Our scripture this morning is Galatians 1:10-12 (NLT).
Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant. Dear brothers and sisters, I want you to understand that the gospel message I preach is not based on mere human reasoning. I received my message from no human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct revelation from Jesus Christ.
I like to make people happy. It makes me feel good too. While there’s nothing wrong with this on the surface, what we do and say to accomplish it is extremely important. Are we just going along to get along? This isn’t what Jesus taught us and Paul comes out swinging at those who do.
He says very plainly “I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God.” He also reminds us that the Gospel “is not based on mere human reasoning”, something that confused people then and continues to affect our relationship with God and each other. We think so much of ourselves that we assume we can figure everything out on our own.
It’s not about any concept we can conceive or any action we can take, it is about faith in Christ alone. Paul once wrote “For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8). We must follow the example Jesus set, putting aside anything that distracts us from the kingdom work.
Heavenly Father, forgive our foolish pride that puts us at the center of Your creation. Help us to see the truth and share it in love with all Your children everywhere. Amen.
