Yesterday, I wrote a little bit about the life that is pleasing to God. In way of review, we can see this God-pleasing life from two angles. The first angle is that our life is God-pleasing when we are in Christ Jesus, who lived, died, and rose for us. God is pleased with us when our life is found in Jesus. The second angle involved the living out of our lives in this world, as we strive to live according to God's design and will. Today, I want to expand on that line of thinking a bit.
For some reason, the thought often seems to arise in the minds of God's people. If I'm going to live a God-pleasing life, I have to something, well, extraordinarily Godly. I'm always amazed at the number of people that seem to think that a godly life involves some extraordinary thing like going on a mission trip to feed hungry people in Africa, or to take part in crusades in India, or to furnish smuggled Bibles into China. When we start to think that a God-pleasing life takes place only when we do something like that, we really do make it out to be something that is extremely difficult.
I've started to respond to thoughts like that with a question. Do you find that God calls for that biblically? I have yet to come across the Bible verse that states that God is pleased with our lives when we go to another country to do some extraordinary thing. Now, is God pleased with activities of that kind? Of course. I'm even convinced that He puts such things into the hearts and souls of many people, who gain much when they do those things. But to give the idea that such activities are the norm for a God-pleasing life, well, I don't find much biblical support for that.
So what does constitute a God-pleasing life in Christ for the regular, every-day person? For starters, I think a brief look at the Commandments gives a good starting point. Not only from the standpoint of asking, Do I avoid the things that the Commandments say not to do. There's also the standpoint that asks, what activities can I be engaged in that bring this Commandment to life? And as a guide for this, I encourage people to look at the definitions from Martin Luther's Small Catechism. There is almost always a two part answer. The first part looks at what I am to avoid. If I am commanded not to steal, then I don't steal my neighbor's stuff. But that's not the end of it. It also means that I am to help my neighbor to protect and improve the things that belong to him. I don't just stand idly by while thieves break into his house, but help him to defend his home. When I see him outside working to improve his home or his car, I offer to help him in that.
One thing this points out to us is that we will always be able to find more opportunities to engage in the things that are according to God's will and design. Again, I encourage you to remember that this angle alone doesn't bring you into a God-pleasing life. The life God gives in Jesus is the one that is truly pleasing to God. And yet, God takes great delight when we, as His people, also strive to live according to His design and will.
For some reason, the thought often seems to arise in the minds of God's people. If I'm going to live a God-pleasing life, I have to something, well, extraordinarily Godly. I'm always amazed at the number of people that seem to think that a godly life involves some extraordinary thing like going on a mission trip to feed hungry people in Africa, or to take part in crusades in India, or to furnish smuggled Bibles into China. When we start to think that a God-pleasing life takes place only when we do something like that, we really do make it out to be something that is extremely difficult.
I've started to respond to thoughts like that with a question. Do you find that God calls for that biblically? I have yet to come across the Bible verse that states that God is pleased with our lives when we go to another country to do some extraordinary thing. Now, is God pleased with activities of that kind? Of course. I'm even convinced that He puts such things into the hearts and souls of many people, who gain much when they do those things. But to give the idea that such activities are the norm for a God-pleasing life, well, I don't find much biblical support for that.
So what does constitute a God-pleasing life in Christ for the regular, every-day person? For starters, I think a brief look at the Commandments gives a good starting point. Not only from the standpoint of asking, Do I avoid the things that the Commandments say not to do. There's also the standpoint that asks, what activities can I be engaged in that bring this Commandment to life? And as a guide for this, I encourage people to look at the definitions from Martin Luther's Small Catechism. There is almost always a two part answer. The first part looks at what I am to avoid. If I am commanded not to steal, then I don't steal my neighbor's stuff. But that's not the end of it. It also means that I am to help my neighbor to protect and improve the things that belong to him. I don't just stand idly by while thieves break into his house, but help him to defend his home. When I see him outside working to improve his home or his car, I offer to help him in that.
One thing this points out to us is that we will always be able to find more opportunities to engage in the things that are according to God's will and design. Again, I encourage you to remember that this angle alone doesn't bring you into a God-pleasing life. The life God gives in Jesus is the one that is truly pleasing to God. And yet, God takes great delight when we, as His people, also strive to live according to His design and will.
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