July 18, 2004

Cawson St. Church of Christ

Hopewell, Virginia

Mural Worthey

Introduction

There are many significant phrases in the Scriptures. Among them are these: "According to the Scriptures," "If the Lord Wills," "Thus Saith the Lord," "And God Said," "He Arose Again the Third Day," and "In the Sight of God." I want to emphasize this last one, In the Sight of God, for our study today.

This phrase, in the sight of God, occurs often in the Chronicles of Israel when the various judges and kings are evaluated in regard to their conduct as king. The record will say either that they did what was evil in the sight of God or they did what was good in the sight of God. (1 & 2 Chronicles, 1 & 2 Kings, Judges, etc.)

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer." (Psalm 19:14.)

"So shalt thou find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man." (Prov. 3:4.) "Be not wise in thine own eyes; fear the Lord and depart from evil." (3:7.)

"And enter not into judgement with thy servant; for in thy sight shall no man living be justified." (Psalm 143:2.)

"Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore." (Isa. 38:3.)

"You have wearied the Lord with your words. Yet you say, Wherein have we wearied him? When you say, Everyone that doeth evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and he delights in them, or, Where is the God of judgement?" (Malachi 2:17.)

"But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge you. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." (Acts 4:19-20.)

A man in bright clothing said to Cornelius, "Thy prayer is heard and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God." (Acts 10:31.)

"But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." (1 Peter 3:4.)

"Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever." (Heb. 13:21.)

"Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight, but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." (Heb. 4:13.)

"But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident. For the just shall live by faith." (Gal. 3:11.)

"Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men." (2 Cor. 8:21.) "Providing things honest in the sight of all men." (Rom. 12:17.)

"For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God, but as of sincerity, but as of God. In the sight of God speak we in Christ." (2 Cor. 2:17.)

"You are they which justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God." (Luke 16:15.)

This phrase is filled with meaning and power. There are many additional passages other the ones given above. What are some of the great truths that we can learn from this phrase?

One of the first and most important lessons to learn from this phrase is that we live openly before the all-seeing eye of God. This is the meaning of the words, "Be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows that he shall also reap. He that sows to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption. He that sows to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap everlasting life." (Gal. 6:7.) The wise man wrote, "The eyes of the Lord are in every place beholding the good and the evil." (Prov. 15:3.)

This does not mean that we should live our lives in fear, cowering before a powerful being who is eager to catch us in some wrong. That is the wrong view of the God of the Bible. However, it is true that there is an ever-present God who is all-seeing. There are two groups of people in the world: those who live thinking wrongfully that there is no God and those who live realizing that there is a Creator and Father above. The Bible records, "If we believe not, yet he abides faithful. He cannot deny himself." (2 Tim. 2:13.)

It surely makes a difference whether we understand that we live before One with whom we have to do. ""Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight. But all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." (Heb. 4:13.) He is the silent listener to every conversation. He is the eyewitness to every deed done, whether good or evil. He looks with compassion and pity upon us because he "knows our frame that we are but dust," and he remembered that "we are but flesh, a wind that passes away and comes not again." (Psalm 103:14, Psalm 78:39.)

There is a bold distinction between the sight of God and the sight of men. For example, Jesus said to the Pharisees, "You are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts. For that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God." (Luke 16:15.)

In the judges, we find such a distinction made. "In those days, there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes." (Judges 17:6.) This is repeated at the close of the record in Judges 21:25. Moses warned the Israelites about doing whatsoever is right in their own eyes. (Deut. 12:8.)

Doing what is right in your own eyes is not a complimentary or good thing to do. It stands in bold opposition to doing what is right in the eyes of God. I have known only one person to try to defend doing what is right in your own eyes in my life. What blasphemy against God! Men generally go their own way in stubbornness and self-willed disobedience. The prophet Isaiah wrote, "Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil, that put darkness for light and light for darkness, and that put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!" (Isaiah 5:20.)

#3: The Standard for Right and Wrong

Right and wrong are not determined by what men think. If we left it up to men, everything that God says is good, men would call evil. Everything that God says is evil, men would call good. Is that not what men do? The reason is that if we reject God, then we are controlled by the spirit of evil. The Evil one chooses the opposite of God’s way. Due to the flesh, men will choose the evil in the world.

If God said that lying was good, men would probably call it evil. If God promoted multiple husbands and wives, men would promote monogamy. Why are we determined to do the opposite of what God desires? The only answer to that is there is evil in the world. It is greater than any one man and group of men in their evil intents. The petty, sophomorish sins of men are nothing compared to what the Devil really desires.

Man is stubborn and self-willed. He must be taught to be mature, spiritual and godlike. Men do not determine what is right or wrong. God does. We must be concerned with God’s will and what is right in his sight!

It makes little difference how many people think that same-sex marriage is acceptable in society. It is not up for vote. Men do not determine if adultery is right or wrong. God has spoken. It does not matter how much good can come from stem-cell research, if infants are being destroyed in the process. I have a proposition for Ronnie and Nancy Reagan: take the cells from their next child or grandchild and do the research! Then see if they are all for stem-cell research! We must all be concerned about what God thinks and says. In his sight has does it look??

It is interesting that the Bible says, "But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident. For, the just shall live by faith." (Gal. 3:11.) Paul added the words in the sight of God to make it more emphatic. He could have just said, No man is justified by the Law. That would have been true. But here is that significant phrase in the sight of God. And that is what matters. It does not matter how men think that they are justified. The Jews certainly thought that they were justified by the Law of Moses. But justification in the sight of the Jews is not what matters. God had planned from long ago that the just shall live by faith. (Hab. 2:4.) That great truth is repeated in Heb. 10:38, Rom. 1:17 and Gal. 3:11.

The Jews were the first, but not the last, to try to justify themselves. Paul wrote about them, "For they, being ignorant of God’s righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believes." (Rom. 10:2-3.) Jesus said, "You are they which justify themselves before men, but God knows your hearts." (Luke 16:15.)

Here is a brief list of ways in which have sought to justify themselves without considering or knowing God’s plan of justification:

1. Law-keeping. Notable examples are Jews, Muslims, Pelagians, and those who have turned the Gospel of Christ into another law-system.
2. Self-denial or asceticism. Examples are monks, nuns, and eastern religions like Buddhists and Hindus. Paul condemned such practices by saying the commandments of men—touch not, taste not, and handle not—all will perish with the using. These things have a show of wisdom in will worship, humility and neglecting the body. (Col. 2:21-23.)
3. Rationalism. Philip Schaff rightfully said, "All rationalists are Pelagian in their anthropology." (History of the Christian Church, Vol. 3, 789.)
4. Goodness. By being just a good person. Some go so far as to say, One need not even acknowledge or believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Just be a good person and do the best you can and you will go to heaven.
5. By being a super-Christian. The Wesylans, John and Charles, believed that God was using them to revive the lost doctrine of sanctification. One must go beyond just salvation by grace through faith; one must also experience something deeper, more mysterious, and better. One must experience the baptism of the Holy Spirit, be Spirit-guided and led, sanctified and make perfect. One must conquer this thing called sin and not wrestle with it all one’s life. Only by having the fulness of the Spirit within can do it.
6. Perfect doctrine and perfect book. Some trust in the Bible rather then trusting in the Savior. Jesus once said, "You search the Scriptures because in them you think that you have eternal life. And the Scriptures testify of me. But you will not come to me that you might have life." (John 5:39-40.) The Bible is inspired, but it is not the Savior. The doctrine is of God, but no one knows or obeys everything that he knows.

Jesus made a powerful point in his Sermon on the Mount concerning motives in doing good and in religious acts. He said:

"Take heed that you do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise you have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth. That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not you therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things you have need of, before you ask him." (Matt. 6:1-8.)

From Jesus words, we should learn; 1) God knows the good that you do even if others do not. 2) He will reward you openly if you do them for the right reason. 3) We should not put on airs when we worship God as a show to others who are not Christians. 4) We must be concerned about in the sight of God and not in the sight of men. 5) Religious people do good deeds or worship to be seen of men in order to receive praise from men. Or they just forget that God is involved altogether. Perhaps, they do not even believe in God anymore.

There are, of course, some areas in which we should be concerned about what men think. Some are: 1) We should provide things honest in the sight of all men. (Rom. 12:17, Prov. 3:4.) 2) We should not so behave in worship that visitors will think that we are mad people! (1 Cor. 14:23.) 3) We should let our lights so shine before men that they will see our good works and glorify our Father which is in heaven. (Matt. 5:16.)