How do we know if we are pleasing the Lord Jesus

[LostAndFound]

We all sin, and I have heard it said that the closer we get to God the more we will realize our shortcomings. Yet regarding a desire to not get discouraged, how do we know if we are on track and how pleasing we are to the Lord Jesus?

___________

[CountryPerson]

The best answer I have to give is to read the Scripture, for in them we have comfort and hope. When I go to His Word, I see His description of those who please Him, and it becomes a 'reality check' for me, the only true one. If anyone has grown up in an environment or is currently situated in one where you always felt you were 'a little bit short' of others' expectiations, it is easy to fall into this pattern of thinking.

[joy4Him2day]

when the Holy Spirit reveals your heart, it is without condemnation,it brings Life and assurance, it is so surrounded by love that you can look at it for what it is------
when satan is accusing you, it is different, it brings death in a way of despair, shame, and depression.........
remember: Jesus told his disciples "I came to give Life, not destroy it", is a good watchword........your walk with God brings life to you and others around you.......
obeying the Lord in what you know, pleases Him.....
I always think of this: "I desire mercy and not sacrifice"......sacrifice is easier than mercy.......
"go see what this means" He said.
Love your neighbor as yourself, to me, is the mercy part.......
Church going, praising, worshipping, communion, fasting, not-breaking the ten commandments---face value---is sacrifice.......
the Pharisees found themselves quite capable of these things--without God's help------but, to treat each other better than themselves-----impossible without God.......
everytime you show mercy---you do this in remembrance of Him---true communion........the ceremony, itself, is easy to do......the act of Love, takes God in you........
:):

[PlentyGroovy]

I think we are pleasing to Jesus when we love each other, when we don't return evil for evil, when we show others grace as He has shown us, when we help the poor and when we turn to Him first when making a decision. We show our love for Him by being obedient to His commandments.

[PlentyGroovy]

when the Holy Spirit reveals your heart, it is without condemnation,it brings Life and assurance, it is so surrounded by love that you can look at it for what it is------
when satan is accusing you, it is different, it brings death in a way of despair, shame, and depression.........
remember: Jesus told his disciples "I came to give Life, not destroy it", is a good watchword........your walk with God brings life to you and others around you.......
obeying the Lord in what you know, pleases Him.....
I always think of this: "I desire mercy and not sacrifice"......sacrifice is easier than mercy.......
"go see what this means" He said.
Love your neighbor as yourself, to me, is the mercy part.......
Church going, praising, worshipping, communion, fasting, not-breaking the ten commandments---face value---is sacrifice.......
the Pharisees found themselves quite capable of these things--without God's help------but, to treat each other better than themselves-----impossible without God.......
everytime you show mercy---you do this in remembrance of Him---true communion........the ceremony, itself, is easy to do......the act of Love, takes God in you........
:):

Yes, we need Him to help us to be able to forgive and we need His strength to resist temptation. :nod ( I forgot to include that important part) :):

[LostAndFound]

Thank you all for your answers. I guess though I am still a tad bit confused. I can look at my own walk with the Lord and I do see that I am becoming a more Christ like person. In the sense that I am more patient and kind. Yet I have areas where I feel like I should be doing better than what I am, I feel like I should have conqured certain things and yet I haven't. So I wonder whether Jesus would say that I should be doing better in that area or not. And whether because of it He would say that He is not pleased with my life.


______________________

[InSpirit]

Thank you all for your answers. I guess though I am still a tad bit confused. I can look at my own walk with the Lord and I do see that I am becoming a more Christ like person. In the sense that I am more patient and kind. Yet I have areas where I feel like I should be doing better than what I am, I feel like I should have conqured certain things and yet I haven't. So I wonder whether Jesus would say that I should be doing better in that area or not. And whether because of it He would say that He is not pleased with my life.


______________________

I feel the same way. While I have given myself to our Lord Jesus, I still feel that I should be doing better and conqured certain things that I haven't. Personally, I think that we can get past these things, but sometimes it takes time and, of course, God's Will.

Praying that we can all get past our sins! In Jesus name, amen.

Adam David

[Psalm 143]

Wow! What a great question! I feel like I am not good enough so often that I am constantly questioning myself and my life. It gets me down sometimes.

I also believe this is the devil trying to keep me from Jesus so I keep believing and hoping God will make me what he wants me to be. And that I will have the wisdom to know what to do and when. Im in no way perfect but I sure hope and pray Jesus will be happy to see me when that day comes.

[CountryPerson]

. . . . . Im in no way perfect but I sure hope and pray Jesus will be happy to see me when that day comes.

Psalm, you can rest assured that Jesus will be happy to see you when you one day see Him face to face. We can count on the fact that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Satan wants to destroy our joy. He does this on a regular basis in my life. Scripture tells us to resist Satan and he will flee; we resist him by Scripture, the same way our Lord did in the wilderness, when each time He replied to Satan, He began by saying, "It is written. . ." It is important to read the 'promises' of God's Word as well as the exhortations to godliness. We are instructed by one and comforted by the other.
We need both. :nod

[Deb]

God is pleased with us as He sees us through Christ. If you have a heart that wants to please Him, and you cry out to Him "Search me, O God -- see if there be any wicked way in me -- change me -- HELP me ..." you can know that He will show you and help you.

We cannot do this Christian life apart from the Holy Spirit empowering us. I know there are things in my life that need much improvement, and it burdens my heart. I know that there are many areas that I could minister if I weren't, for example, bound by having too much clutter. I see this as a bondage. Too much of my time is spent shuffling stuff I don't need. That's time I could be spending in prayer, bible study, service to others, witnessing, hospitality, and on and on.

Can He continue on while I waste my time? Of course. He needs neither my time nor my money. So why would it please Him? Because it would be better for me. He could bless me and others in so many ways, and He desires to do so. In the end, because I totally had to depend upon Him for all the empowerment to change, I would have a huge testimony to His glory. "See what He did in my life! He can do the same for you!"

[HeIsEnough]

I agree with everybody. :nod

I found these:


Hebrews 13:16

And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

The spiritual sacrifices.


Romans 12

Living Sacrifices
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual[a] act of worship. 2Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

3For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to hisfaith. 7If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

Love
[B] 9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[c] Do not be conceited.

17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"[d]says the Lord. 20On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."[e] 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

[OneSavior]

Wow! What a great question! I feel like I am not good enough so often that I am constantly questioning myself and my life. It gets me down sometimes.

I also believe this is the devil trying to keep me from Jesus so I keep believing and hoping God will make me what he wants me to be. And that I will have the wisdom to know what to do and when. Im in no way perfect but I sure hope and pray Jesus will be happy to see me when that day comes.

Quite often I 've had the same feeling of 'not good enough'
Just wanted to share some things I've heard in the past that have helped me.

God is not looking at us for perfection, just a willing heart
The fact that that you're even concerned, a healthy spiritual fear,
is pleasing.
Too often we view God as the big thou shall not in the sky, and forget about
his renewed daily mercies.
When the day comes, He will be waiting with open arms as He approaches
to greet us.

[Cocoa1080]

We all sin, and I have heard it said that the closer we get to God the more we will realize our shortcomings. Yet regarding a desire to not get discouraged, how do we know if we are on track and how pleasing we are to the Lord Jesus?

___________

Read 1 John, the whole letter, we are pleasing to God and show our love to him by keeping his commandments and being obident..I don't know about you but I don't always keep the commandments, I sometimes don't show someone love or I fall sometimes, so that only motivates me to work harder and ask God for help so I can live a life that shows him that I love him