When God Leads, Follow

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Make two silver trumpets. Of hammered work you shall make them, and you shall use them for summoning the congregation and for breaking camp. 3 And when both are blown, all the congregation shall gather themselves to you at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 4 But if they blow only one, then the chiefs, the heads of the tribes of Israel, shall gather themselves to you. 5 When you blow an alarm, the camps that are on the east side shall set out. 6 And when you blow an alarm the second time, the camps that are on the south side shall set out. An alarm is to be blown whenever they are to set out. 7 But when the assembly is to be gathered together, you shall blow a long blast, but you shall not sound an alarm. 8 And the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets. The trumpets shall be to you for a perpetual statute throughout your generations. 9 And when you go to war in your land against the adversary who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the Lord your God, and you shall be saved from your enemies. 10 On the day of your gladness also, and at your appointed feasts and at the beginnings of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings. They shall be a reminder of you before your God: I am the Lord your God.” – Numbers 10:1-10 ESV

God was leading His people. In chapter nine, Moses recorded how God had chosen to manifest His glory and presence in the form of a pillar of cloud that would rest over the tabernacle. It was to serve as a visual reminder of God’s presence among them and as a means by which God directed their journey through the wilderness.

…when the cloud lifted in the morning, they set out, or if it continued for a day and a night, when the cloud lifted they set out. – Numbers 9:21 ESV

But in the opening verses of chapter 10, Moses records a secondary source of divinely ordained directional aid: Two silver trumpets.

Now the Lord said to Moses, “Make two trumpets of hammered silver for calling the community to assemble and for signaling the breaking of camp.” – Numbers 10:1-2 NLT

“The last directions given at Sinai deal with the manufacture and use of two silver trumpets to co-ordinate the movements of the tribes on their march through the wilderness. Though they were to be guided by the cloud, more precise means of control were necessary if the people were to march in the tight-knit formations envisaged in chapters 2-3.” – Gordon J. Wenham, Numbers, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries

From the moment God delivered the Israelites from their captivity in Egypt, He had directed their path. He had gone before them, guiding their every step along the way, and providing for their every need. But they had to follow. They couldn’t veer to the right or the left. They couldn’t go off in another direction. If they did, they would suffer the consequences.

God’s leadership required faithful followers. It reminds me of the chorus of the classic old hymn, Where He Leads Me I Will Follow. It simply states, “Where He leads me I will follow; I’ll go with Him, with Him, all the way.”

The people of Israel had spent nearly a year camped at the base of Mount Sinai. During that time, God had given them His law and provided them with the construction plans for the tabernacle. He had given them the sacrificial system as a means of atoning for and receiving forgiveness for their sins. There at Mount Sinai they enjoyed God’s presence and provision, but Mount Sinai was not their final destination. They were not where God wanted them to be. So “In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony, and the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai. And the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran” (Numbers 10:11-12 ESV).

God led and the people followed. The trumpets blew and the people gathered to receive their marching orders. As the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, it signaled that it was time to break camp and follow wherever God led.

God had a purpose behind everything He did. In order to get the people of Israel all the way through the wilderness, He knew it was going to require much more than which direction to go. He could lead them, and they could follow – but they would have to follow according to His terms. Their following would have to include faithful obedience to His righteous rules and divine requirements. They would have to follow obediently.

God could have miraculously transported them straight to the promised land. He could have eliminated the need for a journey altogether, but instead, He took His time. He gave them rules of conduct. He painstakingly provided them with instructions as to how they were to live as they followed Him. The wilderness wanderings were going to be a time of testing, to see if they would live set-apart lives, faithfully following God’s prescribed plan for His people. God didn’t just expect the people to follow, but to do so faithfully. In other words, they had to follow according to His terms. They had to keep His laws. They had to celebrate His festivals. They had to keep the Sabbath. They had to regularly sacrifice for their sins. They had to deal with impurity in their midst. Their journey from Mount Sinai to the land of Canaan was to be marked by obedience. When the silver trumpets sounded, they were to heed the call and follow God’s lead.

Following God requires faithful adherence to His commands. From our vantage point this side of the cross, it is sometimes easy to look back at the Israelites and wonder how they could have failed to realize just how good they had it. They seem to have been slow to comprehend just how blessed they were to have God’s actual presence living among them. They got to see incredible miracles and witness amazing acts of provision, such as manna that came from the sky and water that flowed from a rock. They wore sandals and clothes that never wore out. But in spite of all this, they continued to disobey Him by disregarding His commands.

The psalmist writes, “How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, and insulted him  in the desert! They again challenged God,and offended  the Holy One of Israel” (Psalm 78:40-41 ESV).

But before we point our fingers in accusation and derision, we need to realize that their story is far too often our story. We too are on a journey. We’re walking through this life on our way to another “land” that God has promised to give us. He has chosen us as His own. He has given us the indwelling presence of His Spirit. He leads and directs us. He speaks to us through His Word. He has called us to live lives that reflect our unique standing as His children. He has demanded that we live holy lives. And yet, we struggle with faithfulness.

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” – 1 Peter 1:14-16 ESV

For the Israelites, Mount Sinai held special meaning. It was there that they received God’s law. It was there that they were given His plan for the sacrificial system and the hope of atonement for sin. But they were not meant to stay there. They had to move on. They were on their way to somewhere else. For many of us as Christians, we bask in the glory of our salvation story. We camp on that day we placed our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and remain content to dwell on that special moment as the most significant day of our lives. But we must move on. We must recognize the fact that our salvation is the beginning, not the end. There is life to be lived – in Christ. He is to followed, not just believed in.

Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24 ESV). There is a cost and commitment to following Christ. It is a daily event that requires faithful obedience to His will and His way.

Jesus had many followers when He walked this earth. But when things got tough, and they discovered that His journey was going to include suffering and even death, the majority of his followers fled. Believing in Christ was easy. Following Him would prove to be difficult and sometimes risky. His 12 disciples would learn this.

The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were thought to be faithful followers of God. But Jesus repeatedly condemned them for their hypocrisy and self-righteousness. He compared them to their ancestors who had killed the prophets of God because they didn’t want to hear the message of God. These men were followers of God in name only. They lived by their own set of standards. They put on a facade of faithfulness, but were actually blind to the will of God for their lives. Highly knowledgeable of God’s Scriptures, they were unable to recognize the Word of God standing in their midst. And they refused to acknowledge Him as their Messiah and Savior.

Following is not easy, especially when we are prone to going our own way. Even after salvation, we are constantly tempted to take our lives into our own hands and determine our own destiny. But God has a plan for our lives. He has a path for each of us to take. We are on a journey from salvation to our ultimate glorification. The Kingdom is to be our future home. Yet we find ourselves wandering through this wilderness called earth.

We are living in what Paul Tripp calls “the gospel gap.” Our salvation is in our past. The eternal Kingdom is in our future. And, for now, we live in that in-between time where our sanctification takes place. We are in the process of being transformed into the image of Christ as we faithfully follow His example of love, obedience, humility, and service. It is during our time on this planet that we are to live out our salvation in tangible and practical ways that emulate the nature of Christ. We do so by allowing the indwelling Spirit of God to powerfully flow through us, producing a lifestyle that is radically different than the world around us. Our faithful following of Christ is to result in our reflection of His nature to the world around us. It is as we walk with Him, living in obedience to Him, that we become increasingly more like Him.

The silver trumpets were to be used to call the people to action. Whether they were a signal for gathering, celebrating, traveling, or going to war, the trumpets were to be obeyed. God was leading and He expected His people to follow. He was declaring His will and they were to submit to it – willingly and faithfully.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Heaviness of Holiness

1 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to serve as priests. 4 But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. 7 They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle. 8 They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. 9 And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. 10 And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall guard their priesthood. But if any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.”

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, 13 for all the firstborn are mine. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.” – Numbers 3:1-13 ESV

God set apart the entire tribe of Levi to assist Aaron and his four sons, whom He had anointed to serve as priests. All adult males were exempt from military service but were expected to care for the maintenance and transportation of the tabernacle.

“Call forward the tribe of Levi, and present them to Aaron the priest to serve as his assistants. They will serve Aaron and the whole community, performing their sacred duties in and around the Tabernacle. They will also maintain all the furnishings of the sacred tent, serving in the Tabernacle on behalf of all the Israelites.” – Numbers 3:6-8 NLT

While some of the Levites served as priests alongside Aaron and his sons, many were assigned the important task of caring for the tabernacle. They were divided into specific units with instructions to maintain the various elements that comprised the tabernacle and made the worship of Yahweh possible. The entire tabernacle was designed to be portable so that it could be transported from one place to another as the Israelites made their way to the land of promise. When it came time to move, the various clans of the tribe of Levi were assigned different sections of the tabernacle to disassemble and carry to the next location. Once there, they were responsible for the reconstruction of the tabernacle and for the maintenance of the items under their care.

Service in the priesthood was a high honor and was not to be taken lightly. It came with great responsibilities and God held all those who served as priests to an exacting standard.

They must be set apart as holy to their God and must never bring shame on the name of God. They must be holy, for they are the ones who present the special gifts to the Lord, gifts of food for their God. – Leviticus 21:6 NLT

One of the greatest responsibilities given to Aaron and his sons was that of providing the offering of atonement for the people of Israel. These men were expected to keep themselves morally and ceremonially pure so that they might intercede before God on behalf of the people. Moses instructed Aaron:

“Come to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt offering to purify yourself and the people. Then present the offerings of the people to purify them, making them right with the Lord, just as he has commanded.” – Leviticus 9:7 NLT

For Aaron and his four sons to effectively mediate between God and the Israelite people, they had to maintain a holy lifestyle. Leviticus 22 outlines just how careful they had to be in order to keep from offending a holy God through personal impurity or disobedience to His commands.

“Tell Aaron and his sons to be very careful with the sacred gifts that the Israelites set apart for me, so they do not bring shame on my holy name. I am the Lord.” – Leviticus 22:2 NLT

“The priests must follow my instructions carefully. Otherwise they will be punished for their sin and will die for violating my instructions. I am the Lord who makes them holy.” – Leviticus 22:9 NLT

They were expected to take their role seriously, knowing that God would hold them accountable for any indiscretion or hint of physical or spiritual impurity. And Moses reveals that two of Aaron’s sons had been put to death for disobeying the commands of God.

Nadab and Abihu died in the Lord’s presence in the wilderness of Sinai when they burned before the Lord the wrong kind of fire, different than he had commanded. – Numbers 3:4 NLT

Leviticus 10 records what happened to Aaron’s two eldest sons.

Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu put coals of fire in their incense burners and sprinkled incense over them. In this way, they disobeyed the Lord by burning before him the wrong kind of fire, different than he had commanded. So fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and burned them up, and they died there before the Lord. – Leviticus 10: 1-2 NLT

The text doesn’t explain the exact nature of their sin but it makes it clear that they had violated the command of God. They had failed to take seriously God’s holiness and their own call to moral purity. Their offer of “strange fire” was outside the will of God. They had chosen to make an offering that was unsanctioned by God and, therefore, unacceptable. And Moses explained to Aaron that his sons’ unacceptable sacrifice had failed to bring glory to God.

Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when he said,

‘I will display my holiness
    through those who come near me.
I will display my glory
    before all the people.’”

And Aaron was silent. – Leviticus 10:3 NLT

It seems apparent that these two men had tried to glorify themselves. They had chosen to do God’s will their own way and their punishment was death. It’s interesting to note that Nadab and Abihu were executed by the very same heavenly fire that had consumed the offering that Aaron had offered up to God on behalf of the people.

After that, Aaron raised his hands toward the people and blessed them. Then, after presenting the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offering, he stepped down from the altar. Then Moses and Aaron went into the Tabernacle, and when they came back out, they blessed the people again, and the glory of the Lord appeared to the whole community. Fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When the people saw this, they shouted with joy and fell face down on the ground. – Leviticus 9:22-24 NLT

It seems that Nadab and Abihu had seen the reaction of the people to their father’s sacrifice and now desired to elicit a similar response by offering up their own unsolicited offering to God. But rather than the people falling on their faces before them, the fire of God fell from heaven and consumed them.

So fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and burned them up, and they died there before the Lord. – Leviticus 10:2 NLT

According to Leviticus 21:8, God considered each and every priest to be holy and they were to be treated as such. They belonged to Him and He expected their actions to reflect their status as His chosen servants.

“You must treat them as holy because they offer up food to your God. You must consider them holy because I, the Lord, am holy, and I make you holy.” – Leviticus 21:8 NLT

And even the Levites were expected to take seriously their status as God’s chosen tribe. They had been set apart by God for His use and they were to treat their role with a healthy dose of reverence and respect.

“Look, I have chosen the Levites from among the Israelites to serve as substitutes for all the firstborn sons of the people of Israel. The Levites belong to me…” – Numbers 3:12 NLT

And just so they understood the gravity of their position and the danger of taking it lightly, Moses warned them, “any unauthorized person who goes too near the sanctuary must be put to death” (Numbers 3:10 NLT). Their set-apart status would put them in close proximity to the tabernacle, but they were not to take that privilege lightly. Unlike Nadab and Abihu, there were to treat God with honor and reverence at all times. Their behavior mattered. The manner in which they treated His tabernacle was important. They had their God-given role to play and they were to honor Him through their obedience and faithfulness.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Spiritual Success and Satan’s Seduction.

Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.

But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house. And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled out of the house, she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. And as soon as he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled and got out of the house.” Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home, and she told him the same story, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to laugh at me. But as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house.” – Genesis 39:6b-18 ESV

Though having been sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph must have considered himself blessed of God to have ended up in the home of Potiphar. He appeared to be a kind and gracious master who saw Joseph’s potential for leadership and rewarded him by putting Joseph in charge of his entire household. It had not escaped Potiphar’s notice that everything Joseph did was blessed by the hand of Joseph’s God, and since Joseph was a slave and all that he did was done on behalf of his master, Potiphar was the beneficiary of all the blessings. But in the midst of all of Joseph’s success, trouble was brewing, in the form of Potiphar’s wife. 

At the end of verse six, Moses relates a seemingly out-of-place bit of information regarding Joseph’s appearance. “Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance” (Genesis 39:6b ESV). But this little descriptor plays a significant part in helping to explain what happens next. It seems that Joseph had not escaped the notice of Potiphar’s wife, but it had nothing to do with his household management skills. She was attracted to Joseph’s attractiveness. He was more than likely about 20-years old at this point in the story, and his master’s wife wanted more from Joseph than he was prepared to give. She was about to use full-court pressure and all her feminine wiles on Joseph in an attempt to seduce him. We know this was an attack of the enemy because for Joseph to give in to the temptation would have been a sin against his God. Joseph knew that to commit any form of sexual immorality was forbidden, especially adultery. The enemy has long used sexual sin as a primary means of bringing down God’s people. It is one of the primary appeals to the weakness of the flesh that has proven to be the most successful for him. The Proverbs of Solomon repeatedly warn about this very thing.

For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,
    and her mouth is smoother than oil.
But in the end she is as bitter as poison,
    as dangerous as a double-edged sword. – Proverbs 5:3-4 NLT

Stay away from her!
    Don’t go near the door of her house!
If you do, you will lose your honor
    and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved. – Proverbs 5:8-9 NLT

Drink water from your own well—
    share your love only with your wife.
Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,
    having sex with just anyone?
You should reserve it for yourselves.
    Never share it with strangers. – Proverbs 5:15-17 NLT

Can a man scoop a flame into his lap
    and not have his clothes catch on fire?
Can he walk on hot coals
    and not blister his feet?
So it is with the man who sleeps with another man’s wife.
    He who embraces her will not go unpunished. – Proverbs 6:27-29 NLT

The passage tells us that “day after day” she tempted Joseph. We can only conjecture the kind of pressure she put on this young man to get what she wanted. But the Proverbs gives us an idea of the kinds of things she probably said.

“Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
    let us delight ourselves with love.
For my husband is not at home;
    he has gone on a long journey;
he took a bag of money with him;
    at full moon he will come home.” – Proverbs 7:18-20 NLT

The warning is clear, stay away from her. Run for your life. Her seductive-sounding promises are lies that will only result in death.

Don’t let your hearts stray away toward her.
    Don’t wander down her wayward path.
For she has been the ruin of many;
    many men have been her victims.
Her house is the road to the grave.
    Her bedroom is the den of death. – Proverbs 7:25-27 NLT

And Joseph repeatedly spurned her advances, knowing that to give in to her would be to dishonor his master and to disobey his God. “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9 ESV). Joseph could have rationalized his circumstances and convinced himself that it was only fair that he take what was offered to him. After all, he had been treated unfairly and had never asked to be placed in this situation to begin with. What harm could he do by satisfying his own physical desires? But Joseph knew that his actions would have consequences. He knew that to commit adultery with Potiphar’s wife would be a sin against God, even though it would be years before the written moral law of God would be given at Mount Sinai. Joseph knew in his heart would God would have him do. So he refused to give in to the temptation and ran for his life. 

It was William Congreve who penned the now famous words:

Heav’n has no Rage, like Love to Hatred turn’d,
Nor Hell a Fury, like a Woman scorn’d.

Potiphar’s wife was a woman scorned and she was furious. So much so, that she accused Joseph of attempted rape. Suddenly, Joseph found himself falling from favored status again. And it involved yet another one of his garments. In the earlier part of his story, his brothers took his torn and bloodied robe to his father and presented it as proof of Joseph’s death. In this case, Potiphar’s wife held out Joseph’s discarded garment as proof of Joseph’s supposed indiscretion. And in both cases, Joseph ended up imprisoned though innocent of any wrong doing.

Contrary to the popular opinion in some Christian circles, doing what God deems right does not guarantee that nothing will go wrong. Obedience does nothing to prevent opposition. Faithfulness to God will usually result in the a full-frontal assault from the enemy. Spiritual success will almost always elicit spiritual warfare. Joseph’s presence in Egypt had not escaped the notice of Satan. The blessings of God on Joseph’s life and the subsequent success he experienced in Potiphar’s household were threats to Satan’s rule. He did not want or need a faithful follower of God stirring up the pot in the god-suturated, yet God-less realm of Egypt. So Joseph could expect more of the same. But he could also expect God to continue His work in and around his life – regardless of the circumstances in which he found himself.

Pleasing God, Not Men.

1 Chronicles 25-26, 1 Thessalonians 2

…but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. – 1 Thessalonians 2:4 ESV

As followers of God, we are always facing the daily choice to live our lives in submission to His will and in obedience to His commands – in other words, to live in a way that pleases Him. But there is always the temptation to become man-pleasers – living our lives in fear of rejection and ridicule, and in search of the acceptance and adoration of men. The proper worship of God always involves obedience. It is never enough to simply go through the motions and involve ourselves in the activities associated with the worship of God, if our hearts are not in it. God would later accuse the Israelites of this very thing. “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men” (Isaiah 29:13 ESV). You see in this passage, quoted by Jesus in His day, that the people of God were far more concerned about pleasing men than pleasing God. They would rather obey laws created by men than those given to them by God Himself. But to live a life that truly pleases God requires that we make Him our highest priority and His Word our only authority. Jesus had strong words for the religious leaders of the Jews in His day. “Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God” (Matthew 15:9 NLT). They were burdening the people with rules and rituals that were man-made and not God-given. So the people ended up trying to please these self-proclaimed models of righteousness and live up to their standards, all the while thinking that they were worshiping God. But Jesus warned that their worship was in vain or fruitless.

What does this passage reveal about God?

The worship of God is about so much more than an event that takes place on Sunday morning. It is about an attitude of the heart. It emanates from within and flows out through all our attitudes and actions. The worship of God is to be a lifestyle that encompasses every facet of our lives. We are not to compartmentalize it or relegate it to a specific day or an occasional event. Our goal in life, as God's people, should be to make Him the focal point of our lives – even if it puts us at odds with the people around us. When David was bringing the Ark of the Covenant into the city of Jerusalem, he did so with much pomp and circumstance. There was singing and dancing. There was rejoicing and praise. There were musicians playing and sacrifices made. Samuel writes that “David danced before the Lord with all his might” (2 Samuel 6:14 ESV). Here was the king of Israel throwing caution to the wind and disregarding his own reputation, out of praise for God and in an attempt to please God with his life. Interestingly enough, David's wife, Michal, was appalled. She “looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart” (2 Samuel 6:16 ESV). But David was not concerned about Michal's feelings about him. He was determined to please his God and properly praise Him for all He had done for him. This same David would spend countless hours preparing all the elements necessary to build a house for God. He would also appoint musicians, singers, gatekeepers, treasurers, officers and judges – just to watch over the house of the Lord when it was built. As far as David was concerned, God deserved the best. He was deserving of honor, glory, praise, and the best efforts of His people when it came to establishing Him at the center of their lives and community.

What does this passage reveal about man?

The apostle Paul lived to please God. He wanted to conduct his life in such a way that it always brought pleasure to God through his obedience to God's call on his life. He told the Thessalonians, “For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed – God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or others…” (1Thessalonians 2:5-6 ESV). Paul's desire was to please God while, at the same time, expressing the love of Christ to men. His job was not to please men, but to share with the love of God made available through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He attempted to live his live in such a way that it would please God. “You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers” (1 Thessalonians 2:10 ESV). Because Paul was living his life in order to please God, there was no accusation that men could make against him. He didn't attempt to flatter the Thessalonians or use persuasive words in order to impress them. He simply told them the truth about God, the reality about sin, and their need for God's saving grace made available through His Son's death. He told them exactly what God had commanded him to say. “We exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:12 ESV). This wouldn't always win Paul a lot of friends. But he was far less concerned about his popularity than he was about living his life to please God.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

For David to hire 24-hour guards to station at the gates of the temple and to employ the finest musicians and singers, would have cost him a great deal of money. And he did all this before the temple had even been built. He would not even live long enough to see the temple completed. And I am sure there were those who looked at all his efforts and questioned his sanity and wisdom. They wondered about why he would waste so much time, money and effort for the construction of a house that God had denied him the privilege of building. But David loved His God. He wanted to please Him and wasn't concerned about what men thought about it all. Likewise, Paul lived his life in such a way that he could lay his head on the pillow at night, knowing that he had done what God had called him to do. He had been obedient. He had been faithful. Rather than seek glory or praise from men, he sought to bring pleasure and praise to God through the way he conducted his life. “We had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict” (1 Thessalonians 2:2 ESV). His life was not easy. Pleasing God did not come without its fair share of troubles and conflicts. There was always the not-so-subtle temptation to listen to the words of men and to seek the praise of men. Popularity and acceptance are strong urges in every human being. We want to be wanted. We desire to be accepted. But as children of God, our greatest desire must be to please God – not in an attempt earn His favor or to try and stay in His good graces. We can do nothing to make God love us more or force Him to love us less. His great love for us has already been expressed in His Son's death on the cross in our place. But our desire to please Him must flow from grateful hearts for all He has done for us. Pleasing men is a futile game to play. Men are fickle and their friendship can come and go. But God's love for us is everlasting and unfailing. He deserves our willing desire to live obediently in response to His Word and in submission to His Spirit, not to please men, but to please Him.

Father, I want to please You with my life. I want to live in such a way that my life brings you honor and praise. Help me to worry less about what men think and more about what You have commanded for me to do as Your Son. Remove the fear of man and replace it with a healthy fear of You. Amen