"PEOPLE PLEASERS"
Subject: Being a people pleaser
Date: Sun, 7 Nov 1999 12:12:54 +1100
From: "ANZAC prophetic list"
To: ANZAC Prop List
People Pleasers.
By Winkie Pratney.
Many profess conversion or religion, when on a close look it will be seen that their leading object, prized beyond anything else, is the good opinion of the crowd. Sooner than lose this, they would deny their religious stand. Their whole “faith” is based on this. You can see by a close look at their lives that they will do nothing to lose this good opinion of men. They will not face the hatred, scorn, ridicule and unpopularity from unbelievers that must come if they really gave themselves up to root sin out of the world.
How can you tell a people-pleaser? If a man professes to love God and put Him first, yet makes the praise of men his idol, how can you tell? Test your own character by these signs if you hope you do not belong in this class of counterfeit converts ...
1. They measure themselves among themselves
For this reason do not find true faith (2 Cor 10: 12). There are a vast many people who, instead of making Jesus Christ their standard and the Bible their rule of life, obviously aim at no such thing. The great question they ask, is - “Do I do as much in religion and be as good as others in the crowd or church around me?” Their aim is to keep up a respectable religious front for others. Instead of seriously asking for themselves what the Lord and His Word requires, they look simply at the common run of professing church people and copy them. They do that which is outwardly
respectable, not primarily that which is right (Psa 36:1-2; Prov 12:15; 16:2; 30:12; Ecc 11:9; Jud 17:6; Matt 6:1-7; 16-18).
2. They never raise the standards
They are not bothered that the general standard of piety is so low in the church that a visiting early church Christian would have to backslide to be in fellowship! People- pleasers like the “present” standard, because they have conformed their religious reputation around it. If the real friend of God and man tries to wake up the church and raise the tone of faith, he seems critical and meddling to the people-pleasers (Matt 25; Mark 6:1-3; Acts 5; Jer 14:10-14). When Jesus denounced the church leaders of His day, they said “He has a devil!” He dared say that unless a man’s righteousness exceeded theirs they would not make it (Matthew 5:20). A large part of today’s church people have the same attitude as the scribes and Pharisees, and the same destiny.
Every effort to open their eyes to make them see they are living lives so low, so worldly, so phony that God is grieved terribly, only excites ill-will from them. They forget how Jesus said His strongest words of judgment to those who had a reputation of being the most pious people of His day. He saw through their fake fronts of piety, called them hypocrites and thundered over their heads the terrible words - “How can you escape the damnation of Hell!” They do not seem to know that the lives of so many professing Christians are almost as different from God’s standards as light is from dark (Lev 11:44; Psa 24:3-4; Jer 23:9-22; 26:10-15; Rom 6; 1Thess 4:3-7; Heb 12:14; 1 John 3:3-10; 5:18).
3. They often oppose God
When men, measures and efforts to wake the church come along they will oppose them, as long as they are unpopular but if they become popular, fall in with them. The opposite is also true; if the work becomes unpopular they will turn against it (Matt 3:7- 10; Mark 6:14, 17, 20, 22, 26; Luke 13:23-27; John 6:60-66; 7:10-13; Acts 6:8-13). Let a man of God begin to wake up churches to true faith. While he is little known, the people-pleasers are not backward to speak against him. But let him go on and gain influence and they will profess to be his warmest friends (Luke 9:7-9; John 2:23-25).
This class of person stands with the crowd when it condemns a man, and turn the
other way when he is honored.
They never aim at forming a public sentiment in favor - of godliness. They always follow the crowd as it is, and feeling after the tide, go that way, shrinking back from everything that goes in the face of public sentiment (Jeremiah 42:16 cf. 43:1-7; Luke 14:25; John 9:18- 25; Acts 24:24).
4. They sin away from home
They fall into sin when they are not around others they know. Many a man who is outwardly very religious and respectable in his own community drops his mask at a distance and begins to act like he has always lived inside. If he is fairly sure no one knows him there, he will sin. If he is a religious man in church, away from church company he is ready to “let his horns grow-.” The true Christian in love with God, does not lead a double life. (Jer 23:24; Matt 15:8; Titus 1: 16; 2:7-15; Jas 2:9; 1 John 2:3-6,23).
A people-pleaser also often indulges in secret sin
I am now speaking of something by which you may know yourselves. If you allow yourself ANY sin secretly, when you know how to get out of it; but you can “get along” without any human being knowing it, know that GOD sees it, and He has already written down your name, hypocrite! You are more afraid of disgrace in the eyes of men than disgrace in the eyes of God. If you love God as you claim to, and were tempted to do such a thing, you as a true Christian would react like Joseph - “How can I do this wicked thing and sin against GOD?” (Genesis 39:7-9; Ezekiel 8:12; Job 31:33-34; Romans 2:16-29; 2Timothy 2:19). They may not secretly sin, but secretly neglect duties that if known would bring them shame. Things like Bible study and secret prayer for instance. They will appear very pious at church, but in the privacy of their own rooms, live different lives
5. They dread being called ‘fanatical’
They miss a first principle of Scripture - That all the world is wrong! The world’s feelings are all against God, and every one who intends to serve God must from the start oppose its opinions. It is true and always has been, that “they that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecutions.” They shall be called “fanatical,” “extreme,” and the like. They have always been, and always will be, as long as the world is wrong (Matthew 5:11-12; John 15:18-25; Acts 14:22; 21:27-31; 26:24-29). But people-pleasers never go further than people’s opinions. They say they “must” do this to influence such men. Right against this is the purpose of God’s true children. Their leading aim is to reverse the world’s order and turn the world upside down, to bring all men to obey God and all the opinions of men to conform to the Word of God (Acts 2:37-40; 17:6; Luke 12:49; Matt 3:1-3; 4:16-17; John 8:44-50; 12:37-43).
6. They make friends on both sides of the line.
They always make compromises and concessions to the crowd. They try to take both
sides. It has always been so for centuries, that men could make a good show of
religion without ever being labeled as “holy.” The standard is still so low that a great mass of churches still try not to be set down as “reprobates” on one hand or “fanatics” on the other. They are “fashionable Christians!”
Their style of religion is fashionable and popular and they generally follow the
world’s fashions in dress and custom. No matter what GOD requires, they are
carefully determined not to offend His enemies. If they are ever faced with a choice between displeasing their crowd or God, they will offend God (Prov 4:14; Exod 23:2; Matt 14:1-10; 21:23-27; Luke 12:51-53; John 15:14; Rom 12:2; James 4:4).
7. They work for the applause of men
They are more anxious to know what men think about them than about what God
thinks. If such a one is a minister preaching a sermon, or a singer giving a song, they fish for compliments, more interested to know what men thought of it than what God thought of it. If an eider or church member prays or speaks in a meeting, he is thinking, if he is a people pleaser, how he sound to those who listen (Matt 15:745; 23:14; Jude 16; Jas 2:14). If he makes anything like a failure, the disgrace of men cuts him ten times more than the thought that he has let God down or hindered others (1Cor 7:23; Eph 6:6; Col 3:22-23).
Females of this kind are vastly more concerned in church how they look in the eyes of men than how they look in God’s eyes. You can see at a glance what this religion is, the moment it is held up to view. No one is at loss to say what that man or woman’s name is - it is hypocrite. They go into God’s house with hearts as dark as midnight, while everything on the outside is respectable and decent (1 Sam 16:7; Matt 23:5-7; 23:28; 1 Pet 3:3; 2 Cor 5:12).
8. They're ashamed to do what is right
Failure to do what is right shows that your reputation is your god. How many people-pleasers do you know now? They are ashamed to acknowledge Jesus Christ,
ashamed to reprove sin in high and low places, ashamed to speak out when
Christianity is assailed! If they really loved God, how could they be? If a man really loved a girl, would be ashamed to defend her if she was slandered? If a man’s children were abused, would he be ashamed to stand up for them? Not if be loved them (Joel 2:26-27; Jer 17:13; Mark 8:38; Rom 1:16; 9:33; 10:11; 2 Tim 1:12; Phil 1:20; Heb 2:11; 1 John 2:28).
There is a great deal more apparent piety in the church than true piety. There are many things which sinners suppose are good which are abominable in the eyes of God. It is easy for people to take credit for people-pleasing lives and make themselves believe they are models of piety, when in fact they are only examples of hypocrisy. But for the love of reputation and fear of disgrace, how many in the church would break out in open apostasy? All that holds them back from open sin is public opinion, fear of disgrace and desire to gain credit for virtue. When a person is good from a regard to God’s authority, whether public sentiment favor or frown upon it- that is true faith (John 8:28-29; Acts 5:40-42). If otherwise, they have their reward. They do it for the sake of gaining credit in the eyes of men, and they gain’ it. But if they expect any favor in the hands of God they will assuredly be disappointed (Ezekiel 14:6-8; John 7:3-7).
A people-pleaser is by no means a child of God. If you are not resolved upon doing what is right, public sentiment or not, you love the praise of men more than the praise of God.
The Lord Jesus said- “Whosoever will be ashamed of Me and of My words in this
adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in the Glory of His Father and with the Holy angels... Whosoever shall confess Me before man, him shall the Son of Man also confess before the angels of God; but he that denies Me before man shall be denied before the angels of God.” Did Jesus mean it? (Mark 8-.38; Luke 12:8-9).
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