Knowing others have sought to and are seeking to please Christ should help us to do the same. We are not alone in our journey to living for Christ. Nor is it just a 21st-century activity. From the very beginning, Christ-followers have sought to be Christ pleasers instead of people pleasers.

As self-professed Christ-followers, we should do the same — we should be Christ pleasers, not people pleasers. One way we can fight the tendency to be a people pleaser is to exist in a community with other Christ Pleasers. Not only do we need the example of others in history, like Paul, but we also need the example of others today. We need others to look to and others to encourage us on a daily basis. In order for that to happen, we have to be in a community with others.

Our need for community is why you not only need to attend church, but you should join a church and then plug into a small group. If we hope to be Christ pleasers instead of people pleasers, especially in the hostile world in which we find ourselves, we need others.