"So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him...."
Oh my soul. Who are you trying to please most of all in your life? For man is always seeking to please. I cannot conceive of an existance in which the concept of pleasure does not exist. We are, as beings, made capable of pleasure and of pleasing. And in this we seem to bear the image of God as well. For God is a Being capable of being pleased, as is evident from our text.
But what does it mean for God to be pleased? For us, pleasure is usually thought of in terms of experiences which change from moment to moment. In fact, the very concept of pleasure would seem to become meaningless in a state of existance that could not change. For pleasure, as we know it, is a relative term.
Then how can we speak of the pleasures of God? Does God's relative happiness depend upon our actions? Of course it can not.
I think the solution lies in the relationship between pleasure and perfection. When we speak of something as pleasant we are refering to the relative perfection, as we conceive it, of that thing or event or idea. I had a pleasant lunch. In my imagination I can conceive of a perfect buffalo wing sauce...and what I had today came very close. It was pleasing because it neared the idea of perfection for such a sauce.
God, then, is pleased in the sense that His creatures attain more and more the perfection for which they were intended.
How about me? How is my walk? Am I striving more and more to attain that perfection which faithfully represents the purpose for which I was created? And I think, as I do, I shall find myself to be more and more pleased as well. Man's pleasure will always fall short until it strives for that pleasure that pleases God too.
This perfection was seen in God the Son. Hence the Father spoke from Heaven "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased".
O my soul. Cease from seeking to please others so much, and thyself much more, and seek thy greatest pleasure in the pleasing of God. You shall lose your life. And only then, will you gain it back.
Soli Deo Gloria.
Oh my soul. Who are you trying to please most of all in your life? For man is always seeking to please. I cannot conceive of an existance in which the concept of pleasure does not exist. We are, as beings, made capable of pleasure and of pleasing. And in this we seem to bear the image of God as well. For God is a Being capable of being pleased, as is evident from our text.
But what does it mean for God to be pleased? For us, pleasure is usually thought of in terms of experiences which change from moment to moment. In fact, the very concept of pleasure would seem to become meaningless in a state of existance that could not change. For pleasure, as we know it, is a relative term.
Then how can we speak of the pleasures of God? Does God's relative happiness depend upon our actions? Of course it can not.
I think the solution lies in the relationship between pleasure and perfection. When we speak of something as pleasant we are refering to the relative perfection, as we conceive it, of that thing or event or idea. I had a pleasant lunch. In my imagination I can conceive of a perfect buffalo wing sauce...and what I had today came very close. It was pleasing because it neared the idea of perfection for such a sauce.
God, then, is pleased in the sense that His creatures attain more and more the perfection for which they were intended.
How about me? How is my walk? Am I striving more and more to attain that perfection which faithfully represents the purpose for which I was created? And I think, as I do, I shall find myself to be more and more pleased as well. Man's pleasure will always fall short until it strives for that pleasure that pleases God too.
This perfection was seen in God the Son. Hence the Father spoke from Heaven "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased".
O my soul. Cease from seeking to please others so much, and thyself much more, and seek thy greatest pleasure in the pleasing of God. You shall lose your life. And only then, will you gain it back.
Soli Deo Gloria.
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