Now am I trying to win the favor of men, or of God? Do I seek to please men? If I were still seeking popularity with men, I should not be a bond servant of Christ (the Messiah).
Our outer life is our reputation with people, but our inner life is our reputation with God. We can do things that are phony to impress people, but God always knows our true motives. There is no pretending with Him. I think most of us go through a phase in life when we are very concerned about what people think of us. When we do, we are in danger of becoming people pleasers unless we realize that what God thinks of us is much more important than what people think.
Jesus made Himself of no earthly reputation and took on the form of a servant (Philippians 2:7). In reading the Bible, we clearly see that Jesus did not have a good reputation with most people. Even members of His own family thought He might be “out of His mind” (Mark 3:21). None of this concerned Him because He knew His own heart, and more than anything, He cared about being pleasing to God (John 8:29). You can save yourself much heartache by realizing that no matter what you do, there will always be some people who won’t like or approve of you, but that doesn’t matter if God does approve.
Prayer of the Day: Lord, help me care more about pleasing You than people. Purify my motives and keep my heart focused on Your approval above all else. I want to be a person who pleases You, not other people, amen.
