Whose Pleasure Matters the Most to You?

Daily Devotional

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John 12::42 -43 Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:43 For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

It would be good if we could please everyone in our world, but the reality is that it is just not possible. Since we are not able to please everyone we must make a conscious decision as to those persons who we will choose to please; at the top of that list should be God.

Is God the person whose pleasure matters the most to you? To answer that question you only need to take a close look at your actions.  In John 12:42-43 Jesus determined that some of the Chief rulers of the synagogue were more interested in pleasing men than they were pleasing God and the basis on which He drew that conclusion was their action. While highlighting their action Jesus noted that among the Chief rulers of the synagogue some believed in Him but would not confess Him as the Messiah because the implication is that they would be put out of the temple. The major issue that they had with being put out of the temple was that they would lose out on being seen and praised by men. To put their actions into perspective, bringing men pleasure mattered more to them than pleasing God because as Jesus said “they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God”. What it shows us is that the person whose pleasure mattered the most to them was not determined by the person who should be most important to them; but rather by what they loved the most.

While God is the person whose pleasure should matter the most to us; whose pleasure we prioritize will be determined by who or what we love the most. Although Abraham loved Isaac, his decision to put him on the altar was not a difficult one because God’s pleasure mattered more to him. Let us get to the place where we love God more than anything else. It will only be then that His pleasure will matter the most to us.

Life Application: Make pleasing God what matters most to you by choosing to love him with all your heart and take actions that prioritize pleasing him first.   

Prayer: Lord, my desire is to please you and to put you above all else. May I always choose you above any worldly pleasure. In Jesus’ name, amen.