God Pleaser

"So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well-pleasing to Him."
2 Corinthians 5:6-9

Paul is telling us that he wants to be a God pleaser, not a man pleaser. He tells us again in 1 Thessalonians, and elsewhere. Do the right thing that is pleasing to God, and don't worry about what other people think. Just live your life pleasing to God.

We get into trouble in this area, because as humans, we naturally care what others think, about us and our family, and about things we are associated with, because to us, it is a reflection on us. Paul is telling us in this chapter, that he is not going to be so concerned about viewing people in the flesh, but more about being faithful to God, and being obedient to Him. Now, I'm not talking about just being cavalier about a person's soul, that if they die and have not been born again, are going to spend eternity separated from God. We must do whatever we can to tell people about sin, and God's redemptive plan through Jesus Christ, and not worry so much about what they are going to think about us.

We have been given, as was Paul, the ministry of reconciliation - telling our friends, neighbors, and family, that they can be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. You don't need a big "up-front" ministry. The most important ministry of all is the life lived to please God, and not worry about what man thinks of us. We are a royal priesthood. What does a priest do? What does it look like in my life? A priest represents man, presents man before God, and represents God, presents God to man. As ministers and priests, we are called to stand in the gap before God and man, representing each to the other. The ministry of reconciliation.

The Corinthians were a people much like North Americans today. They lived largely for themselves and what is good for them. Paul addresses several issues with them, both in 1 and 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 5 is an excellent chapter where Paul talks about the freedom that comes from following Christ, but more importantly, the freedom that comes from focusing on being a God pleaser, not a man pleaser. I leave you with this:

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."
2 Corinthians 5:21

Remember beloved, we are the righteousness of God in Him. We are His ambassadors. We are priests and ministers, called to the ministry of reconciliation. May that be our focus today, as we live our lives as an act of worship before a holy God.