6. You seek the wrong kind of glory.
“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” (John 5:44).
Jesus says, “You receive glory from one another.” What matters to you is what other people think. It’s all about the impression you make. You are looking for your “well done” in the wrong place. You want to find it in people being impressed with you. How can you believe, if that’s how it is with you? That’s what Jesus is saying.
Notice the emotion of Jesus here: We all love the stories where Jesus wonderfully reaches a lost person. His masterful leading of Nicodemus, who eventually came to faith in Jesus. His winsome winning of the woman at the well, whose testimony led many people in her home town to believe. And we say, “Here’s how you should do evangelism!” But some people were not won… even by the sustained witness of the Son of God himself!
You may have a loved one who is far from God, whose heart is hard. Their hostility toward Jesus overflows in hostility toward you. You feel like you are walking on eggshells with them. And you find yourself thinking, If only I could find the right words to say that would break through this hardness of heart. But you never seem to find the right words. Maybe if they read this book or heard that sermon… But nothing gets through to them.
The Son of God has been there. You can say to him, “Jesus, you know how painful it is when someone you love has a hard heart. You have been there in your perfect life. Please help me because I am here right now in my very imperfect life.”