Some people have the notion that God is distant–so remote and far away from us that it is impossible to connect with Him in any way.
The reality is that He is just a breath away, just a heart beat away. He is as near as He can possibly be.
“The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10:8-10
How close is that? In our mouth and in our heart. That is how near God is to each one of us.
Pleasing God
So, then, is it possible to please God? For some people, God is austere and angry with the world because it has fallen so far. Does He have time for us mere mortals?
The answers is ‘yes.’ He sent His own Son to bring us nearer to Him. Jesus was sent on a great mission to save the fallen world so that we could be made right with Him.
But how can we know if it’s possible to please Him, and what do we need to do? We have the Bible, God’s Word to us, that reveals His will towards us. We know that it is not only possible to please Him, but He rewards those who do. He has a heart towards us.
The key to pleasing God is faith. Not works, not payment, not even our own standard of righteousness. No, simply 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.
Hebrews 11:6
Here it is then, the way to please God. We believe that He is–that He exists, and that He can be present in our lives to the extent that we can have a relationship with Him. We also have to have faith that He is a Rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Saying that without faith it is impossible to please Him leads us to conclude that with faith it is possible to please Him. Faith in God through faith in the Son of God–that He gave His life for us so that we could live for Him.
This, indeed, is good news. Despite all of our weaknesses, frailties and faults we can turn from our own ways and join in with His, by believing that God is real, that He is who He says He is, and by allowing Him to have first place in our lives.
You really can please God.
Title photo: alek newton for unsplash
