Pleasing God

 Andre Pelser

Hebrews 11:5 Jude

Transformational sentence: by studying the lives of men and women of God we can learn the ways to please God and enjoy the benefits of God’s favour.

Key Word: ways

Purpose of the message: to encourage this generation to please God.

Introduction

The technology of pleasing God is clearly expounded in the Bible. Jesus could say with absolute confidence, I always please My Father. Henoch, the 7th from Adam, had this testimony before he was taken away from here, that he pleased God. By looking at their lives and at the lives of other men in the Bible that pleased God we can learn how to please God as well. The rewards for pleasing God are tremendous!

The quality of the process is determined by the perception of the destination. If you plan to go to another nation you will be affected by the destination. For instance if you go to Europe and you know it is winter you will pack different clothes than what you wear in Africa! We are seeking a better country: we see it afar off and we embrace it like our fore fathers of faith. That is why we prepare ourselves daily for that destination called ‘Heaven’. We are entering an ultimate position that demands ultimate activity: there is no turning back! The more powerful the vision; the more powerful the transition. We are looking at the completion of the work Jesus began on earth!

We are eradicating all drifting away from the purposes of God. We are improving what we are doing, constantly. We overcome continual sins and mistakes, we allow the Holy Spirit to re-adjust us, to reform us and to reveal Christ through us to the world. God makes us transparent and he also unmasks the enemy so that we can deal with every evil force trying to stop us from completing our task. We have entered into other men and women’s labours. Paul tells us that it is impossible to please God in the flesh (Rom 8:8) and gives us a clue in Hebrews 11:6 that without faith it is impossible to please God. God announced with a thunderous voice that He was well-pleased in His beloved Son on many occasions.

Ten ways to please God

1. Baptism by immersion The first time that voice was heard was when Jesus fulfilled all righteousness to be baptised by John in the Jordan River. John did not sprinkle some water on his fore head, he immersed him into the water! Sprinkling infants is not scriptural and it is an abomination to God. Jesus commanded His disciples to baptise people – and he used the word, baptizo, which means full immersion. (Mat 3:17). By becoming obedient to the command to be baptised one pleases God. The Lord revealed to Nola that the heavenly Father was well-pleased with Jesus before he even performed a single miracle or did any healing! Just by obeying the voice of His Father concerning baptism, he pleased God.

2. If you diligently seek Him you will find favour (Prov 11:27) For instance: if you make seeking Him the most pre-eminent thing in your life He will take care of so many things you think you have to take care of.

3. A ‘hearing’ heart desires the wisdom of God (I Kings 3:9,10/ Is 7:15) You start by learning to hear from God from an open bible while you pray. Have a notebook handy. God will speak to you. What you have written down you can practice.

4. The Lord delights in a cheerful giving (Phil 4:18/ II Cor 9:7) Many people look for excuses not to tithe and not to bring offerings to church because they do not understand the ways of God. God’s financial system includes tithes, offerings and sacrifices. By the measure you use you will be blessed.

5. Fulfilling your calling (II Thes 1:11) It is God who is at work in you both to will and to work according to His good pleasure. I am able to do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Do what your hand finds to do. Do everything as unto the Lord. First believe you are in the will of God now and then He can lead you further. If you doubt now, you will continue to doubt for the rest of your life.

6. Faith pleases God (Heb 11:6) We do the work of faith and the labour of love, because God is well pleased with it. It is not difficult to please God. If he has given you a talent He expects you to develop it to the full extent. He expects you to multiply what He has entrusted to you. The evil servant who went to bury his talent was rebuked and cast out of the kingdom and his talent was taken away and given to the good and faithful servant who developed his talent.

7. Fruitful living (Col 1:10) Any branch that abides in the Vine bears fruit. The branch is pruned so that it can bear more fruit. The Father is glorified if we bear the fruit of His Kingdom. We cannot produce it outside of Christ. Self-effort cannot produce Christ. Only the Holy Spirit can produce real love, gentleness, patience, meekness and the other fruit of the Spirit.

8. Thanksgiving pleases God ( I Thes 5:18) It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord. Thanksgiving pleases our Heavenly Father as gratitude pleases our earthly parents. We enter His gates with thanksgiving in our hearts; we enter His courts with praise. We shall say this is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice for He has made us glad! Praise and Worship is the sacrifice of our lips – we bring a sacrifice of praise unto the house of the Lord. Praise looks good on you – it suits you!

9. Walking in the Spirit (Rom 8:1,8) You start off by worshipping God in Spirit and Truth (John 4:24) because the Father is seeking those who would worship Him in that way. You learn to obey the Word and the Spirit in your daily life.

10. Submission is pleasing to God (I Pet 3:14) It sounds impossible to fulfil all these ways. It seems too much for one single person. But the key to pleasing God in the New Testament way is to do it corporately as a body of believers. In this way the total perfection of Christ can be divided up between the believers. This combined effort will speed up the process, each one contributing a part to the whole. None can take the credit alone. We are beginning to see the manifestation of the corporate body of the sons of God that will know how to please God in such a way that will move the Hand of God to do great and mighty things for all involved. We will even move into the Henoch position and into the position Jesus held at the bosom of the Father, where we will be ready to be translated into heaven when Jesus comes!

The focus is no longer on self, but on the body of Christ.

Warnings to all believers:

1. Don’t be over righteous or over confident (I Cor 10:5) 2. Don’t persecute God’s messengers (I Thes 2:15) 3. Don’t let the cares of this life, the desire for riches squeeze the life out of you and make the word of God unproductive (I Cor 7:32) 4. Don’t let the lower sinful nature control your life by living according to your five senses, but learn to walk by the Spirit (Rom 8:8, 16)

The Henoch Position

 God de-materialised Henoch: God changed the molecular structure of a man’s body to make him disappear from this earth and enter the heavenly realm. By faith Henoch pleased God and he was not: God took him, translated him, raptured him into another dimension! Henoch saw Jesus’ 2nd Coming and prophesied it! He saw Jesus coming with ten thousand angels! Adam was still walking around on the earth and Henoch was already prophesying the end! He touched a divine frequency long before the time! He was ahead of his time! He pleased God so much that God took Him to Himself! As we believers get into that position of Henoch and into that frequency of faith, we position ourselves for the rapture. The Lord Himself shall appear with the shout of the arch angel and with a trumpet sound, then those who died in Christ shall be rais