“Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘have you considered my servant Job? There is none on earth like him, he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil'” (Job 2:3).
Someone said “It is not our impression about ourselves that really matters, but God’s impression about us”. In other words, it’s not what we think of ourselves or how we see ourselves but what God thinks of us that is important to Him. Most people who claim to have a relationship with God need to ask themselves an honest and soul-searching question “can God brag about me?
This is necessary because if we are true children of His, He should be able to brag about us before Satan any day, anytime. God wants to be proud of us resulting from our conducts and character. It gives Him joy to see us live a life that brings Him glory, a life of no compromise, a life that makes people say good things about Him, not the reverse. God derives great pleasure when our lives attract others (the unsaved) to Him. That of course is great service to Him. Jesus says in Matthew 5:16 “In the same way, let your light shine before men that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven”. (NIV)
That is it! God expects our lives to shine before men. It should be a light that attracts people to Him. Earlier in verse 14, He said that we’re the light of the world, and a city on a hill that cannot be hidden.
Recently I watched on television how a family brought their little son for a thanksgiving in the Church. The boy hung three medals on his neck that he won in his school. One was for the best prize for English and Mathematics, another for overall best result, and another for something else. You could see the joy expressed by the parents and the siblings while they were giving the testimony. That’s exactly what happens when we make God proud through our good deeds and glorious living.
In the book of Job chapter 2 verse 3, we see how God bragged about Job before Satan. God described him as being blameless and upright, a man who fears God, and shuns evil. Not only that, God says that he maintained INTEGRITY even when he (Satan) incited God against him to ruin him without cause. Wow! Job maintained integrity despite adversity. He was tested and proven.
Like Job, God wants to be able to brag about you and I. Somebody may be quick to answer me in his or her heart that we cannot live a blameless life in a sin-investd world, just as a fish cannot live in the water without being wet. That is the devil’s consolation. He is a liar and the father of all lies. (John 8:44). Job was blameless. God says so. He was an upright person, a man that fears God, and abhors evil. That is God’s testimony about him. Can He say the same about us? Can He brag about us?
Let’s not allow the devil to deceive us. Let’s refuse to buy his lies that we cannot be what God wants us to be, because we can if we really want to. The Bible says that “for with God all things are possible” (Mark 10:27). Apostle Paul, in one of my favorite scriptures says “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. (Philippians 4:13). Let’s believe it, and confess it, too, and give God cause to brag about us.
Revd. A. U. Akpan is the President of Faith Activation Global Ministries, Lagos, Nigeria, in divine partnership with The Ministry of the Word.
INSIGHT: Let’s not allow the devil to deceive us that we cannot be what God wants us to be.