Ephesians 5:8-10: For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.
Man made religion tries to make God difficult to understand. God, however, makes things simple for his children.
For example look at Deuteronomy 30:19-20. This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Issac and Jacob.
God gives the children of Israel two choices. He said to either choose life and blessings, or to choose death and curses. God does not give a myriad of options. There are only two.
After God gave the children of Israel their two choices, he even told them the correct option to choose. He told them Now choose life. He then gave them the reasons for making that choice. God told them that they and their children would live in a covenant relationship with God himself, and that they would have many years in the land promised to their fathers Abraham, Issac and Jacob.
Now, how much easier can it be? God gives you two choices, then tells you which one to choose, and then tells you the benefits of making the right choice.
In our text from Ephesians 5 Paul gives very simple instructions. He told the church that they were once darkness, but now they are light in the Lord. So, Paul instructed them to live as children of light and to find out what pleases the Lord. Notice that Paul mentions that the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth. So, you will know that whatever pleases the Lord will be consistent with goodness, righteousness and truth.
How does a believer find out what pleases the Lord? Is there some great mystery involved? No, not at all. God wants every believer to know how to please him. Go to the Word of God to find out how to please the Lord.
One definition of the word "please" from dictionary.com is as follows: "To give enjoyment, pleasure, or satisfaction to; make glad or contented."
Man was created to please God. We were created to give him enjoyment and to make him glad, as he also delights in giving us enjoyment and making us glad.
What pleases God? Here are a few things from the Word of God that please God. Take some time in study, and you will find even more.
1. Faith pleases God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
2. The prayer of the upright pleases God. The Lord detests the sacrifices of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him. (Proverbs 15:8)
3. Honesty pleases God. The Lord detests differing weights, and dishonest scales do not please him. (Proverbs 20:23)
4. Children obeying parents pleases God. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. (Colossians 3:20)
5. Sharing with others pleases God. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. (Hebrews 13:16)
6. Providing for your family pleases God. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and their grandparents, for this is pleasing to God. (I Timothy 5:4)
The six points above are just a sampling from what the Word of God teaches about pleasing God. God tells us plainly what to do to please him.
In his first epistle John mentioned one tremendous benefit to those who please God. And(we)receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. (I John 3:22)
When you commit yourself to obey God and to please him, then you are in a position to receive from him anything that you ask. See what God is doing. He wants us to obey him and to please him, so he can bring us to the place where he can do for us anything we ask. God always incorporates reward, benefit and blessing into obedience to him. Remember, we must believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6) God never asks you to do anything without reward. Now, there is the place for sacrifice. But to sacrifice now in obedience to God brings greater blessing later. It is simply the way the kingdom of God operates. God always rewards obedience without exception.
Now, for one last point, see what Paul said in I Thessalonians 2:4, On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests the hearts.
One temptation everyone has to conquer is the temptation to please others. There are times when we can please God, and please others as well. But, then there are times when your obedience to God may anger, confuse or disappoint someone in your life. You must remember that your primary job in life is to please God. In the end everyone benefits when you obey God and please him. So, do not give into that temptation to please someone in your life at the expense of pleasing Almighty God. Disobedience will produce frustration and confusion in your own life.
Please God. There is no better way.
Wayne L. Williams
wayne@fotwm.org