Shun the Praise of Men

Elijah was thought to be a threat; Jeremiah’s warnings were often rebuffed; John the Baptist was labeled ‘a maniac’; and the Lord Jesus was hated and reviled by the same people He came to help. If you want the validation of man before you do anything for God, you are simply wasting your time. The Bible has no account of anyone who pleased God and yet obtained the praise of men. Sadly, you find some Christians desirous to please God and yet trying so hard to win the approval of men. When Saul, the King of Israel, tried it (1 Samuel 15:24), he lost the confidence God reposed in him as king and was stripped of the kingship.

It is not possible to please God and at the same time crave the approval of men because there are many things you would do that they wouldn’t understand; there are things you would say that would sound ridiculous to them. The reason is simple: “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

The Bible says many people believed in Jesus when they saw the miracles but Jesus wasn’t carried away by their outward display of appreciation because He knew their hearts. In Matthew 15:8, He said, “These people {draw near Me with their mouths and} honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off {and} are far away from Me” (AMP).

What matters most is what God has said about you and not what man says. When He says yes that's all you need.

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