I’m a little nervous about writing this post. I’ll be walking a fine line of interpretation of scriptures, but as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

How many of you would categorize yourself as a perfectionist? ✋ I remember an instance when I was maybe 4 or 5 years old, coloring with a friend and trying not to color outside the lines, then taking our pictures to my mom and asking which one she thought was the best. What was she supposed to say? Other than they are both the best? Which left me feeling dissatisfied with her answer.

How many of you are people-pleasers going along with the crowd, because you didn’t want to feel left out? ✋ Did you end up getting in trouble? Or did you get away with something, only to feel bad later? Maybe it was a church-thing and your heart wasn’t in it or or you ended up feeling overwhelmed.

The people-pleaser wants to do what others expect of them in order to feel accepted, while the perfectionist wants to color inside the lines in order to feel worth or pride. I called this the Good Girl Syndrome because we feel love is conditional and therefore need to act accordingly.

Falling into one or both of these categories can taint our interpretation of scriptures when taken out of context. We might read the following scripture and think, I have to do works to prove I’m acceptable to God.

For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.‬‬

James‬ ‭2‬:‭26‬ ‭CSB

This interpretation is convoluted. Works flow from faith. But James point is valid. Let’s look at two examples. The first are the people-pleasers. Those responding to peer pressure.

On the other hand, a considerable number from the ranks of the leaders did believe. But because of the Pharisees, they didn’t come out in the open with it. They were afraid of getting kicked out of the meeting place. When push came to shove they cared more for human approval than for God’s glory.‬‬

John‬ ‭12‬:‭42‬-‭43‬ ‭MSG

These believers gave into fear of rejection and missed out on all Jesus had for them.

This next passage is about a perfectionist.

A man came to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to have eternal life?”

Jesus said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? Only God is good. If you want to have eternal life, you must obey his commandments.”

“Which ones?” the man asked.

Jesus answered, “Do not murder. Be faithful in marriage. Do not steal. Do not tell lies about others. Respect your father and mother. And love others as much as you love yourself.”

The young man said, “I have obeyed all of these. What else must I do?”

Jesus replied, “If you want to be perfect, go sell everything you own! Give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and be my follower.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he was very rich.

Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you, it’s terribly hard for rich people to get into the kingdom of heaven! In fact, it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into God’s kingdom.”

When the disciples heard this, they were greatly surprised and asked, “How can anyone ever be saved?”

Jesus looked straight at them and said, “There are some things people cannot do, but God can do anything.”‬‬

Matthew‬ ‭19‬:‭16‬-‭26‬ ‭CEV

This man wanted to follow all the right steps and gain Jesus approval. He came to the end of himself and couldn’t let go of the pride of what he built for himself and accept that Jesus was enough.

There are many verses that tell us about the good works God wants us to do. Those are an important part of living a Christian life. This post is focusing on our motivations. So, let’s look at a few more scriptures.

“How can you believe [in Me], when you [seek and] receive glory and approval from one another, and yet you do not seek the glory and approval which comes from the one and only God?”‬‬

John‬ ‭5‬:‭44‬ ‭AMP

That is the crux of the problem. Whose approval are we seeking? And why are we seeking that approval?

When Paul’s ministry met controversy he had this to say:

We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.

1 Thessalonians‬ ‭2‬:‭4b‬ ‭NIV‬‬

But what if I’m not doing enough? What if I’m not doing it right? How will I ever please God? I want God to welcome me into his kingdom saying, “Well done good and faithful servant.” I want it spelled out. I want a map. I want check boxes.

Where, then, is there room for boasting? Do our works bring God’s acceptance? Not at all! It was not our works of keeping the law but our faith in his finished work that makes us right with God. So our conclusion is this: God’s wonderful declaration that we are righteous in his eyes can only come when we put our faith in Christ, and not in keeping the law.‬‬

Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭27‬-‭28‬ ‭TPT

To wrap up, think about good works as Fruit of the Spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.‬‬

Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭22‬-‭23‬ ‭ESV

It is the Spirit producing in us what God desires.

for God is the one working among you both the willing and the working for what pleases him.

Philippians (Php)‬ ‭2‬:‭13‬ ‭CJB‬‬

God is the source of our good works. This alone can be a scary thing because we have to give up the concept and the control of our future. We can no longer judge our worth based on what others say about us, or the lies we tell ourselves. Our paradigm shifts from self-preservation to life in the Kingdom. And what a bountiful life he has planned.

Grace & Peace,

Sandy

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