Reputation and Image

But made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 (NKJV)

Jesus wasn’t concerned with status or with the image He portrayed. He did not have a public relations consultant taking polls to find out public opinion about Him and His ministry. He was concerned only with doing the will of His Father. People’s opinions mattered very little to Him.

We must also be willing to sacrifice our reputation and image in order to serve God. What people think about us is not nearly as important as what God thinks about us. Our goal is to serve him and not worry about how we look to others.

As a matter of fact, we may have to make decisions to follow God when we know others will ridicule us or forsake us. Such decisions are tough, but not as tough as not following God. Only when we do what He wants rather than what others expect can we find real peace and satisfaction.

And to be honest, reputation and image are not real things. A reputation or image is like a mask that people can hide behind- it may or may not give you any insight into their true nature and character. A peson’s image is never an accurate representation of who he is. And while it is good to maintain a good, godly reputation- a person’s reputation is not who the person really is. It is only a picture of who people think he is. Don’t spend a lot of effort trying to project a certain image- bcause that is such a fake way to live. Only God knows the real person. And that is why we must not spend a lot of time worrying about our reputation when God asks us to do something that might jeopardize it.

Be brave and unconcerned about public opinion or your own personal popularity. Getting high approval ratings by the world is not meaningful- doing the will of the Father is.