Just Do What God Wants

The last blog entry addressed the idea of persecution in the name of the Lord and determining whether examples are real or not. Sometimes in serving the Lord we may receive a legitimate backlash. However, as discussed, when our efforts to serve the Lord aren’t completely genuine, then sometimes the backlash isn’t actually persecution against a servant of Jesus but instead, rebellion against perceived attacks,

However, therein lies the problem, just as the persecution we face may not be genuine, our service to God may not always be genuine either. Jesus touched on this a little during one of his many teaching moments.

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. - Matthew 6:1-2

Jesus is clearly making the point that doing good doesn’t automatically please God. Our motivation for what we do also matters. Giving to the needy, praying, fasting - these are all undeniably good things. These are things that we should do, but Jesus taught that if any of those things are done with the intention of bringing attention to oneself, God will not reward those acts.

Jesus was making a bigger point. When we serve God, we are to do so in obedience to him and in accordance with his will. The Bible gives us commands and teachings that we are to follow. The Bible is God’s word, and simply following it is a good start towards fulfilling His will for us. Sometimes God speaks to us in other ways, and in response we are supposed to take specific actions to be obedient. Often, only a particular individual can know what those actions are because believers have personal relationships with God.  He directs us through the Holy Spirit. We just need to be sure that when we act, we are actually taking our instructions from the Holy Spirit and not just coming up with actions that we think are the right thing to do.

Jesus mentioned a reward. He taught that when we do things for our own glory, whatever praise we receive from those around us is our reward. We will not receive any further reward from God. That Godly reward is not to be confused with salvation. Believing in Jesus’ death and resurrection as the Son of God is the way to salvation. Once we’ve received that salvation, we won’t lose it by acting according to our own desires, but we will rob ourselves. Paul explained the concept further.

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. - 1 Corinthians 3:11-15

Though not directly quoting Jesus, Paul is expanding on what Jesus first taught. Jesus already provided the foundation for a righteous life in God. We need only follow the blueprint that he left us. When we try to do more than that, we aren’t being obedient. We aren’t serving God, only ourselves. Paul makes it clear that doing that won’t cost us our salvation, but just as Jesus taught, Paul points out that we will lose the rewards that God has planned for us..

So, why is it so important that we live righteous lives and act with the right motivations? Of course, the main reason is because we want to be obedient to God. However, we also have to acknowledge the fact that when we act on our own accord we can sometimes cause problems for ourselves and those around us. The COVID-19 pandemic may be revealing some examples.

Several states throughout the U.S. have enacted varying degrees of lockdowns to push back the virus’ surge. Many pastors across the country have been resisting the orders in a misguided effort to demonstrate their faiths and make a point that they won’t let a worldly disease stop them from serving God. Are they doing what God wants, or are they acting out of their own desires? Are they trying to bring glory to God, or are they trying to glorify themselves in their supposed service of God? Perhaps, it is not for us to judge, but each of us must be careful before blindly following leaders who make questionable choices. In this case, these pastors are putting people’s lives at risk. Each of us should be prepared to do that for God if it is what he actually requires of us. However, if that is not what God wants from us, then our risk is all for nothing because we won’t please him and no reward will come from it.

We don’t have to go overboard with acts of faith that put ourselves and others at risk. We simply need to be obedient. Let us do what God wants and only what he wants. If we do that, we can’t go wrong.

Chris Lawyer
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