Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Being Self-Righteous

Christ was never angry at those who missed the mark. That was reserved exclusively for those who thought they never did.

4 comments:

septembermom said...

This reminds me of the story of Nicodemus. Christ opened His arms to this Pharisee who knew that he failed to help those around him. Christ applauded him for recognizing that his priorities were not correct. Nicodemus realized that he was not above anyone.

Judith Ellis said...

Ah, yes, Kelly, although Nicodemus, being a Pharisee and council member, was not like the self-righteous others. He had a different kind of heart. After all, he came to Jesus by night, perhaps not having the courage to go by day, seeking greater understanding of himself and the message of Christ which was rejected by the Pharisaic council.

I'm interested in our judgment of others daily, even though we have our own issues, how judgment impacts the lives of others negatively, and how we can go right on living our lives even though we have made mistakes. I'm a strong believer in not letting the judgment of others hold us back but also in making right continuously the errors of our words and actions.

Corrie Howe said...

Yes! Unfortunately, it took me a decade or two of reading my bible before I recognized that Jesus was talking to me and about all my church family.

Once I started reading the same passages with this insight, I realized how stinging were his words.

Which then caused me to seek and understand Grace.

Judith Ellis said...

Corrie - I agree that we need to look at ourselves. I think it is also really important for us to love ourselves and with the same love look at others.