Obedience without Applause

There is a quiet kind of faithfulness that the world often overlooks. It isn’t loud. It isn’t trendy. It rarely earns a public “well done.” It is simply the steady decision to do what is right before God because He is worthy—even when doing the right thing is costly, inconvenient, misunderstood, or unpopular.

Many of us don’t struggle to obey when obedience comes with affirmation. The real test of obedience is when it comes with silence, pushback or misinterpretation—when there is no applause, no visible reward and sometimes not even agreement. That is where the fear of man often shows itself.

The fear of man isn’t only fear of being attacked. Sometimes it is fear of losing approval. Sometimes it is the quiet addiction to being liked. And it is remarkably powerful because it can disguise itself as “being wise,” “keeping peace” or “not wanting to offend”. But Scripture is clear: when the desire for people’s approval becomes controlling, it becomes a rival god. Paul warns us plainly in Galatians 1:10 that we cannot live to please man and still be servants of Christ. And God knows who we truly serve—whose pleasure we crave most (1 Thessalonians 2:4).

In Desiring God’s article “You Cannot Please God and People,” the author offers five remedies that can help us grow into obedience without applause.

Elder Sim Chow Meng

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1) Love people with “fear and trembling” toward God

The antidote to the fear of man is not fearlessness, but a greater fear—a holy reverence for God. When God becomes “big” in our hearts, people become “small” in the right way: not insignificant, but no longer ultimate. This changes our questions. We begin to ask, “Lord, what do You think?” more than “What will they think?” We learn to stand before God first—in prayer, Scripture and conscience—before we stand before anyone else.

2) Resolve to do what God says to do

The people-pleaser chases the will of other people; the God-fearer seeks the will of God. And God’s will is not meant to keep us in suspense. Paul states it simply: “This is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thessalonians 4:3). So in difficult moments, ask: What helps me obey what God has already made clear? What makes me more like Christ? What requires humble dependence rather than self-protection? Often the most spiritual decision is also the most ordinary: tell the truth, keep your word, apologise first, forgive again, honour Christ in your speech.

3) Sacrifice the safety of superficiality

People-pleasing almost always pulls us toward duplicity: one version of ourselves for this group, another for that group. But Scripture calls us to “sincerity of heart.” Superficiality feels safe because it manages impressions, yet it slowly empties relationships—people end up relating to a performance, not a person. Sincerity is more costly, but it is the surer path to peace and freedom. This is where obedience without applause begins: choosing integrity over image.

4) Obey God in public and in secret

A revealing test is this: do we obey only when others are watching? Paul warns against “eye-service” as people-pleasers, calling us instead to sincere obedience that fears the Lord (Colossians 3:22). Jesus also warns about practicing righteousness “to be seen,” because that kind of obedience has already received its reward (Matthew 6:2). Secret obedience is not glamorous, but it exposes what we truly love—and trains us to live for God, not applause. It looks like praying when no one knows, doing what is right when no one is clapping and choosing faithfulness even when it costs.

5) Seek your reward from God

People-pleasing may enjoy the momentary pleasure of earthly praise, but often at the expense of eternal perspective. Human applause is shallow and unstable; it rises and falls with moods and misunderstanding. Paul exhorts us: “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men… from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward” (Colossians 3:23–24). We need to ask honestly: What reward am I living for? The Lord sees what is done for Him, even when no one else does. That truth doesn’t turn obedience into a transaction; it turns obedience into hope.

Please God—and love the people

One crucial clarification: pleasing God does not mean despising people. The call is to please God and love people, like Christ—free from the tyranny of needing their praise or fearing their rejection.

That is the heart of obedience without applause. We keep loving, keep serving, keep speaking truth gently, keep choosing what is right—not because people will always notice, but because God does. And His favour is better than man’s applause.

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Reference: Marshall Segal (2021, March 15). You Cannot Please God and People. https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/you-cannot-please-god-and-people.