“Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God;” (1 Thess 4:1)
It is a familiar truth that every Christian’s overriding purpose must be to glorify God. Everything we say and do, our relationships with others, the use we make of the gifts and opportunities God gives us, and even our enduring of adverse situations and human hostility, must be managed so as to give God honour and praise for His wisdom and goodness (1 Cor. 10:31; cf. Matt. 5:16; Eph. 3:10; Col. 3:17).
Equally important is the truth that every Christian has a personal calling to please God. Jesus did not live to please Himself, nor may we (John 8:29; Rom. 15:1–3). Faith (Heb. 11:5, 6), praise (Ps. 69:30, 31), generosity (Phil. 4:18; Heb. 13:16), obedience to divinely instituted authority (Col. 3:20), and single-mindedness in Christian service (2 Tim. 2:4), are all ways of pleasing our Creator. God enables us to live according to the Bible and takes pleasure in us as we serve Him. In His sovereign grace He gives what He commands and delights in the result (Heb. 13:21; cf. Phil. 2:12, 13).
We please God through our relationship with Him. Abraham was called God’s friend (2 Chr. 20:7; Is. 41:8; James 2:23), and Christ called His disciples His friends (Luke 12:4; John 15:14). Under divine inspiration, Paul compares the church to the Bride of Christ (Eph. 5:32; cf. Rev. 21:2). Like friends and family members, God and His people have pleasure in each other
We also please God through imitating His deeds. His love in us is living and active, compelling His people to use their talents and energies in all kinds of activities. But Christians are especially called to works of mercy, because God is merciful (Deut. 10:17–19; Luke 6:35, 36).
(selected from the notes in The Reformation Study Bible)
“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:17)