Dave's Diary

Daily Readings: Luke 12 and Psalm 28

“¹ … Jesus began to speak first to his disciples, saying: ‘Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy…”

Jesus gave this warning to His disciples at the very height of His popularity, when “a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling on one another” (v.1). He knew that the enticing drug of popularity was a potential pitfall for the disciples. If they, like the Pharisees, began to crave the approval and admiration of people, they were in grave spiritual danger of becoming unfaithful to God.

Living one’s life in the “fear of man” rather than the “fear of God” means living to please or impress people rather than to please God. That approach puts one in danger of living in an outward pretence which does not match the inner reality of one’s life (v.1-3). It can lead to denying one’s allegiance to Christ if that will make one less popular or make one’s life more difficult (v.8-12). And if the person one prioritises pleasing is actually oneself, this creates the danger of pursuing wealth and possessions at the expense of one’s relationship with God (v.22-34).

Even more subtly, the loss of focus on that which pleases God can lead to a complete lack of urgency in doing what we know the Lord requires of us. Procrastination is quite possibly an outward ‘symptom’ of a lack in one’s desire to please the Lord. When we know what God wants us to do but do not do it (v.47), we show that we have prioritised something other than pleasing God.

Life Application: Pick one thing that you know God has called you to do but which you’ve been putting off doing. Pray for the wisdom to know how to do it well. Pray for the courage to take the first step in doing it. Pray for the strength and endurance to follow through on it. Then take that first step before the sun goes down today. And when you’ve done so, enjoy the rich treasure of having pleased God.