I really like Rick Renner's devotional for today from "Sparkling Gems From the Greek 2".
Living in the Limelight
Nor of men sought we glory,
neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the
apostles of Christ. — 1 Thessalonians 2:6
Another pitfall that has
short-circuited the call of God in lives of others is a desire for glory or
fame. But neither money nor fame was Paul’s motive for pursuing ministry.
Paul’s primary pursuit was to please God. He genuinely loved God and the people
God had called him to reach.
In First Thessalonians 2:6, Paul
said, “Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we
might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ.” The Greek tense makes
it clear that Paul was saying he didn’t habitually seek glory from men; it
wasn’t his pattern of operation. Then Paul got more specific by using the
phrase “neither of you, nor yet of others.” In a general sense, Paul wasn’t
seeking glory from people. And in a specific sense, he wasn’t seeking glory
from those he knew personally, including the church members in Thessalonica.
Paul’s statement in verse 6 was
what I call a futuristic statement. Paul was saying, “I haven’t sought glory in
the past; I’m not seeking glory from you now; and I’m not going to seek glory
from anyone else in the future.” Paul simply wasn’t interested in the limelight
— in receiving the glory of men. This is a great test and
temptation for anyone who becomes well known. It is a test that must be
passed. If having the adulation of men is important to you, it will
eventually become a noose that hangs you — as you’ll end up doing or saying
anything to get attention and adulation.
Proverbs 29:25 (NKJV) holds a
powerful warning to us along this line. It tells us that “the fear of man
brings a snare….” Being overly concerned about what people think of us and
fearing their possible rejection of us is actually a dangerous trap of the
enemy that he uses to try to control us. It will either muzzle and silence us
from speaking the truth when necessary, or provoke us to say what people want
to hear — instead of the word of the Lord they need to hear.
Either way, seeking adulation and
praise from man is a deceptive trap, and the source is fear. And fear always
works to nullify faith, which is essential for you to please God! So make sure
your goal is always to stay pleasing to the Lord above all else and all others.
It’s that pure desire of your heart to please Jesus that will keep you free
every day from the trap of seeking praise from men!
When we realize that each and every member of the Body of Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ, the family of God, has their own special and very unique gifting, calling and anointing to carry out their part of the Great Commission (Matthew 28) and the Ministry of Reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5), then we will have the freedom to simply BE the very best that we can be, without comparing ourselves to others! No one has your particular calling, or the equipping that goes with it! God knows exactly what is needed for each of us to successfully carry out what HE has given us to do. We get no credit for any of that! It is all simply HIM working in and through us! We WILL get rewarded for our faithfulness on that day when the rewards are given out, but we will not be rewarded for gifts, calling and anointing, for we had nothing to do with that! It is as was as HE wills! AMEN! Let's keep running our race and reaching for the prize, knowing that HIS will is more important than anything and HE desires that none should perish! So let's be about our Father's business! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with an older song called "Faith":
Shalom in Him!
