God-Assured

11.17.12

2 Corinthians 10.18 18 For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends. NASB

“Have you considered my servant Job?” This was the question God asked Satan in Job 1.8. Job didn’t know God asked the question. Job was just quietly running his life. Job wasn’t busy running around trying to win a popularity contest to see who was the most approved by God. Job just lived his life in faith and trusted the Lord.

To commend oneself means trying to gain approval. Those who seek to gain approval are caught up in approval, not being themselves. (Actually they are being themselves: their ‘themselves’ is all about being liked, being approved, and being the center of attention. They are truly being their shallow ‘themselves’.) One who has to gain approval is one who feels a lack of approval and that life can only be better if they have more approval. They probably don’t approve of themselves and feel the enormous need to gain approval to quiet the screaming feeling within to be approved… an endless, vicious circle.

And in church circles there is the vicious circle of gaining approval and commending oneself. The telling terror is that when one’s focus is upon the self, the focus is not upon God. It’s that simple. And the selfish are a dime a dozen; they’re everywhere. Selfishness is a dreadful disease of fearing one’s life amounts only to the boundaries of one’s preferences and pleasures. There is little room, if any, for anyone else in the life of the selfish. And yet the selfish want to impress God with how much they can do and be.

What kind of conversations do you suppose are going on in heaven about us today? Do you suppose the question is being asked: Have you considered my servant ________________? Ironically, the silence of heaven may mean two different things: we’re on the right track, or we’re so off base it’s not funny.

But for the one who says, I will live my life trusting in the Lord, there is a quiet assurance that God is firmly in control and that the self only deserves death every time it raises its ugly head. The God-assured are the self-assured, and the God-assured are the commended ones.

The God-assured aren’t flapped by the winds and waves of life – their focus is on heaven. The God-assured recognize their mission and lot in life, and live steadfastly committed to both. The God-assured are those who know conversations take place in Heaven about them but live their lives on earth as if they never do. They’re not concerned about commendation but in serving God faithfully with every ounce of their being. They’re concerned about casting crowns, not gathering them. And when their lives are all about that: they're commended by God as a result.

Father in Heaven, today, again, I hear You… amen.