You can call it people pleasing
But it means to water down the word,
to soften the blow and effect that it may have
Back-stepping a little
Making the word fit the situation so the hearers may not be convicted,
so they will not hate the messenger
But whosoever shall deny Me before men,
him will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven. Matthew 10:33
We cannot change God’s Word or His Character
His word is who He is:
God is not a man, that He should lie;
neither the son of man, that He should repent:
hath He said, and shall He not do it?
or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? Numbers 23:19
If people don’t listen to His word or like it, that is on them
They will reap what they sow and God will not be mocked
His word is True and Righteous and Holy
Jesus spoke the truth because He is the truth
Jesus did not go back on what He said
if those whom He met decided not to listen to or not to follow Him,
I never saw Him run after anyone to hope they changed their mind,
to see if He could make a deal with them
We accept Jesus on His terms
If we start compromising, or trying to make a deal with Him,
we are not worthy of Him
And he that taketh not his cross and followeth after Me is not worthy of Me.
Matthew 10:38
Jesus said some very hard things in His word
If you do not forgive, you will not be forgiven
Our whole walk with Christ is based on His forgiveness to us
and our acceptance of Him as Lord and Savior
that He offered His life as a sacrifice on our behalf
We are saved by grace through faith
He is also very clear if we don’t forgive, He may not forgive us
That grace is dependent on Him
People like to ignore the things Jesus said that they don’t like
Most preachers don’t teach on them
If we have the intent in our hearts to think we have a place in the kingdom,
we should return to our humble position when we first came to the cross
If ye love Me, keep my commandments. John 14:15
Jesus is extremely gracious
However, if a person takes the Mark of the Beast and bows to Satan,
there is no returning from that
And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever:
and they have no rest day nor night,
who worship the beast and his image,
and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Revelation 14:11
Jesus is also very clear about the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit:
But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness,
but is in danger of eternal damnation:
Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit. Mark 3:29-30
If people hear the truth, they will have a reaction to it,
some will want more,
some will want it contained to a certain degree,
others will completely dismiss it,
and some will despise it
It is not for us to determine whether
someone will or will not accept the gospel and the truth of His word
Keep it pure and honor the Lord and speak His word as He leads
Jesus made this point very clear:
If we are ashamed of Him and His words,
He also will be ashamed of us before the Father
How does that work if He is our advocate?
Being ashamed of Jesus and His words is a very serious matter
We will answer for that
Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My words
in this adulterous and sinful generation;
of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed,
when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels. Mark 8:38
Those are just a few examples of not taking what Jesus said seriously
Changing His word or softening His word is not conducive to following Christ
Being led by the Holy Spirit is key
And making sure you are sharing the gospel
in a humble way before God,
not being concerned with how people may receive it
Jesus did and said what He saw the Father do
and said what He heard Him say
It is important that we also try our best to pray and seek God’s wisdom
and words when we are in a situation where we need His insight,
to do and say the right things
The rest is up to God
How they receive it is up to them
The world hates many scriptures in God’s word
They hate the words The Bible says about alternative lifestyles
They excuse or disregard things they don’t agree with
They hate some of His commands
They hate the idea that some will get cast into Hell’s fire if they don’t repent
Or they think Hell will be a fun place where all their friends are
Jesus’ word exposes their hearts
If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:
but now they have no cloke for their sin. John 15:22
Remember when John the Baptist told Herod and Herodias
that it was not lawful to take his brother’s wife?
They hated those words so much so
that Herodias told her daughter to request John’s head on a platter
and she then received it from King Herod
Oh to be the King’s wife!
A special honor?
Not in eternity
If your heart has been tender toward pleasing Jesus and not people,
He will notice that
It takes practice, it takes prayer and filling yourself up with the things of God, learning and knowing the word,
doing your best to understand Jesus’ character,
gaining courage as you ask Him for strength
and accepting His heart toward people
as well as being willing to speak the truth as the Holy Spirit prompts you, even when it is uncomfortable
Additional Scriptures and References:
Be not deceived; God is not mocked:
for whatsoever a man soweth,
that shall he also reap.
Galatians 6:7
For if ye forgive men their trespasses,
your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6:14-15
For by grace are ye saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Ephesians 2:8
Then answered Jesus and said unto them,
Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself,
but what He seeth the Father do:
for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
John 5:19
For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent Me,
He gave Me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
John 12:49
And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced,
and pleased Herod and them that sat with him,
the king said unto the damsel,
Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.
And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me,
I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.
And she went forth, and said unto her mother,
What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.
And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying,
I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.
And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath’s sake,
and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
And immediately the king sent an executioner,
and commanded his head to be brought:
and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel:
and the damsel gave it to her mother.
And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse,
and laid it in a tomb.
Mark 6:22-29