Favor of God, Favor of Man

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!

And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men — Luke 2:52 (NIV)

My wife, unknown to me, began to pray a few weeks ago that I would not only gain favor with God, but with man. Not that she doubted that I already wasn’t receiving God’s favor, rather that His favor would extend to people whether they trusted their lives to Him or not.

Since I work for myself, I’m busy throughout the day writing articles, marketing myself and trying to run a business. Needless to say, there are times I feel overwhelmed by it all, needing some help especially from above.

The verse in Luke mentioned above is very interesting. At that time, Jesus was twelve years old and was astounding everyone with his scriptural knowledge and composure. Jesus never lacked the Father’s favor, as He already had that.

and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is my beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased” — Matthew 3:17 (NASB)

We also have God’s favor when we become born again. That doesn’t mean we always have all of His blessings, especially when we’re willfully sinning, but it does mean that His favor is upon us.

The favor of man is something that is entirely different, seemingly harder to gain, especially by human means. People are so fickle, loving you one moment and ready to rip you apart the next. But, having man’s favor is still important, especially as we navigate through this life.

Jesus had man’s favor not because He told them what they wanted to hear but because He spoke truthfully and with authority.  As Christians, we’re to model that pattern in our own lives, demonstrating to the world who we are and what we believe.

Related to that, I believe that God wants us to seek favor from men in other areas of our lives.  My wife’s prayers were uttered in the knowledge that she wanted prospective customers to give me their favor too, in the form of new work.

Well, her prayers have been answered as I recently started working with two new clients and have signed on with a third a special promotional opportunity. I’m not saying that the floodgates have been opened, but I will say that my cup is filled to the brim. All this has taken place in the face of the worse economy we’ve seen in a generation.

Speaking about the economy, I realize that man’s economy is one thing, but God’s economy is something completely different. Where man pulls back, God moves forward advancing His kingdom and completing the work that He has promised to fulfill.

Oh, and lest I forget, thanks Ruthie for following through with your prayers!

Photo Credit: Jesse Schutt

See Also — You’re Worthy Of My Praise

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