A conversation regarding obedience

In Nov. of 2017 I posted the following on Facebook. 

"Why do we pursue God, out of love or fear? 

Both! 

Out of love because he first loved us. 

Out of fear because operating contrary to God's design (how and why he made us) always has an adverse effect (if not immediately, eventually)."

This resulted in an instructive conversation between Rick (a FB friend) and I. I am posting that conversation below to illustrate the misunderstanding, tension, and confusion around our pursuit of (obedience to) God in the hope of clarifying some of the dynamics of that pursuit.

Now to Rick's response and the conversation that followed:

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Rick: 

You mean you aren't a Christian Hedonist? :/ I'm not either :)

Other valid reasons to seek God...

God exists and is the source of all meaning, purpose, and value. Without God, there would be none of these in an objective sense.

God is the ultimate authority over all creation and deserves our utmost obedience to his will, his pleasure and his purpose.

God is the ultimate worth and he is worthy of our praise and worship. Our surrender to God's will is the first step towards truly worshipping God.

Jim: (In response, I sent Rick the following blog post on the dynamics of what moves us to pursue and obey God)

http://thotsaboutgod.blogspot.com/2017/02/an-anatomy-of-motivation.html

Rick quotes from the above blog article adding his comments below...

Rick: 

"An anatomy of motivation - There are two overall but opposite approaches we observe in scripture regarding our motivation to obedience. All underlying forms of motivation fall under these two. These two broader areas are...

· positive motivation
· negative motivation"

His added comments...

- These two categories of motivation are based on the idea that we can expect something good or we can expect something bad. Another option that I believe is important is to acknowledge the authority of God as a basis of motive. In this respect, it is not so much what we personally expect but who God objectively is that forms the basis. If we believe God exists, we can obey God simply because of God's authority, without even contemplating what we personally expect. For example. We are commanded to submit to God and obey God. I can do this simply because God has clearly commanded it and not necessarily for any other reason. Do you agree?

Jim:

Yes, but I believe there's a bit more to obedience than simple willpower. If you haven't read the rest of the article at the above link it hints at this. 

Paul also points out it is God who enables us to choose and desire to pursue him in vs 13 of the following: 

"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure." Php 2:12-13

How does he do so? By appealing to self-interest. For example, we are told in Heb 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." The appeal of this verse is not just that God exists but OUR (us/self) being rewarded. 

Another example is "to gain your life you must lose it." What's the appeal? Us gaining life. The verse simply tells us the best way that happens is by losing our life i.e. we don't find our life by seeking life but by seeking God who is life. 

There is a difference between self-interest and self-ISHNESS. Not distinguishing these causes confusion. Several posts on my blog touch on this. If interested let me know.

Rick: 

Those are interesting verses and I would not be opposed to reading your articles. Because there are so many scriptural aspects of obedience to God, to me this implies that there are many valid motives that can overlap and are not mutually exclusive. I believe that there is a danger of taking a verse like Heb 11:6 and suggesting that this one verse codifies our approach towards obedience to God. For example, there is the motive of love of God that Jesus stated was a valid motive:

"If you love me, keep my commands." John 14:16

The word love is from the Greek "agape" which is translated as a self-less benevolent and giving type of love. So in other words, our motive for obedience based on this verse is not self-interest but is based on pleasing God.

Jim:

Love is THE key motive to obedience. So the question becomes how and when do we love God i.e. what is the cause of (stirs up) our love for him. Scripture clearly teaches our love (the key motive "behind" obedience) is a RESPONSE to his love for us. 1 Jn 4:10 "In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." In 1Jn 4:19 John goes on to say, "We love because he first loved us." We are not the initiators of love, God is.

This is also implied in John 15. It says without me "you can do nothing..." (vs 5) i.e. we can not bear fruit on our own. Fruit in the context is loving God and others (vs 12,17). So our loving God and others is based on and caused by our abiding in his love for us (vs 9). We can not love as God loves - i.e. sacrificially - otherwise. To say it another way, we are not the cause or source of love but the conduits of it.

Re: the Hebrews passage...it is simply an example, not a proof text. Self-interest is implied throughout scripture. His great offer is eternal life to us i.e. our eternal life. Even fear of the consequences for disobedience is the fear of US suffering. We do nothing apart from self-interest. 

Christ's very appeal to loving our neighbor is love for ourselves "...love your neighbor AS you love yourself..." He doesn't condemn our love of self (our desiring what is best for ourselves) he assumes it and makes his appeal based on that assumption.

The issue isn't our wanting what is best for us, it's how is that best accomplished. Through self-effort or in and by God i.e. through his love for us. 

I think the issue is we don't realize our greatest joy is IN God and recognizing the greatness of his glory i.e. our greatest joy (pleasure) and God's highest glory are not in opposition to each other but tied together. To say it another way, pursuing God and his highest glory IS our greatest joy (pleasure).

Rick: 

Jim Deal - "Self-interest is implied throughout scripture. His great offer is eternal life for US i.e. OUR eternal life." ...Christ's very appeal to loving our neighbor is love for ourselves "...love your neighbor AS you love yourself..." He doesn't condemn our love of self (our desiring what is best for us)

I'm sorry, but implications of our self-interest are always subservient to the interest of pleasing God in the whole of scripture, and plainly commanded as such, and to place our self-interest on equal grounds with pleasing God I believe is shown to be actually heretical based on traditional interpretations.

To take your first point, eternal life is epitomized by relationship together with God: "Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." (John 17:3) And relationship is defined as "being one" in the spirit: "I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one" (John 17:22) --- These verses do not imply that eternal life is based on focusing on the self or that the motive for eternal life is self-interest, rather, the focus is on interrelationship and unity for the glory of God, that is, mainly for GOD'S sake, not our own.

In your second point, you reference the second part of a two-part command and left out the most important first command: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[a] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31)

Matthew Henry clarifies the primacy of scriptural value:

"As we must, therefore, love God BETTER THAN ourselves, because he is Jehovah, a being infinitely better than we are, and must love him with all our heart, because he is one Lord, and there is no other like him; so we must love our neighbor AS OURSELVES, because he is of the same nature with ourselves;" (emphasis added). Here is Matthew Henry's full commentary on this verse:

2. That the second great commandment is, to love our neighbor as ourselves (v. 31), as truly and sincerely as we love ourselves, and in the same instances, and we must show it by doing as we would be done by. As we must therefore love God better than ourselves, because he is Jehovah, a being infinitely better than we are, and must love him with all our heart, because he is one Lord, and there is no other like him; so we must love our neighbour as ourselves, because he is of the same nature with ourselves; our hearts are fashioned alike, and my neighbour and myself are of one body, of one society, that of the world of mankind; and if a fellow-Christian, and of the same sacred society, the obligation is the stronger. Hath not one God created us? Mal. 2:10. Has not one Christ redeemed us?"

If we try to ignore or deny a direct commandment, that clearly states pleasing God (with others-centered agape love) is the highest commandment, and offer that self-interest is on par with or even above the command to please God, how is this not patently heterical?

"our greatest joy (pleasure) and God's highest glory are not in opposition to each other but tied together."

This is basically a toned-down re-phrasing of Piper's maxim. However, the phrase "God is not most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him" is misleading because the true measure of God's glory is not our personal satisfaction. The highest measure of God's glory is our conformity with God's nature and will, which is most emphasized by conforming to God's nature and will, which is based on agape love and holiness.

Scripture advocates worshipping God in spirit and in truth:

"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24).

Piper completely discounts many critical aspects of worship, such as affirming and meditating on truth, and heretically demands that the worship of God is based on emotions as an end in and of themselves:

"It can be done only when spontaneous affections arise in the heart. And these affections for God are an end in themselves. They are the essence of eternal worship" (p92 DG)

Jim, I am reading a brief but excellent new book on Piper titled "Christian Hedonism? A biblical examination of John Piper's teaching" by ES Williams, and I believe that it might help you to glean from his research some of the many critical scriptural errors of CH.

Jim:

Rick W Thanks for the feedback.

I don't disagree with anything you said.

Everything must be subservient to God simply because he is the cause of all things (i.e. a more than sufficient reason if there were no other one) "... For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen..." (Rom 11:36)

Nothing in scripture (regarding our obedience) is based on FOCUSING on self.

It sounds like you are equating self-interest with selfishness and that our interests are ABOVE Gods. I've said neither.

What I am saying is our (self's) best interest is IN God. God is our (self's) best interest.

My point is in order for us (self) to know and enjoy God, "self" is not set aside but fully engaged. We (us, self) give God the greatest glory when we (self) find him our greatest joy, treasure, pursuit etc. This isn't putting self above God at all. It is self delighting IN God above all things, vs self delighting in created things over and above God the Creator (our delighting in creation above God is the essence of self ISHNESS. It is seeking to make life work WITHOUT God i.e. through what I can obtain by myself and solely for myself. It is seeking meaning, purpose, joy, etc independent of God for my glory, not his).

However our (self) finding God to be more glorious than anything else "shows him off" (brings attention to his infinite glory, i.e. glorifies him). To believe and then act as if something is more valuable than God, dishonors him. When we find God our greatest delight and pursuit we are telling others, God is more important to me than anything else and therefore could be to you as well.

Regarding the greatest commandment, this actually underscores the point I am seeking to make. Loving our neighbor flows out of loving God first (which is the fruit of his love for us). It all starts with God, is through God and is for God i.e. for his glory e.g. Rom 11:36 

End of our FB conversation. 

In this conversation, we are dealing with very nuanced points. Facebook is generally not the best place for in-depth discussion and contemplation of such things. I say this because after looking this over there are things I did not address that I could have. Therefore I offer these additional thoughts.

Regarding obedience to God out of fear i.e. respect for God, even this is based on "self-interest" i.e. I wish to honor God out of respect for him and because he is worthy of all honor/respect but why do I respect Him?  Because he is all-wise, all-powerful, and just and I don't want something bad happening to me (self) if I don't honor him as such. This isn't selfish. It is rooted in our very being as God's image-bearer. Our being a creature who desires our own best interest is actually necessary in order for us to be able to enjoy and honor God who is most high and most delightful. 

For more on this point click here. 

Rick said, "I'm sorry, but implications of our self-interest are always subservient to the interest of pleasing God in the whole of scripture, and plainly commanded as such, and to place our self-interest on equal grounds with pleasing God I believe is shown to be actually heretical based on traditional interpretations."

This is a common misunderstanding and is hardest to grasp. God's highest glory and our greatest joy are not in competition or opposed to each other or that we can only do one or the other. So there are no "equal grounds." They are tied together but not equal because everything must start with God. Nothing happens if God were not all glorious. However, our greatest joy is God's highest glory. The more we exalt him - recognize His glory - the more we experience Him as He is and the greater our joy becomes. Joy is the result of recognizing and acting upon God's greatness - His infinite glory. We find him to be our greatest joy when we lift him up (glorify him) as the highest/greatest (most delightful) being of all beings or things and the only one worthy of our honor and greatest delight. This is not an "either/or" scenario. God's glory and our delight in God go hand in hand but in that order. It always must start with God, not us. If God were not the greatest of all beings, we would not and could not find the great joy that is God himself. And we are wired this way because this is how God designed us, so we might share in His glory as He does as Father and Son in by and through the Spirit. To enjoy God most we have to be most like Him without being God i.e. we are in His image.

Rick said:

Another option that I believe is important is to acknowledge the authority of God as a basis of motive. In this respect, it is not so much what we personally expect but who God objectively is that forms the basis. If we believe God exists, we can obey God simply because of God's authority, without even contemplating what we personally expect. For example. We are commanded to submit to God and obey God. I can do this simply because God has clearly commanded it and not necessarily for any other reason. Do you agree?"

Whether Rick deliberately intends to, the implication of what he is proposing is we have within ourselves the spiritual strength to obey God by simply willing ourselves to do so without God empowering us i.e. apart from his Love/Spirit. This is placing our will as the key (central) to obedience instead of God. However, God is the driving force behind our obedience, not our will. It is God who works in us "...both to will and to work for his good pleasure." Our will is an intricate part of obedience but it is not the central part, God is. Our will is vital in deciding (choosing) to believe God is who He claims to be and does (did and will do) what He promises/claims He will do. But this is choosing to believe is anchored into who God is generally and who He is for us specifically. It is based on faith in the character of God,  not faith based on faith in itself or how great our will is.

For a further discussion on this point click here.

The following verses clearly show the will and desire to obey God come from God, not us. Yes, it is our desires but desires that God "works" in and through us by revealing to us His great glory. 

Philippians 2:12-13 English Standard Version (ESV) 

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Though we are in God's image which allows us (gives us the capacity) to honor and enjoy God, absent God's Spirit/Love we are dead to God. We are not the source/cause/initiators of sacrificial love. Only God is. We can only love sacrificially when we know God loves us sacrificially and "has our back" i.e. God honors and rewards us and all our actions when done for his honor.

For more discussions on obedience click here.  

For more discussion on how our worth is tied to God's click here. 

Pleasing God vs loved by him

Being loved by God is a fixed reality for those who are ¹in Christ. Why? Because his love for us is based on ¹Christ's perfect performance on our behalf and not ours. 

To say it another way, we don't have to be perfect to be fully loved because legally we are perfect in Christ, i.e., the perfect life of Christ is ²credited to us (as if we lived it) and the full consequence for our rebellious unbelief was poured out on Christ (as if we did it). There is nothing to do by us or even God himself to make us any more legally perfect before God than we already are right now ¹in Christ. To use Christ's words, "...it is finished..." 

Why is this vital? Because, in reality and practically, we are far from perfect. The more we see our imperfections, the greater the impact Christ's work on our behalf becomes. 

As a result, there is nothing we can or should do to make ourselves more or less acceptable and loved by God than we already are right now in Christ. We are perfect and beloved of God. Nothing can cause God to love us more fully than he already does. Nothing! So stop trying!

However pleasing God - bringing joy to his heart - is a totally different, though related, matter. It is based on our faithful pursuit of him; our diligent obedience to him, i.e., our action/conduct or "performance" if you will. This conduct has to do with our ³relationship with God; the other is a matter of our status or legal standing before God. These are entirely different and separate, while connected at the same time.

The former (being loved by God) answers the following: 

"Am I an infinitely beloved child of God?" 

The bible gives us a resounding YES!!

"Is there anything ³I must do to ensure I am (and continue to be) an infinitely beloved child of God?" 

The answer is an equally resounding NO!!

Nothing I do will cause, ensure, or hinder God's love for me. That was why Christ came. He took care of all of this for me (because I couldn't). 

Our judgment is satisfied by Christ; our condemnation is gone because of Christ. Our standing as a beloved child of God is secured in Christ. God's love for us is absolute, infinite, and unrelenting because of Christ. 

As Christ declared in a very loud voice on the cross, "It is finished!" then he ⁴gave up his spirit. 

Pleasing God

The latter (pleasing God) addresses a very different question. Which is, "Am I a child that honors my infinitely loving Father to the utmost by my words and actions?" Notice this question addresses our side of things, not God's side. His side is already fully taken care of because of Christ's efforts on our behalf. 

Do I please him? It depends on whether I am living for him and loving him with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is a matter of my relationship with God, evidenced by my trust in Him and my ensuing faithful pursuit of Him. Do I fully trust the fixed and settled love he already has for me and act accordingly, i.e., by my response of faithfully pursuing Him out of love? True pursuit of God is a response of love for and complete trust in what God has done for us in Christ. 

Pleasing God is built on the rock-solid reality of God's infinite love perfectly secured for us in Christ. This is the connection between my legal standing before God and my ongoing relationship with Him. Separate matters but vitally connected. 

When we truly "get" the fullness of his love, it changes us. 

An Illustration

Just like any ⁵parent is most pleased when their kids heed their loving directions, so it is with God. And just as a loving parent will never love their child any more than they already do - but actually pursue them more intensely in love when they stray - so it is with God, i.e., once we are a child (born into the family) we will always be their child, i.e., loved and cherished by our parents. 

However, truly loving parents also find great delight in their child when they faithfully pursue their loving desires for them. In fact the more they love us the more delighted they are when we heed their wise and loving directions, because the more we trust and obey (as their child) the more we experience (enter into) the fullness of life they extent to us, desire for us (they desire this because of their great love for us) and that we were created for i.e. the more we flourish and blossom into who we were designed to be. What loving parent doesn't want their kid to know the fullness of their love and experience all the benefits and joy that comes with it, i.e., experience the most and best they were created to experience?

Do we obey our parents because they need our trust and obedience? Not in the sense that it adds anything to them as persons. But as loving parents, they do want ("need") to know their kids are doing well. They desire with all their hearts the absolute best for their child. 

Now, for the sake of illustration, let's say our parents are infinitely wise and know exactly what that best is (if they are truly wise and loving, they will know better than we do at a minimum). We know (trust) that heeding their directions is in our best interest, and it will not be hard to do so. The parents already know this; we, as their child, however, must learn this.

And when a child heeds well his parents' instructions, how do parents respond? Not only are they delighted, but they increasingly 6entrust that child with more because they long for their child to know an even greater fullness of their love, e.g., they will let the kid use the car because they know the kid will take care of it and not misuse it or intentionally damage it. As the child shows greater trust in their parents, the parents show greater trust in the child. As the child proves themselves more trustworthy, they are entrusted with even more. The relationship grows and strengthens, i.e., the love and trust on which all relationships are built, increases.

Of course, we all know there are ⁴no perfect parents, at least not on earth. But human parents who love God are a type of our heavenly Father, who is the perfect parent in every way because he alone is fully capable in every way (all-wise, loving, and powerful). And God, as our perfect parent, delights in knowing we are experiencing the best He has and there is for us. And He knows the best means of growing our trust in him and obedience to him (doing as he says) because he knows what that best is better than anyone, including ourselves. 

In summary:

Does our faithful pursuit of God matter? No and yes. 

As far as our being his beloved child - who is right (in right standing, justified) with God and the certainty of his love being secured (he will never leave us) and set on us - our pursuit makes absolutely zero difference. Somebody else had to (and was the only one who could) take care of this side of things, and did i.e. Christ himself. 

As far as our experiencing all the warmth and benefits of that love fully secured for us and the closeness of the relationship (fellowship) with him and bringing him joy and delight, it makes all the difference in the world, as with any love relationship. 

And when we stray, it hurts God, not because he needs us but because he wants us to know the fullness of that love - perfectly secured for us by Christ (which the Father and Son paid such a high price for) and that joy that is there for us in Him - to the fullest extent possible. This is why Christ came and did what he did. 

As evidence of their love, the Father and the Son went to infinite lengths to ensure all of this for our joy and his glory. 

Heb 11:6  And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 

 

But without faith it is impossible to please Him at all. For he who comes to God must (out of necessity in the nature of the case) believe that He exists, and that He becomes a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him out. (Wuest translation).

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Footnotes:

¹This is what is meant by the frequent expression "in Christ" used over 90 times in the NT. 

²The primary reason Christ came, lived among us, died, and returned to the Father was so He might restore us to the Father that we might have life again. The life we were created for but abandoned in the Garden.

³It should be pointed out that if we are now truly a redeemed child of God, we will be a new creature. Everything will be different. We will have new desires, a new outlook on life, and ourselves. A clearer vision of God and his love for us, resulting in a love for God that changes us and how we live. If there is no such change, the bible cautions us to "make our calling and election sure," i.e., do a spiritual self-assessment and be sure these qualities are true of you and in you and increasing. If they are not, we have no reason to believe we are his child. In fact, we are cautioned that we may not be. 

While our living for God does not cause, ensure, or secure God's love for us, it is clear evidence that we know (receive/accept) his love for us, i.e., that we have experienced it in such a way that we are no longer the person we were before knowing his love. When we know we are loved, we will respond in faithfulness. This is not something we have to do to be saved; it is something we do because we are saved. If we don't live faithfully for God, this is an indication we may not have experienced his love. This is a key message of James and also in I John. 

Being his child, however, doesn't mean we are perfect. We all blow it, and often. But once we are a child of God, blowing it matters; it affects others and us; it impacts our relationship with God, whereas before it didn't matter at all. Our caring about blowing it is evidence that we know God and value our relationship with him. 

But the most important point is that it robs God of the joy and delight of seeing us participate in the fullness of his love and our experiencing the joy of seeing his kingdom (rule and reign of love) advanced through us to others. 

⁴Note it says he gave up the spirit; it was not taken from him. This was a deliberate and planned-out action from all eternity past in which he was in complete control of. No one actually took his life, he willingly gave it up once He had completed what he came to do. Amazing grace!!!

⁵What about those who didn't have such perfect parents growing up?... 

You have one now. 

When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up. Psalm 27:10 (KJV) 

(CEV)  Even if my father and mother should desert me, you will take care of me.
(ERV)  Even if my mother and father leave me, the LORD will take me in.
(ESV)  For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in.
(GNB)  My father and mother may abandon me, but the LORD will take care of me.

6 Trust is a two-way street as a child of God. Not only is our relationship with our heavenly Father strengthened by our trust in Him, but His trust in us grows as we prove we can be trusted with greater gifts and responsibilities. The parable of the talents is an example of this. 

Do our deeds matter?

If God's love for us is not based on what we do, do our good deeds matter?

Absolutely! 

Doing things to honor God and love others has real value/importance/significance. 

To live in such as way as to honor God and display his infinite worth in our day to day affairs is a vital means by which others can see something of the love of God and our love for him and thereby be drawn to him. This also has immense value to God since he seeks to spread his glory throughout the earth.

To treat others with value/love is also of tremendous importance. It brings true value directly to them (whereas the above is more indirect) and can be a means by which we point them directly to God as the source of life, love and all things instead of just indirectly. It can be key to someone seeing something about God in and through our actions thereby also being drawn to faith in him. Loving others as he loves us is not only a way we directly bless others but a primary way in which we honor God.

So living for God in general pleases God and seeking to honor him by directly helping others, also pleases him by blessing others.

In these two ways, loving God and neighbor, we are acting as we were designed to; loving others out of our love for God.  

So there is no doubt as to whether what we do or don't do matters. It matters greatly. We are God's appointed means to "put him on display" and to love others so they might come to know him and experience him in all his glory for their greatest joy.

It matters to us as well since we are designed to operate in this way and how we experience the maximum of who God created us to be - which in turn brings us greatest joy as well as great reward.

But are our actions, good deeds, obedience etc the means by which we gain/earn God's love and acceptance? 

And are we to seek and find our sense of value, acceptance and purpose by bringing value (doing good deeds) to others. This is often were much confusion lies and a distinction must be made. 

There is no doubt we can be valuable to others and also no doubt we will derive a sense of our own value in helping others. The question however becomes whether this is the basis or grounds for our true acceptance and value. 

To say it another way, do we act to gain acceptance and approval from God and others or because we already have it? If we already have it we will give or bring value to others. Loving others - treated them as valuable, significant etc - is the fruit of our being loved by God. And when others benefit we can legitimately rejoice in being the means of showing them God's love. But to garner acceptance and praise of others is not to be the reason we act. We are designed to act out of fullness and not in an attempt to obtain acceptance from others by or through our actions i.e. out of emptiness.

This is easy to say but not always easy to identify since the true motive of our hearts is not always obvious to us. Our hearts after are desperately wicked. Who can know it. 

So what exactly is the basis of God's acceptance of us and from where do we acquire our true sense of significance, meaning and value?

In truth, there is *nothing we can do to earn or gain God's acceptance. The ultimate grounds by which we are accepted and loved by God has to come not by our efforts but that of someone else. It is in and by God's approval of his Son i.e. his Son's faithfulness in honoring God and loving his neighbor to the point of losing his own life. This is because we can not and do not honor God or love our neighbor well enough for our efforts to ever cause God to love and accept us.

God's absolute love and acceptance of us requires our 100% (perfect) faithfulness. Faithfulness we never do (or can do). Anything less is inadequate, unacceptable and insufficient because God is the 100% cause of life, love and all things (all that we have and are). Because these are true he rightfully deserves and should receive our 100% commitment, faithfulness, honor and love.

Since we never are 100% faithful (and can be without his Spirit/love moving us to faithfulness) this had to be done for us if we were ever to be accepted by God. It had to be done perfectly because God is perfect and is rightly due perfect and absolute faithfulness. Only the eternal Son of God could do this and did do this, for us. If there was to ever be any hope of God restoring us to himself, this had to be done because we could not do it ourselves. We simply are too distrusting and too unfaithful i.e. we are not 100% faithful. If he hadn't done this for us we'd be without hope. Because it's 100% obtained for us by Christ we have absolute 100% hope. 

To do things in order to be accepted and loved by God or others will never cause God to love and accept us or give us what we need and were designed to experience i.e. 100% acceptance and love by God. 

To say it simply we don't act to gain value but to give it because we already have it, in Christ. And in so doing we in fact bring real value to others.

We treat others with value because God is 100% worthy of our faithful pursuit and so are others he's created.

God certainly loves and approves our doing things for his honor and glory; when we demonstrate our love for him by loving our neighbor as ourselves. It's just not the basis by which he accepts and receives us.

Pleasing God is not performing for God to gain his acceptance, it is operating by faith to spread his glory.

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*The issue in question is a legal one i.e. justification, not the very practical day to day one of pleasing God. Faithfulness definitely pleases God, it simply doesn't justify us and make us right with God or causes him to accept us.

We do things to bring him glory, not to earn or cause him to accept us. 

Does God value us?

The following excerpt is from Jonathan Edwards's dissertation titled "The End for Which God Created the World." As the title shows, Edwards primarily addresses the reason God created. 

In this quote, Edwards explains why it is right (*moral) for God to have the highest regard and respect for himself over and above all other beings or things.

However, we wish to look at this quote more closely to see what Edwards says about God having regard and respect for beings other than himself and why he would.

"...At least, a great part of the *moral rectitude of God, whereby he is disposed (drawn) to every thing that is fit, suitable, and amiable [i.e. good, right, pleasant, admirable] in itself, consists in his having the highest regard to that which is in itself highest and best (i.e. Himself). The moral rectitude of God must consist in a due respect to things that are objects of moral respect; that is, to intelligent beings capable of moral actions and relations. And therefore it must chiefly consist in giving due respect to that Being (i.e.God) to whom most is due; for God is infinitely the most worthy of regard (i.e. being highly regarded). The worthiness of others (beings) is as nothing to his; so that to him belongs all (the greatest/highest) possible respect. To him belongs (is rightfully his) the whole of the respect that any intelligent being is capable of. To him belongs (it is also rightfully his) ALL the heart. Therefore, if moral rectitude of heart consist in paying the respect of the heart which is due, or which fitness and suitableness requires, fitness requires infinitely the greatest regard (but not the only regard i.e. he also has regard to others) to be paid to God; and the denying of supreme regard here would be a conduct infinitely the most unfit. Hence it will follow, that the moral rectitude of the disposition, inclination, or affection of God chiefly (but not exclusively) consists in a regard to HIMSELF, infinitely above his regard to all other beings; in other words, his holiness consists in this.” (any emphasis such as parenthetical, emboldened or underscored comments etc. are my own)

Though the main and most important point Edwards makes above is that God is the highest and greatest being, and therefore must have the highest and greatest respect for himself, he also hints that he has regard for any being capable of moral respect. 

"The moral rectitude of God must consist in a due respect to things (beings) that are objects of moral respect; that is, to intelligent beings capable of moral actions and relations..." i.e. beings other than God that can also recieve and give God honor in the same way He does between the Father, Son, Spirit. 

Edward's use of the word "must" shows the ¹moral ²necessity of God having regard for any being capable of having "¹moral actions and relations." This is primarily true of God in regards to Himself but also of others like Him i.e. you and I. God created us as intelligent beings capable of moral actions and relations, to use Edwards words. This is clearly suggested by the Bible's saying that we are "made in the image of God."

By God's own nature and design, he must value and love the most lovely and valuable. And who would that be? God himself is the most worthy of adoration and love. Why? From, through, and to him are all things. Without him nothing would be, that is. He is supremely valuable above all other beings or things.  He is love and life.

And Christ is the perfect eternal expression-reflection-image of God. If we see Christ for who he truly is, we see God as He truly is. But after Christ, we are next.

God's value of us has nothing to do with what we do or say but who we are, who God Himself designed us to be. It is an innate capacity and ability given to us by God and is therefore something he holds in the highest regard (just below regard for Himself). God is not obligated by us - by what we do or don't do - to value us. He values us because of who He made us to be i.e. our being, not our doing. The reason God loves us and desires to be in union with us is self "imposed" i.e. self-generated. 

This is due to our nature (God's and ours) and his design of those other beings i.e. we are like God - His image-bearers - with the capacity to engage in "moral actions and relations."

What is the nature of those moral actions and relations? What are "¹moral actions and relations" comprise of? Any actions that deliberately/willfully acknowledge God's ultimate worth and any beings capable of doing so. This is not just true of God, but of us as well. And it is only true of us because it's true of God 1st - and that He made us like Himself.

God has the highest regard for what we do. Our God-honoring conduct is genuinely pleasing to Him (as much as our dishonoring Him is not). But our capacity to live for God's honor is only possible because of who He has made us to be.

Therefore, it is not only good and right that God has the highest regard for himself as the highest and most significant being, but to also have regard for other beings like him who are capable of having similar regard for him.

Who are those beings other than God? Us! We are created in the image of the greatest being of all. Though God is the ultimate and only infinite being who is most worthy, elicits the highest regard, and is capable of giving (and receiving) the greatest respect, we are like him and therefore capable of giving him due respect in the same way he does; in a way no other creature can. Though our ability to willfully regard God properly - i.e. to recognize and bring him his due glory and honor - is small ("as nothing") compared to his, it is a capability we have nonetheless, which ³no other creature has (only we, out of all the rest of creation, are like God).

The point is God values ("has regard for") us due to our ability to appreciate and enjoy his infinite worth. The greater that ability the more he values (regards) the one who possesses it. God, having the greatest ability, elicits his greatest regard for himself first and foremost. Because we, too, have this ability, we are valued accordingly.

Again Edwards says God has 

"...due respect to things that are objects of ¹moral respect; that is, to intelligent beings (i.e. us as well as himself) capable of moral actions and relations..."  

In short, God values in us what he values in himself, the ability to give due regard and recognition to his great value and glory. Certainly, our capability is of an infinitely lesser degree than his, but a capability we have nevertheless. A capacity he values in us. 

Because this capability is given to us by God, it is not a point of pride but of humility. It is a gift, not anything accomplished or earned by us. It is who he has made us to be, not what we have done by or for ourselves. 

Knowing that our capability to properly regard (value/glorify) God is only a drop in an infinite ocean compared to his is also a point of humility. He alone is the infinite source. We are simply conduits/vessels. 

Why does God love me?! 

When people say "I don't understand why God would love me," what is discussed above is precisely why God would ⁴love you. He made you with the capacity to know and enjoy him in all his infinite glory in the same way (quality, not quantity) he knows and enjoys himself. And in turn to radiate out to others his glory i.e. we are able to make Him known to others in a direct and deliberate way. 

To say it another way, we are able to deliberately, willfully, and consciously glorify God and enjoy him forever in a way no other creature can. All of this and more is included in our being made in his image.

God values -- "has high regard for" -- us precisely because he values himself first, in whose image we have been created.

Some other links that touch on different aspects of God valuing us:

Our worth is based on what?

Why in God's name does he love us?

God's love based on who or what?

Created for glory

Lovable vs lovely

Hardwired for greatness

The most valuable values us 

Our worth Gods glory

Giving and receiving glory

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¹For a further discussion on the basis for morality, click here.

²It is unnecessary in the sense that God is not obligated by something outside himself. God needs no one and nothing (no created thing) and answers only to himself. But because of who he is and who he made us to be as his image-bearers, this is a "necessity" first because of his nature and design. It is the way things operate because it is the way God designed them to operate according to his own nature. If there is any necessity, it is one God has within and to himself - within his being, according to who he is as the all-glorious God.

³all of God's creation glorifies him by design. We, however, appear to be the only beings that glorify him by both design and choice. The angels chose him at one point when some rebelled with Lucifer and others did not. We, however, are still in an ongoing state where we can choose not to trust him in this life, whereas angels apparently no longer have to deal with this decision. They only desire God, which will also be our future glorified state. 

⁴This is also why God is pleased with us the more we delight in him. Not unlike a wife would be when her husband delighted in her. Even though His love for us and acceptance of us is not based on or affected by our delight or lack of delight in him - i.e. his love is poured out on us because of the efforts of Christ, not ours - His commitment to and acceptance of us are unwavering because of Christ. Nothing we do or don't do can separate us from his love — we can nevertheless bring greater joy to God's heart the more we trust and delight in him.

For a fuller discussion on pleasing God, click here. 

To say it another way, our rebellious unfaithfulness (sin) matters. It not only has a negative impact on us and those around us, but it also shows our lack of love for God and dishonors him i.e., we do not treat Him with the due respect He rightly deserves. It saddens God because he loves us and knows our honoring him is not only for our good but the means by which others are drawn to him through us. It saddens him if his glory is not being spread more effectively through us to others, affecting their experience and enjoying God in all his glory. 

  

Heb 11:6  "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."