How is a Christian to live such that he can be confident of God’s pleasure toward him? Are there patterns in Scripture to provide us clear guidelines about our lifestyle, or are we left to do as we please?
Is it good enough just to live in good conscience before our God? Paul indirectly answers this question through a comment he made in Acts 23:1, "And Paul, looking stedfastly on the council, said, Brethren, I have lived before God in all good conscience until this day." Paul had always believed what he was doing was correct, however, in his defense to the people in the previous chapter he states that he had been doing much damage to the Lord’s cause. "… I persecuted this Way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women" (Acts 22:4). Paul was living contrary to God’s will while feeling that he was right before God. Jeremiah admits, "O Jehovah, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps" (Jer. 10:23). We are not able to determine how to live correctly based on our own conscience, or our own feelings. God knows what we need and provides that guidance through His word. Only doing what we feel is right easily leads to error.
Is our outlook toward serving God one of, "I’ll serve God when it’s convenient or when I have spare time?" Those words may not be openly spoken often, but the attitude that God gets our leftover energy seems prevalent. We fool ourselves if we think that we can leisurely and half-heartedly serve our God and still please Him. God says, "A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master: if then I am a father, where is mine honor? and if I am a master, where is my fear? saith Jehovah of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? … when ye offer the blind for sacrifice, it is no evil! and when ye offer the lame and sick, it is no evil! Present it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee? or will he accept thy person? saith Jehovah of hosts" (Malachi 1:6-8). Quite the contrary of the shallow service exhibited here, Paul gives us the proper outlook, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service" (Romans 12:1). Paul also says "present yourselves unto God, as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God" (Romans 6:13). In Hebrews 6:11, the writer says, "And we desire that each one of you may show the same diligence unto the fulness of hope even to the end: 12that ye be not sluggish.…" Ours is not to be a casual approach, but rather a fulltime ambition that involves effort and energy. It will lead to a job "well done" if we stay the course until death.
Sometimes we hear comments like "there is no direct command that says I have to do that." Are we trying to feel better about doing less? If so, is that the kind of servant God will welcome into heaven on judgment day? Is the Christian’s duty simply to avoid the sins that everyone recognizes? James 4:17 says, "To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." He also says "be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding your own selves" (1:22). Our faith is to be a working faith, not that we "earn" our salvation, but rather that there are conditions to be met to receive the gift of everlasting life. "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? …Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead…But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?…You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only…For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:14-26). There is more to living godly than just avoiding the "big" sins and living morally acceptable before men.
Too often we serve God on our terms and do what seems right when it is easy to do. Let us be sure we are presenting ourselves a living sacrifice before our Lord. Let us be sure we know Him by humbling ourselves to listen to His word. Let us serve Him as He has shown and not as we would prefer. We are His servants, His creation - let us honor Him!
Is it good enough just to live in good conscience before our God? Paul indirectly answers this question through a comment he made in Acts 23:1, "And Paul, looking stedfastly on the council, said, Brethren, I have lived before God in all good conscience until this day." Paul had always believed what he was doing was correct, however, in his defense to the people in the previous chapter he states that he had been doing much damage to the Lord’s cause. "… I persecuted this Way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women" (Acts 22:4). Paul was living contrary to God’s will while feeling that he was right before God. Jeremiah admits, "O Jehovah, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps" (Jer. 10:23). We are not able to determine how to live correctly based on our own conscience, or our own feelings. God knows what we need and provides that guidance through His word. Only doing what we feel is right easily leads to error.
Is our outlook toward serving God one of, "I’ll serve God when it’s convenient or when I have spare time?" Those words may not be openly spoken often, but the attitude that God gets our leftover energy seems prevalent. We fool ourselves if we think that we can leisurely and half-heartedly serve our God and still please Him. God says, "A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master: if then I am a father, where is mine honor? and if I am a master, where is my fear? saith Jehovah of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? … when ye offer the blind for sacrifice, it is no evil! and when ye offer the lame and sick, it is no evil! Present it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee? or will he accept thy person? saith Jehovah of hosts" (Malachi 1:6-8). Quite the contrary of the shallow service exhibited here, Paul gives us the proper outlook, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service" (Romans 12:1). Paul also says "present yourselves unto God, as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God" (Romans 6:13). In Hebrews 6:11, the writer says, "And we desire that each one of you may show the same diligence unto the fulness of hope even to the end: 12that ye be not sluggish.…" Ours is not to be a casual approach, but rather a fulltime ambition that involves effort and energy. It will lead to a job "well done" if we stay the course until death.
Sometimes we hear comments like "there is no direct command that says I have to do that." Are we trying to feel better about doing less? If so, is that the kind of servant God will welcome into heaven on judgment day? Is the Christian’s duty simply to avoid the sins that everyone recognizes? James 4:17 says, "To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." He also says "be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding your own selves" (1:22). Our faith is to be a working faith, not that we "earn" our salvation, but rather that there are conditions to be met to receive the gift of everlasting life. "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? …Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead…But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?…You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only…For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:14-26). There is more to living godly than just avoiding the "big" sins and living morally acceptable before men.
Too often we serve God on our terms and do what seems right when it is easy to do. Let us be sure we are presenting ourselves a living sacrifice before our Lord. Let us be sure we know Him by humbling ourselves to listen to His word. Let us serve Him as He has shown and not as we would prefer. We are His servants, His creation - let us honor Him!
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