What Does it Take to Please God?
One of the things I remember from my youth was how I felt when my parents told me they were pleased with me. I felt proud and loved when I was given confirmation that they were pleased with what I had done or was doing. Is it odd that we associate someone we care about being pleased with us, with love? I don’t think it is odd at all.
If we look at this conversely, we know we don’t like the feelings within us when someone we love tells us they are disappointed with us. One thing my children have shared with me is this fact. They have told me the worst thing I could ever do to them was tell them that I was disappointed in them or a decision they have made. One thing I know is this; I did not love them any less when I was disappointed in them that when I was the proudest of them. I say all of this to make this point: God being pleased with us has absolutely no bearing on whether He loves us or not. There is nothing we can do to earn God’s love. He loves us in spite of ourselves. Our actions do not sway His love. So, let’s not get these two things confused.
The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 12:1-2; “12 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. 2 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.”[1] What we see here is that to please God with the life He has given us, we are to present ourselves to His as a sacrifice. This means we give our lives to Him and allow Him to work in and through us. When we willingly submit to God, this is pleasing to Him. Again, it doesn’t make Him love us anymore, but it does please Him as a proud Father. I know this applies human attributes to a Holy God, but this is only to help us understand.
Care must be taken to make sure we are not merely giving lip service to God when we tell Him we submit to Him. Why must care be taken? Because God knows our heart. He knows our intentions behind out statements and our professions. In the first part of 1 Chronicles 29:17, we see that God tests our heart. “17 I know also, my God, that You test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. “[2] So, when we truly give Him our lives and we show with our actions that we love others like He loves others, we please our Holy God.
So, if we boil it all down, the same things that would please our earthly parents also please God. Upright godly living and a sacrificial life of service for a God that laid down His life for us. That is, in my opinion, and Scripturally, what pleases God.
Are you living a life that pleases Him? Have you given Him your life? Have you professed Him as your Lord and Savior? You can, because He loves you no matter what you have done in your past. Give your life to Him, share that decision with someone. You can even share it here with me and my friends, we would love to share in your joy and offer any support. Give your life to Him, then you can begin a life of service that is pleasing to Him.
In Christ,
James
[1] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Ro 12:1–2.
[2] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), 1 Ch 29:17.