Galatians 1:10

Galatians 1:10

 

Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

 

Even though the above text was written by Paul very long ago, it is still very relevant in today’s world. In fact, on a daily basis, we are continuously pressed with opportunities to basically “choose a side” on big topics in our society. As believers, we are called to live our lives in service to the Lord. This means we are to keep his commands fresh in our minds and allow them to dictate how we act, think, and speak. But often times in our world, the “prevailing wind” directly contradicts the will of the Father…and we have to basically choose a side on how we respond. We have to make a decision as to whether we side with the world or side with the Lord. When we choose to follow the Lord, we will likely receive great resistance from the world as the world doesn’t like to admit that it is wrong. When we choose to side with the world, we will likely receive nice pats on the back for our “tolerance”, “open mindedness”, and general “love” for one another. Sin has a way of making us feel temporarily good about our mistakes…it has a way of finding strength in numbers and making us feel falsely secure with the thousands of others that think or act the same way. Yet when the day comes to a close, something is just not right…there is some misalignment, as the Spirit prompts us to reexamine the issue…as the Spirit pushed us to seek counsel in God’s Word. And we find the contradiction…we find that our chosen path, the path that aligns with worldly ideals, is in direct opposition to the will of the Lord. So now we have to make the tough call: Side with the world, and have others tell us how “great” we are…or side with the Lord, siding with truth and righteousness. As believers in Christ, we should always choose to side with the Lord. Jesus speaks a very heavy and sobering reality in Luke 9:26, when he says…“Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” The very thought of standing before the Lord and having Christ being ashamed of us…instead of calling us His own…is absolutely frightening. Now we can’t be perfect and we won’t always make the right call in every situation, but we can put forth an effort to seek the path of the Lord. We can put forth the discipline to study His Word daily, so that it is fresh in our minds when it comes time to choose a side. God knows if we are genuine or if we are bluffing. May we be deeply genuine in our faith in Christ. May we truly own the relationship that we have with the Lord and not just “punch the ticket” and go through the motions. May we seek to always welcome the direction of the Spirit and once acknowledged, actually follow where the Spirit leads us. No more following what is popular, no more seeking social acceptance, and no more focusing on pleasing others. It’s a privilege that our God actually wants a relationship with us…may our focus each day be on pleasing Him, above all else…period. To God alone be the glory!