DEVOTION – DAY 463

Galatians 6:8-9 “Living To Please God”

Galatians 6:8-9 “Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whosever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

These verses contrasts for us two outcomes. People who live their lives selfishly to please themselves will end up facing destruction. People who live their lives to please God will ultimately end up inheriting eternal life. They may not enjoy a life of luxury or the outward signs of wealth as the world measures success in this life, but Gal.6:8-9 confirms that living to please God will lead to rewards. The rewards may not be in this life, but it will definitely await them when they get to spend eternity with the Lord. Thus, Paul encourages everyone to be patient to keep on doing good for the sake of others and to serve God as they will one day inherit the “treasures” they are storing up in heaven.

As an example of someone who lived to please God, William Carey was born in 1761 and both his parents were weavers. He had a gift for languages and he taught himself Latin before he was 10 years old. He later taught himself Hebrew, Italian, Dutch and French as he worked on shoes as an apprentice cobbler. He was baptized in 1783. Because of his gift of languages, he became a schoolmaster and soon served as a pastor in their local Baptist church. He felt led to be a missionary and in 1793, he and his family set sail for India, arriving in Calcutta in November. They eventually established a mission in Serampore that doubled as a school. They had a print shop and press on the grounds. His job was to translate and print Bibles in Bengali. In William Carey’s lifetime, the mission printed and distributed the Bible in whole or in part in 44 languages and dialects. Amongst the translations of the Bible were Bengali, Punjabi, Assamese, Marathi, Hindi and Sanskrit. He remained in India until his death in 1834.

His life was difficult but William Carey never counted the cost in serving God. He lost several of his children and two wives through ill health and disease. He always supported himself through working as an educationist even as he preached and taught in native languages. He made many sacrifices but he was willing to serve the Lord and to wait for his reward in eternity. 

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we worship you, the Almighty God of the Universe. Thank you for reminding us to live to please the Spirit and not the flesh. Please help us to always live from an eternal perspective, and always for you and your might purposes. We humbly pray in the wonderful name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Questions

  1. If you were to reflect on what motivates and drives you, how have you been living your life? Is it giving in to the desires of the flesh or is it eternity in mind? Share.
  2. Why is it important that you live to please God? Discuss.
  3. What changes will you make to the way you live so that you can live to please God more?