Listen:  88 Question 2

Let’s start by reading Galatians 5:13-14, “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”  We who know the Lord Jesus Christ as our savior have been set free.  The Lord Jesus said of Himself in John 8:36, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”  What have we been set free from?  In a nutshell, we have been set free from the penalty of sin, from the power of sin, and in a future day we will be set free from the very presence of sin.  Galatians 5:13 warns us that we should not use this freedom to please ourselves.  Since we have been set free, we are instructed to serve each other, to take care of others’ needs.

As Christians, Romans 5:5 tells us that, “…the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”  We who know the Lord have His love poured out into our hearts, therefore we should love one another.  As we just read, we should, “love thy neighbor as thyself.”  The Lord Jesus took this truth even further when He said in John 15:12, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”  What kind of love does the Lord have for us?  He has a sacrificial love for us; a love that caused Him to die so that we might be saved.  The Apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”  This is what sacrificial love is.  It’s a love that causes us to put our personal needs aside and seeks to meet the needs of others.

So, what should we do to make others happy?  First of all, let’s make a distinction.  If it is sin that makes a person happy, we cannot be a part of that.  If someone wants a drinking partner to make himself feel better, we can’t do that.  If someone wants a sex partner to make himself or herself feel better, we can’t do that.  1 Timothy 6:11 tells us, “But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”  As believers, we have to look beyond fleeting, fleshly happiness and seek to do those things that will bring eternal happiness to our friends.  If you have a friend that has never accepted the Lord as their savior, then you owe it to that person to share the truth of salvation.  Romans 10:13-14 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”  The word for happiness is often translated ‘blessed’ in the Bible.  Psalms 2:12 says, “…Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.”  True happiness comes from believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, so share the Gospel with your friends.

For those of our friends that are already saved, we should be before the Lord, asking Him how we can please our friends in a way that will help them in their relationship with the Lord.  We read in Galatians 6:10, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”  As the Lord provides the opportunity, may we all be sensitive to His leading and use that opportunity to do good to others, especially our fellow believers.  I like to define doing good like this: it is that which helps our neighbor and glorifies our Lord.  Sometimes this may cause us to give material goods to others.  1 John 3:17 says, “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?”  How can you know what to do that will make others happy?  Pray!  Ask the Lord for His guidance to make sure that what you do is according to the real need of the person and according to the perfect will of God.  (88.2)