NO SOUP FOR YOU! It’s soup season and my family loves my soups. Well, at least ONE person loves ONE soup, but another will complain that it’s “not my favorite”. There’s no way I’m making four different soups to please everyone, myself included. If I please one, someone else will be displeased and it’s “no soup for you!” Soup aside, I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this. I cannot even please everyone in my family; how do I think I can please a whole church, job, or house full of people? The answer: I cannot. Guess what? You cannot please everyone, no matter how much you try. So what’s the answer? Stop living to please men and live to please God.
“The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe.” Proverbs 29:25
What does the fear of man have to do with living to please men? The fear of man has replaced biblical conviction in some so-called Christian circles today. Public opinion has overridden the clear teaching of Scripture on many social issues. Entire denominations are caving to the fear of man, and it has become a snare to them. The desire to be viewed by the world as “loving”, enlightened, tolerant or “politically correct” is a snare Satan has used to reel people into his way of thinking. The need to be liked and accepted has become more important than the Word of God to many professing believers.
A threat more prevalent to most Christians, especially those in America, is the psychological fear of man. This fear is an anxious need to receive affirmation from those around us. The fear of man manifests as people-pleasing, compromised values, peer pressure, and a choice not to share our faith. The fear of man can be a snare when we allow it to influence our decisions. Rather than obey the voice of the Holy Spirit, we opt for avoiding unpleasant interactions. It’s easier to heed the fear of man than to invite the possibility of consequences. This is especially true in families where someone has left the faith for a wicked lifestyle. Instead of correcting and rebuking them, the family just accepts their sin and pretends like nothing is wrong in order to not lose the relationship. Etch the words of our Lord on your heart:
““Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” Matthew 10:34-39
I’m seeing first hand families caving because they don’t want to offend or hurt their child for the gospel’s sake. They fear more their children being angry with them and cutting them off than fearing the Lord. Be careful you do not find your self on the wrong side on judgment day because you chose family and friends over the Lord and His commands.
Family is mad because you refuse to meet them on Sunday during church? Oh well. Live to please God. Relative mad because you won’t take their call during prayer time? Oh well. Live to please God. Your wayward child is mad because you will not endorse their sin? Live to please God. Teenager mad because you set a standard in where they go, how they dress, and who they hang out with? Live to please God. Boss mad because you pray at lunch? Oh well. Live to please God. Friends mad because you won’t go to a party at the bar? Oh well. Live to PLEASE GOD!
“For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10
I am telling you straight, you CANNOT please man and God at the same time. He requires things of you that go against man’s ways. There’s only ONE that you will answer to at the end of your life. Reject the mindset that says, “this world is my home”. A lukewarm Christian thinks that way. You will answer to the Lord for everything you said and everything you did not say. Keep eternity in plain view and live like a pilgrim, just traveling through.
To Learn More About Pastor Crystal please visit the Leadership Page
