Torn Between Two Loves

A man of God said, "Christians are not ruined by living in the world, but by the world living in them'!!

Bible Illustration - Towards the end of his ministry, Paul makes a very sad statement about one of his co-workers. He says, "Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me..." (2 Tim 4:10). We also read in the Book of Judges how Samson lost his powerful anointing, thanks to his relentless search for pleasure.

If you are struggling with the love of pleasure controlling your life, a good step forward might be to separate some of your time to serve God in a ministry in your church, or to volunteer for some worthy cause. Spending quality time in God's presence will also help greatly. The Bible says, "...In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11 NKJV).

That brings me to my final thought.

3) TORN BETWEEN LOVING GOD AND LOVING THE PRAISE OF MEN

In John 12:43, the Apostle tells us the following about the religious leaders of His time, "..they loved praise from men more than praise from God". Are you in a similar situation today?

We live in a world of celebrities and sadly, the celebrity cult has invaded the Christian domain as well. Leaders get caught up with numbers and stats and the recognition they get on social media. Sadly, the adulation and compliments we receive from humans, can after a while, become more important to us than having God’s approval. We can even lose the spiritual sensitivity needed to hear His still, small voice. Jesus said, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God" (John 5:44 NLT).

Bible Example - in 1 Samuel 15, we see God's rejection of King Saul due to his disobedience. However, without repenting, Saul's response in vs 30 shows that he was more interested in looking good before the leaders and the people!!

Are we too more concerned about what people think of us than about what God thinks? Are we as a result, silent, when we should be speaking up? Do we fear losing favor with our peers, our bosses and our relatives? When needed, do we avoid correcting the people who praise us? Billy Graham said,

'Any coward can praise Christ, but it takes courage to to follow Him'.

Illustration - In chapter 1 of his book, 'Then sings my Soul, the well-known Gospel singer George Beverly Shea writes about how he was offered a contract to sing with a famous singing group of his time. This break would more than double the salary he was earning at that time, besides bringing him national radio exposure (recognition by man and popularity). However, as he looked at some of the lyrics of what he would have to sing, Beverly Shea decided that he would not be able to do so, as a child of God. Hard as it was, he therefore declined the offer. He desired the praise of God more than the praise of man.The end result of that decision was that George Beverly Shea eventually became the featured soloist for the ministry of Billy Graham, singing before millions of people around the world. He received not just national exposure, but international exposure!! God is truly faithful when we honor Him!!