Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God?
Summary: The change in Saul on the road to Damascus was noticed by the people he used to hang around with. It was a change that offended and infuriated them, and the fact that Saul didn’t care made them madder still.
What do you think?
Do you see Paul as someone who is trying to please people? I think Saul, the old Paul, was. He seemed like a guy who wanted to impress the Chief Priests and other important people. Saul was a person who racked up “points” in the Sanhedrin by bringing people who believed in Jesus to trial.
Then, he met Jesus. (See Acts 9:1-31)
After that, there was no comparison. Saul was convinced. Jesus was alive, and he, Saul, was all wrong. He needed to change, and he did. Suddenly, Saul didn’t care what the Pharisees thought. Instead of trying to please them, he acted as though they no longer mattered. It wasn’t that he didn’t like them or that he was angry. He just ignored them.
Imagine how they felt. One minute, their super-Pharisee is out rounding up followers of The Way. He is respectful and attentive. He works harder than anyone else to please the leaders of his sect. The next minute, a report comes that Saul has seen a ghost. Literally! Word comes to the Pharisees that Saul, whom the Gentiles call Paul, was struck blind after a flash of light. The soldiers with him reported hearing a Voice. They didn’t know what to make of it. Apparently, Saul had talked with someone that the others couldn’t see.
Then, instead of Saul coming back and explaining what had happened, instead of giving the Pharisees a chance to deprogram him, Saul disappeared. It would be three years before he returned, and when he returns, he was no longer a Pharisee. He was something else …
When Paul finally came back to Jerusalem, he was a changed man. Instead of pursuing Christians, he had become one of them. Instead of following God according to the rules of the Pharisees and teachers of the law, he was just … following God.
None of this made sense to the Pharisees, but it did make them mad. Really mad. It made them so mad they wanted to kill this Saul/Paul guy. And you know what made them even madder? Paul didn’t care. Their plans and schemes were nothing to him now. Paul served one person, one God. Nothing else mattered, and everyone knew it.
Application: Don’t worry about what people think. Worry about what God thinks.
Food for Thought: How do we know if we are pleasing God?
Hebrews 11:4-6
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
The human mind is always looking for signs, almost like guarentees of favor or blessing. We do it with others, and sometimes we do it with God. We confuse Earthly circumstance as a sign of pleasing God. What pleases God is our faith and our faithfulness. If we wrap our lives in a blanket of reading scripture, meditation on His Word, prayer, faith, service and obedience, acting in the understanding and guidance of His Holy Spirit, the question of pleasing Him doesn’t come up, because we have His peace. Likewise, if we act contrary to His Spirit, contrary to faith and contrary to obedience, His Holy Spirit convicts our hearts, and we can turn to His Word in the faith that He will guide us back.
I think a follow up question would be “why does our submission to His Will please Him?” God’s Will is holy, perfect, and love. In seeking His Will, and doing His Will, God is able to show us His perfect love. It pleases Him to give us His love.
Isaiah 66:2
For all those things My hand has made,
And all those things exist,”
Says the LORD.
“But on this one will I look:
On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,
And who trembles at My word.
Romans 12:1-2
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Chris,
As you point out, faith in God is critical to pleasing God. Faith is a fascinating topic! What does it mean to have faith? The first thing you begin with is key; believe “He is.”
I like the verses CH shared. In fact, one of the first ones I thought of was Hebrews 11: 6. There are many verses that tell us what pleases God. A few samples include Micah 6: 8; Matthew 22: 37 – 40; Ephesians 5: 15 – 20; 1 Thessalonians 5: 16 – 18; James 1: 19 – 22; the entire sermon on the mount, etc. The larger point being that we need to know and do God’s word, then we are pleasing Him. If we love God and others then we please Him (but I know that by reading His word).
Rich,
I especially like James 1:22 —
“ Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.“
12-20-2023, How do we know if we are pleasing God?
Great Replies!
We know we are pleasing God as we respond to the guidance of His Holy Spirit in our lives, allowing Him to transform our lives into instruments of righteousness eager to live in obedience to His will as revealed in His word, over our own. Romans 12:1-2, John 16:8
We are creations of God, eternal spiritual beings confined within physical bodies of flesh, living in a physical world with standards that appeal to our flesh.
Satan, the prince of this world, and his servants, disguise themselves as angels of light offering lies, things which are pleasing to our eyes, and desirable for self esteem.
God is calling to the spirits of all mankind as He reveals truth, calling each to turn from life as determined by the desires of our flesh, to eternal life as spiritual beings, as we are transformed by a renewal of our minds, into beings that when tested we will see the will of God, and live according to His light over the darkness of satan.
Deuteronomy 30:15-20, John 16: 7-15, 2 Corinthians 11:14-15, Genesis 3:6
Ron,
I love your phrase, “God is calling to the spirits of all mankind …”
Hello? Hel–l000???
Really, what we need to do is answer the call! 🙂