Am I now trying to gain the approval of people, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a slave of Christ!
Galatians 1:10 NET
Jewish teachers were trying to convince the believers in Galatia that circumcision was essential for their salvation. Faith in Christ was not enough. You must also conform to the ritual requirements of the Torah.
And in this letter, Paul argued vehemently against that position. He argued that it was a false gospel and forcefully condemned those proclaiming it. But this position put him at odds with many of his fellow Jews.
It would have made life easier for Paul to go along with the demands of his fellow Jews. Opposing them caused him much grief. But to do so would have compromised the gospel he had received directly from Jesus (Gal. 1:11-12). And he refused to do that.
Paul was more concerned with winning God’s approval than with pleasing people. Pleasing people might be easier in the short term. But in the long run, winning God’s approval is much better.
Our situation today is different than what Paul faced. Yet the temptation to preach a gospel that appeals to people is something we still face. To preach a gospel that makes no demands on people. That promises an easy life. Or that compromises with the culture around us.
And it is not just about the temptation to please others. We are tempted to believe and practice a gospel that makes little demand on our own lives. A gospel that leaves us little different from the culture we live in.
Jesus called us to be disciples who deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him (Matt. 16:24). Paul also encouraged us to be a living sacrifice, transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:1-2).
As believers in the Lord Jesus, we need to focus our lives on pleasing the Lord rather than ourselves or other people. His is the only approval that matters in the end.
