Young Christian Leaders' Alliance

R. Josiah Magnuson

Who are we trying to please? The Bible gives numerous clear directives that the motivation for the believer in living a life of distinction be different from the motivation of the world. Our service is not for ourselves but to glorify God.

True Christianity is not a “celebrity” activity. Because we are different, the world hates us and seeks to persecute us. We will never change the world’s opinion of us if we continue to live godly lives. As II Timothy 3:12 declares, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” Rather, our motivation should come from a desire to please Christ, experience His resurrection power, and bring Him glory by sharing His truth with others.

One example of Scripture on this issue is I Thessa-lonians 2:4-6. “As we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth the hearts. For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness, God is witness. Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others…”

Galatians 1:10 continues the theme of seeking to please God rather than men. “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.”

Interestingly, the Bible also contains direction that we try to please those around us as much as possible. For example, I Corinthians 10:32-33 tells us, “Give none offense, neither to the Jews nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.”

Scripture encourages us to maintain a good reputation. Proverbs 22:1 states, “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver or gold.” One of the requirements of a bishop (church overseer) given by Paul is to “have a good report of them which are without” (I Timothy 3:7).

Is the Bible being contradictory? Is God telling us to both please others and not please them? In the passage from I Corinthians 10, the answer is found in the immediately preceding verse (v. 31): “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

There is no problem with seeking to show respect and kindness to everyone. There is not even a problem with just wanting people to be happy with our actions. The problem enters when our motivation becomes service to self. We are to seek to serve others and lead them to salvation in Christ, making our ambition that of bringing glory to God.

For example, Luke 10:27 shows our primary duty: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.” We are to love and serve God alone. But, this love for God is not to the exclusion of a love for others. We are to show love to others as an expression of our love for God. As Jesus said in Matthew 25:40, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Romans 15:1-2 tells us, “We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbor for his good to edification. For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, ‘The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.’”

Just as Christ bore our infirmities, we should bear the infirmities of others and seek to edify (build up and encourage) them. It is in this way that we are to “please” others. But we are not to seek others to shine spotlights on us as we bask in the dim glitter of condoning sin or smoothing over untruth. Nor are we to promote our own goodness or importance. The glory must go to Christ.

Christ wants us to make peace, show love, and build good character. However, we must follow His example in doing so. This path often leads through times of suffering and persecution. The world will not generally appreciate the efforts of the Christian to be a light in its darkness. We will need to make hard choices. But the life of finding rewards that last is truly the life of fixing our eyes on our God, the eternal Rewarder.

Pleasing ourselves, or attempting to please other people so we can please ourselves, is pointless. We can please the One who gives us all we have, Who can make us everything we need to be.

By R. Josiah Magnuson, YCLA President

This past month, thanks to the prayers and support of many of you, and the skill and devotion

of the many trip organizers, I was able to spend ten days in Nicaragua on a senior class mission

trip through Kingsway Christian School. My group ministered to numerous children and

families in this Central American country. We were able to work with a team from King’s Castle

Ministries, a Latin American organization which trains kids, teens, and college students in

evangelism and missions.

When we first arrived in Nicaragua, I thought I knew what to expect, and in many ways I did. I

know what poverty means and have seen endless pictures of foreign countries. But nothing

could have prepared me for the actual experience. There are simply some things which can

never be done justice in a photograph. These things included, for me, such lessons as the

humanity and value of every person, true joy in Christ, and the power of relationships.

First, God impressed me with the fact that every person is a real human being with the same

needs and desires as everyone else. The Nicaraguans have a desire for food, for dignity, for

improvement, for love, just like anyone in the United States. They have so much less than us,

but they are no different. I already knew this fact with my mind. It’s a lot different to absorb it

into one’s soul.

Second, God gave me back a true joy in Him on this trip. Even though I’ve had a lot of

disappointments in my life, I realized that my heart can sing to Him no matter what is going on

around me. The kids in Nicaragua are a prime example of this joy. Many of them (and

especially the Christian kids) are enthused and energized people, showing huge smiles at the

slightest act of friendship, even amid constant stench, hunger, sickness, and political

uncertainty. We can learn much from the way the people of Nicaragua find satisfaction and

beauty in little things.

Third, I learned that relationships truly are more important than material “stuff.” Friendship is

indeed based on the intrinsic value of others. And, ministry can be built around friendship,

rather than around money. In America, it tends to be the case that ministry cannot happen

without material things. We wait to go on God’s vision until we have amassed a vast stockpile

of resources. But in Nicaragua, we learned that God can use anything He wants to. Whether

through a simple soccer game, or playing nose flutes, or praying for a sick mother, or doing

dramas with a gospel message, God brought light to people’s lives. We went into numerous

schools, a jail, a hospital, and an orphanage. In each place, we saw terrible and sometimes

unspeakable conditions. But in each place, Christ seemed to shine through us to work in the

hearts of those we ministered to. And thus, our group drew closer not only to the Nicaraguans,

but to each other as friends.

I had not expected to experience a country so modern and yet so unmaintained. I had not

expected to experience a city with streets where the smell of trash and smoke could not be

escaped. I had not expected to see such a low level of poverty on such a grand scale. But the

thing I may have least expected in Nicaragua was the lesson that joy is possible, in the middle of

it all. God can work in any place at any time, to fulfill the lives of those who trust Him.

The above is the title of the August, 2009 Voice of the Martyrs Magazine. The communist government of the People's Republic of China has recently intensified its campaign to squelch the gospel through state-sanctioned internet censorship and radio jamming, as well as the customary harassment, arrest, imprisonment, and torture of witnessing Chinese Christians.

However, the 73 million strong Chinese communist party has failed to foresee that they are fighting a losing battle. The power of the gospel of Jesus Christ to save men and bring true hope and fulfillment transcends opposition and persecution. As one communist official stated (paraphrased), "We arrest and bring to justice illegal Christian missionary, [sic] and five more spring up suddenly."

Please continue to work and pray by witnessing in your own community and praying for our persecuted fellow Christians around the globe.

Here is an update from China Aid:

Youth Camp Raided in Henan; Two Christian Leaders Detained - July 28, 2009

HENAN - A Christian youth camp was raided in Nanyang city, Henan on July 23. More than 20 students were participating the summer youth camp were gathering at No. 23, Lizhuang, Pushan town, Wuolong district, Nanyang city, Henan when they were raided by a number of Public Security Bureau (PSB) and Religious Affairs Bureau (RAB) officials. The raid took place at 12 noon, and all of the students were taken away for further interrogation. The students, who were all under 18 years old, were released and dispatched back to their homes in the afternoon. Two instructors, Mrs. Cheng Ping, 40 years old, and Mrs. Miao Miao, age 30, were sent to the Yongan Lu Detention Center of Nanyang city. They were reportedly sentenced to administrative detention. The lengths of their sentences are unknown because the church leaders who organized the camp were threatened by officials not to speak to the public about this case.

Contact the Chinese embassy and ask for the immediate release of Ms. Cheng Peng and Ms. Miao Miao. Urge Ambassador Zhou to guarantee freedom of belief in China as stated in China?s Constitution.

Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong

3505 International Place, NW,

Washington, D.C. 20008

Tel: (202) 495-2000

Fax: (202) 588-9760

More Information:

China Aid

Voice of the Martyrs