We learn from childhood pleasing others makes an easier life. But pleasing others results in a sense of insecurity as we listen to the voices in our head, our parents, schoolteachers, and friends. The sin nature leaps on that misguided notion and links our worth to our performance. This performance-based thinking is low-level legalism in Christianity. It deceptively teaches that God treats us based on how well we perform. This minor sounding difference was precisely what Jesus consistently disagreed with the Jewish leaders about. It motivated them to crucify Jesus.
The Bible repeatedly stresses that God has fundamentally different values and judges us accordingly. He values why something is done far more than what or how it is done—the performance issue. The consequence of adopting our culture’s performance values over God’s values will be catastrophic if that false teaching is not corrected before death. The sobering part is a person can start out seemingly having the right motives, but the track of their false belief ends in a train-wreck. Consider this case in point.
Hezekiah was the son of a very ungodly king of Judah, Ahaz. After his father’s death, he became king at 25 years of age and he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David, his father, had done (2 Chronicles 29:2, ESV). While His father, Ahaz, had stopped worship in the temple, In the very first month of the first year of his reign, Hezekiah reopened the doors of the Temple of the LORD and repaired them (2 Chronicles 29:3, NLT2). He brought such spiritual reform the Bible records that Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before or after his time (2 Kings 18:5, NLT2). Please note this. Performance is noteworthy ONLY if it flows out of a genuine heart that is passionate about God, NOT ego motivated honorable deeds.
After God richly blessed Hezekiah, he looked at all God had done through him and his sin nature led him to imagine, ‘look what all I have done’. He began to think and feel his leadership skills, personality, or religious ideology accomplished all those things instead of God doing them through him. When he learned Egypt and Babylon had rebelled against the Assyrians, without consulting God, he thought he could also do that. Later, when he heard the king of Assyria was coming to crush his rebellion, again without consulting God, he attempted to use his negotiating skills with Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, by giving him the gold that had been on the temple doors.
After God had graciously delivered him from the Assyrians AND healed his near-death sickness, his heart was still not humbled. He accumulated great wealth. When given the opportunity, he showed the visiting Babylonian entourage all the wealth he had amassed. God then had Isaiah tell him the time was coming when everything in his palace, along with many of the people, would be carried off to Babylon. Hezekiah replied, that is fine with me if it doesn’t happen in my lifetime. (2 Kings 20:19, NIV) This irreverent, unrighteous attitude is what he imbedded into his young co-regent son who would become one of the most wicked kings of Judah. The Bible also says Hezekiah did not respond appropriately to the kindness shown him, and he became proud. So, the LORD’s anger came against him and against Judah and Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 32:25, NLT2). The church of Ephesus (Revelations 2:17) also found out that God is not as concerned with what we do (our performance), as He is in why we do it. The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. 2 Chronicles 16:9 (NLT2) My prayer is for the Holy Spirit to help me keep my heart fully committed to Him. Can you join me in praying this for your life?