2 Corinthians 10:17-18: "'Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.' For it is not the one who commends himself who will be approved, but the one whom the Lord commends."
I warn you: today, I am going to be rather autobiographical and expose a disdainful part of myself in reference to this verse. It may get a little long. And please forgive me my pride, anyone whom I may have injured in the past for my egotism.
I have always had a busy mouth. What I mean by that is that I have often found myself talking more than is ever necessary. And while I can faithfully attest that by the grace of God I have seen significant sanctification in my speech, I must say that in my earlier years the motivation for my mouthiness was two-fold: pride and insecurity.
When I was younger, I was very insecure about my intellect but I was also very prideful of my ability to communicate. As a result, the main content of my speech mostly dealt with how great I thought I was, especially in regards to my intelligence. It was as if by telling people how smart I was then maybe I would actually be how smart I told everyone. The truth, however, was far more dubious.
Instead of proving my brain power by telling people about how smart I was, the only thing I proved was how much of a donkey I could be. After all, a prideful person is already difficult while a prideful person that tells you how proud they are is an altogether bane. So rather than letting everyone known about the greatness of me I let everyone know about my own supreme deficiency: personal pride.
This came to a head once when during one exceptionally prideful episode in which I was too busy telling people how much I knew about everything to listen to any wisdom, when my grandfather told me something that I will never forget.
He said, "You know, you don't have to tell everyone how smart you are. If you really are as smart as you think you are, they'll figure it out. The best athlete never has to tell people how good he is; the way he plays will let everyone know."
This verse hits me square in the heart. It has been a major part of my Christianity to put to death my pride so that I would not ever boast in myself but that I would only boast in the greatness of God and how good He has been to me. I spent years trying to 'manage' my pride through self-examination. But it was only when I looked squarely into the holiness of God and His Son, Christ Jesus, that my pride has been put to death in the flesh and I have been, by the grace of God, made new.
My earnest and ever-present prayer, then, is that I would keep my eyes fixed firmly on Christ and His awesomeness. This is the only way to truly stop any root of pride from blooming in our hearts: to stare into the holiness of the Almighty Lord. For in comparison to Him, we are but creatures who are wholly dependent on Him for sustaining existence moment-by-moment.
Showing posts with label boasting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label boasting. Show all posts
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Boasting in God
Muhammed Ali is one of the greatest boxers of all time. He made his living beating boxing's best during the height of boxing's popularity. Ali is well known for many things, including his epic fights, his religious name change, and even his political leanings. However, more than almost anything else, Ali will be remembered for his wit and distinct ability to spin a memorable phrase.
Ali's perennial quotability has pervaded so much of society that even children of the digital generation say things like, "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Or, "I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was." And, "I figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest." Needless to say, Ali understood the art of self-promotion that paved the way for generations of champions around the world.
To be sure, we live in a world of self-promotion. One can barely spend anytime watching television or scanning the web without seeing some sort of self-exaltation or another. And while it can be a funny thing to do in the company of friends, the idea of boasting about oneself is a serious ordeal that requires our attention.
The apostle Paul speaks about boasting to the Corinthian church. Paul was addressing the Corinthian's propensity to boast about themselves when he wrote, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Cor. 1:31; 2 Cor. 10:17)." It would seem that the idea of arrogance and boasting was as significant an issue to the 1st-century Church as it is today. Paul's point is that one cannot boast about themselves and God. It is either one or the other.
But this concept did not originate with Paul. The prophet Jeremiah, writing centuries before Paul, wrote this prophecy, "Thus says the Lord: 'Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord (Jer. 9:23-24).'"
The heart of the matter is what do we boast in. If we boast in ourselves or something other than God, then we are taking away what is so rightfully God's, namely our worship and praise. Moreover, when we lift up ourselves or someone/thing else into the high place in our eyes, then we are usurping God's place at the center of our hearts and we are committing idolatry.
Boasting stems from worth. We boast because we feel proud of something present within ourselves that we value. If we understand boasting in this way, we will recognize that to boast in anything other than God and our knowledge of Him means that we are esteeming something that is less than He is. To be sure, the thing of highest value in our lives is God. Anything that would take that place is a counterfeit illusion.
Therefore, we should boast only of and in Him. This is what Jeremiah and Paul are talking about. So, when we would feel inclined to raise our hands at our own adulation and like Ali say, "I'm the greatest," may we pause to think of the reality of our words. Let us then turn to God and only to God, and if we are to boast may it only be in Him!
Ali's perennial quotability has pervaded so much of society that even children of the digital generation say things like, "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Or, "I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was." And, "I figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest." Needless to say, Ali understood the art of self-promotion that paved the way for generations of champions around the world.
To be sure, we live in a world of self-promotion. One can barely spend anytime watching television or scanning the web without seeing some sort of self-exaltation or another. And while it can be a funny thing to do in the company of friends, the idea of boasting about oneself is a serious ordeal that requires our attention.
The apostle Paul speaks about boasting to the Corinthian church. Paul was addressing the Corinthian's propensity to boast about themselves when he wrote, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Cor. 1:31; 2 Cor. 10:17)." It would seem that the idea of arrogance and boasting was as significant an issue to the 1st-century Church as it is today. Paul's point is that one cannot boast about themselves and God. It is either one or the other.
But this concept did not originate with Paul. The prophet Jeremiah, writing centuries before Paul, wrote this prophecy, "Thus says the Lord: 'Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord (Jer. 9:23-24).'"
The heart of the matter is what do we boast in. If we boast in ourselves or something other than God, then we are taking away what is so rightfully God's, namely our worship and praise. Moreover, when we lift up ourselves or someone/thing else into the high place in our eyes, then we are usurping God's place at the center of our hearts and we are committing idolatry.
Boasting stems from worth. We boast because we feel proud of something present within ourselves that we value. If we understand boasting in this way, we will recognize that to boast in anything other than God and our knowledge of Him means that we are esteeming something that is less than He is. To be sure, the thing of highest value in our lives is God. Anything that would take that place is a counterfeit illusion.
Therefore, we should boast only of and in Him. This is what Jeremiah and Paul are talking about. So, when we would feel inclined to raise our hands at our own adulation and like Ali say, "I'm the greatest," may we pause to think of the reality of our words. Let us then turn to God and only to God, and if we are to boast may it only be in Him!
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Boasting
Pretense and pomp are so pervasive throughout the breadth humanity that there is a distinct risk of losing sight of true worth. Some people are so proud of their own talents or wealth, that they will eschew humility in favor of pride and elitism. Others can feel so insecure in their depths that they play roles of pretense to hide their inner fears. The concept is boasting. The question is, what's worth boasting about?
Scripture presents a clear and unified account of the value of boasting as well as offering the only acceptable outlet for humanity's natural inclination for boasting. Man has such an ingrained propensity for boasting that it is no wonder that the Bible speaks about it so directly. Jeremiah 9:23-24 is the litmus in any discussion of boasting: the wise man shouldn't boast in his wisdom, the strong man in his strength, or the rich man in his riches; the only reasonable source of boasting in in the knowledge of the Lord (Jer. 9:23-24).
If we would consider this merely a contextual matter for the Old Testament, we need only look into the letters of Paul to the church in Corinth. In both of the letters, Paul quotes from Jeremiah, indicating clearly that the one who boast shall only boast in the Lord. This is a unified biblical doctrine that we should understand for its importance. Boasting requires a focus, a source of the boast.
Ultimately, to boast is to amplify a trait, resource, or talent, to such an elevated state of importance that its worth becomes the measurement of all worth. In essence, boasting makes the thing boasted about be the marker for any discussion of value. Because any worth or value that held next to the Lord is but an echo of the true value of the Lord. This is why boasting that is not in the Lord is of no value because whatever is boasted about is not of true value. Therefore, let us boast only of the Lord and the relationship He's given us through His son.
Scripture presents a clear and unified account of the value of boasting as well as offering the only acceptable outlet for humanity's natural inclination for boasting. Man has such an ingrained propensity for boasting that it is no wonder that the Bible speaks about it so directly. Jeremiah 9:23-24 is the litmus in any discussion of boasting: the wise man shouldn't boast in his wisdom, the strong man in his strength, or the rich man in his riches; the only reasonable source of boasting in in the knowledge of the Lord (Jer. 9:23-24).
If we would consider this merely a contextual matter for the Old Testament, we need only look into the letters of Paul to the church in Corinth. In both of the letters, Paul quotes from Jeremiah, indicating clearly that the one who boast shall only boast in the Lord. This is a unified biblical doctrine that we should understand for its importance. Boasting requires a focus, a source of the boast.
Ultimately, to boast is to amplify a trait, resource, or talent, to such an elevated state of importance that its worth becomes the measurement of all worth. In essence, boasting makes the thing boasted about be the marker for any discussion of value. Because any worth or value that held next to the Lord is but an echo of the true value of the Lord. This is why boasting that is not in the Lord is of no value because whatever is boasted about is not of true value. Therefore, let us boast only of the Lord and the relationship He's given us through His son.
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