"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ." Gal_1:10

"Enoch was commended as one who pleased God." Heb_11:5

It is recorded in one of the gospel narratives, that certain of the Jews besought the Savior's interposition in the case of the Centurion, whose servant was at the point of death; and the plea they urged was, "That he was worthy for whom he should do this; for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue." He had thus won, Gentile though he was, their good opinion; and in order to testify their approbation, they came forward on this occasion, not merely to express their sympathy—but to exert their influence on his behalf.

To enjoy the favor of our fellow-creatures is, doubtless, a blessing not to be despised. The Centurion could not be otherwise than gratified by finding that he stood so high in the estimation of those among whom he dwelt; and the contemplation of the incident, simple though it is—is refreshing to every mind.

But those who make it their chief aim to please men are evidently under the influence of a feeling which cannot be too strongly condemned. If this be the regulating principle of our lives; if we shape our whole course and conduct with the view of attaining this object, we cannot, as the apostle states, be the servants of Christ. The true Christian acts from other and higher motives; his actions are to be ever regulated by the will of God—whether men are pleased or not! With the apostles, when summoned before the Jewish rulers, our language should be, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God—you judge."

To seek to please men is in general—a very hopeless task. Many a minister of the gospel especially, has found it to be so by painful experience. He would be of all men most miserable, if his only end was to secure the approval of those among whom he labors. As one remarks, "If the preacher is faithful—he is said to be too personal. If he is cheerful—he is trifling. If he is serious—he is dull. If he is practical—he is legal. If he preaches grace—he is an enemy to good works. If he is social—he is worldly. If he is very studious—he is reserved. If he is forgiving when misrepresented—he is guilty, or he would resent it. If he pleads for his rights—he is self-serving. If he is passive—he is weak. If he is courteous—he is afraid of man. If he is courageous—he is crude. If his language be piercing—he is coarse. If he is plain—he is illiterate. If he is elevated—he is too high in his style."

But let us turn to a more congenial and important theme, that of pleasing God. And in order to attain this blessed privilege it is indispensable that we be brought into a state of personal acceptance with Him. "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." Rom_8:5-8. There is something fearfully emphatic in the above representation. It shows not merely that men are enemies to God—but that their carnal minds are enmity itself—enmity in the abstract. Enemies may be reconciled—but enmity cannot. A wicked man may become virtuous—but vice never can. Indeed, the only way to reconcile enemies is by destroying the enmity that exists between them. "We," says the apostle elsewhere, "who were once enemies, are reconciled to God by the death of his Son;" but he speaks of enmity as having been consumed or destroyed. Having "abolished in his flesh the enmity"—and having "slain the enmity thereby." The conclusion drawn from all this is inevitable, that those who are in the flesh—in their natural condition of enmity and alienation—cannot please God.

It is, however, cheering to know that if our state by nature is such that we cannot please God while we remain in it; yet that there is a state of grace in which we can, and that there is a way of translation from the one to the other. We are naturally guilty and depraved; and before anything we can do will be well-pleasing in God's sight, we must, as guilty creatures, be pardoned; and as depraved and polluted, we must be renewed. We are spiritually—to employ a familiar comparison—in the situation of a poor criminal in prison, who has been sentenced to death, and who is at the same time infected with some fatal disease. Now if such an one is only pardoned, he will soon die of the disease; and, on the other hand, if he is only cured of the disease, he must soon be executed. It is evident that he needs both—he must be pardoned and cured. And so with us. We require a double cure—we must be justified and sanctified; we must be freed from sin in its guilt, and from sin in its reigning power. Now the Savior does both. "This is He who came by water and blood;" by water to wash us from our impurities, and by blood to remove, by its sacrificial efficacy, the condemnation we have deserved. Now these two blessings should never be separated; what God has joined together let not man put asunder. "True religion," says John Newton, "stands upon two pillars—what Christ did for us, and what the Holy Spirit does in us. Most errors," he adds, "arise from an attempt to separate these two." Before, then, we can please God, our guilty persons must be accepted, and our sinful hearts must be renewed.

Various things may be specified, with the possession and exercise of which God is declared to be well pleased. Of these one of the most prominent is faith. "But without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." No state of mind can possibly be more offensive to God than that of unbelief. "Anyone who does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son." Unbelief is a spirit which casts the foulest indignity upon the divine character. It is a spirit which would tarnish all the glory of His infinite perfections. It is a spirit which would rob every gem which decks His crown. It is a spirit which would pluck away every pillar that supports His throne. It is a spirit which would, not merely change the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things; but into the likeness of the great apostate spirit himself, of whom it is emphatically said that he is a liar, and the father of it. Unbelief, then, must be a spirit which God abhors; and faith, on the contrary, or implicit confidence in Him, is a spirit which He cannot but regard with approbation and delight.

Another particular we may mention is gratitude. "Whoever offers praise glorifies me;" it must therefore be pleasing to Him. "I will praise the name of God," says David, "with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bullock that has horns and hoofs." Let us then present unto God thanksgiving, and pay our vows unto the Most High. Let our resolve be,

"I'll praise my Maker with my breath,

And when my voice is lost in death,

Praise shall employ my nobler powers;

My days of praise shall ne'er be past,

While life, and thought, and being last,

Or immortality endures."

A life of holiness is another thing that may be specified. "Whatever we ask," says John, "we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things which are pleasing in His sight." "We beseech you," says Paul, "and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as you have received of us how you ought to walk and to please God, so you would abound more and more." "The fruits of holiness," it has been strikingly observed, "which appear in God's people on earth, imperfect as they are, are on some accounts more pleasing to Him than those produced by the angels in heaven. Holiness in heaven is like flowers in spring, or like fruit in autumn, when they are expected; but holiness in a world so depraved as this, is like flowers and fruit in the depth of winter—or like the blossoms and almonds of Aaron's rod, which proceeded from a dead and sapless branch! When the delicious fruits of southern climates can be made by the gardener's skill to flourish in our northern regions, they are far more admired and praised than while growing in rich abundance in their native soil. Just so, when holiness, whose native land is heaven, is found in the comparatively frozen and barren soil of this world, which lies in wickedness, it is viewed by celestial beings with peculiar pleasure and surprise."

We see from this subject what should be the constant aim of every believer—it is to please God. Reader, study to show yourself approved unto Him. His favor is life; His loving-kindness is better than life. And may He whose approbation outweighs a world of censure, and which transcends a whole universe of applause, say to you, after this chequered scene is over, "Well done, good and faithful servant! Enter into the joy of your Lord!"