READ:
1 Peter 5:11
11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
EXHORTATION:
After emphasising God’s grace that leads us through our sufferings to eternal glory, Peter burst forth into a brief anthem of praise to God. This doxology is found at the end of Peter’s prayer. Earlier in this epistle, a similar doxology was mentioned - “that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 4:11).
This is the ultimate expression of praise from a grateful heart that has understood the greatness of God’s grace and power which have been made available to him through the Lord Jesus Christ. Every thankful heart delights itself in glorifying God. As Psalm 71:8 says, “Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.”
Moreover, praise is due unto Him by virtue of the excellence of His nature, the grandeur of His majesty, the greatness of His power, the magnificence of His wisdom, and the exceeding riches of His grace and blessings. We must render praise to Him all day long. We must exalt His great and wondrous name as often as we think of Him. Whenever prayers are made, we must ascribe honour and praise to Him. We must exalt Him in times of our individual prayers and worship. It must also be our joy to talk of His greatness before others. Furthermore, we must unite our hearts with all His thankful people to raise the anthems of His praise in worship, saying, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Revelation 4:11).
Note what Peter first of all said - “To him be glory”. The glory of God is what He is essentially. The glory of God is the infinite beauty and greatness of all His manifold perfections. Our God is glorious. All His attributes and all His works are glorious. Now what is giving glory to God? When we acknowledge Him and submit ourselves to Him to praise Him as glorious, we are giving glory to God.
Secondly, Peter also said, “To him be... dominion”. When we ascribe to Him dominion, we acknowledge and humbly yield to His majesty and eternal reign. We honour Him as the Sovereign King and render ourselves to obey His commandments and serve Him. May it be our joy to give ourselves to glorify the all-glorious God and King, every day of our lives.