the Corinthians, he promises that “just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:49). Peter urges believers, “Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue” (2 Peter 1:5). Again and again, the call is not just to act differently but to be changed in the very core of our being.
This emphasis on virtue places Christian ethics within a long philosophical tradition of virtue ethics, yet it radically redefines it. Whereas Aristotle spoke of cultivating virtues for the sake of human flourishing, Scripture speaks of cultivating virtues for the sake of Christlikeness. The goal is not merely to become a well-rounded or admirable human, but to become like Jesus.
Imitation of Christ is therefore central. Paul can say, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). John insists, “Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:6). The moral life is a life of following in Christ’s steps, not just admiring him from afar.
The New Testament even portrays suffering as part of this imitation. Peter writes to persecuted believers: “Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21). Paul longs to “share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Philippians 3:10). For readers, this is a challenging but profound insight: even our hardships are contexts for glorifying God, because they allow us to mirror the obedience and endurance of Christ. Suffering is not wasted; it is formative.