Focus on God Rather Than on People
Do you focus on God rather than on people?
Are you more concerned about pleasing the Lord or pleasing the people around you?
It’s not wrong to be concerned about people. Jesus taught that we should love others as we love ourselves; however, our love for God should always come first. We should be focused on doing His will more than on doing the will of the people around us.
“Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than people.”
Acts 5:29 (CSB)
Peter and the apostles realized that their first allegiance is to Jesus Christ. They understood that love for God overshadows love for anyone else. Their focus was on pleasing an audience of One rather than pleasing men.
If I was completely transparent, there are times that I am more concerned about what people might think about a particular decision or action than whether or not I’m obeying God’s will for my life. I sometimes rush to gain the applause of people rather than focusing first on loving and pleasing the Lord.
Is that you?
Perhaps you struggle with the same temptation. You worry or are anxious about what others think more than you are concerned about what God wants you to do. You hesitate to talk to people about your faith because of what they might think about you. Perhaps, you fail to share what the Bible says about a particular subject because you feel folks will reject you for your viewpoint.
I’m at my best when I seek to please the Lord rather than men and women. This attitude is one of submission and obedience rather than pride. It focuses upon the Lordship of Jesus Christ and how that relates to my life. My identity and life is in Him not in the applause of people.
So, I must serve Him and His Kingdom!
Blessings!
(If you want to read more from Tim McKnight, click here.)
Tim is the Director of the Global Center for Youth Ministry and Associate Professor for Youth Ministry & Missions at Anderson University. He is lead pastor/planter of Mosaic Church of Anderson. Tim is also the author of Engaging Generation Z (Kregel Academic), No Better Gospel (Seeds Publishing Group), and the author and editor of Navigating Student Ministry (B&H Academic). His comments do not reflect the views of his employers and are his own personal views on various subjects.
