I am an expert and I have a degree to prove it!

The last New Year’s Resolution I made was back in 2010.  I recall it being a huge deal at the time as I had a strong desire to “fix” myself.  I felt like I had quite a few bad habits that I needed to quit in order to get myself on God’s better side.  My resolution was to stop having pet peeves.  Yeah, I know that may be an odd resolution but trust me, it was the best resolution I ever made.  To this date, I am still working on fulfilling that goal and I am not making any more resolutions until I can accomplish this one.  

I made that resolution after I had a nice, long heart-to-heart with myself and realized I was quite judgmental and critical of others.  Considering how messy my life was, I really had no right to judge or even advise anyone else about their personal issues.  But from my perspective, I was so smart and had all life’s answers.  I even made plans to write a self-help book and title it “Do what I say!  I am an expert and I have a degree to prove it!”  I am not even joking...  I was really that full of myself.

 

This reminds me of the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.  The Pharisee came into the temple, feeling himself, bragging about his perfect lifestyle and how he is better than the Tax Collector.  As the Pharisee gloats with great pride, the Tax Collector is alone in a corner, acknowledging his own shortcomings and pleading with God for mercy.  Jesus told his eager fan club, “I tell you, the Tax Collector, not the Pharisee, returned home forgiven! For the proud shall be humbled, but the humble shall be honored.”  When we are so caught up looking down on others, we forget that we really aren’t as perfect as we think we are.  The mere act of belittling others is a sin in itself!  Jesus called us to love each other and live in peace with each other.  So am I being loving or peaceful if I am pointing out the faults of others with the intent of making them feel like crap?  Who am I to express any displeasure over the actions of another when I have shamed and disgraced God innumerable times? I should be as merciful and gracious to others as God has been to me.

Romans 14 and 15 is also a great source for a lesson in self-righteousness.  It deals with the issue of accepting others’ differences and avoiding unnecessary confrontations.  I have friends who are of different religions and sometimes our customs, rituals and beliefs clash.  My Jehovah Witness friends don’t celebrate birthdays or holidays.  My Muslim and Rastafarian friends have strict diets.  My Catholic friends don’t believe in birth control.  There have been times when we wound up arguing with each other because of these issues.  Mostly because of my feelings of superiority and

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 lack of tolerance.  These days, I avoid being critical of other people’s lifestyle in hopes of achieving my resolution and also to be a better Christian.  A self-righteous attitude does not attract non-believers to Christ.  No one wants to convert to Christianity if that means we all sit around and behave like hypocrites.  The only thing that sets me apart from a non-believer is the fact that God has given me mercy through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.  I make mistakes and fall short of God’s glory all the time!  What kind of idiot do I look like when I poke fun at someone for trivial things like not having birthday parties and not eating bacon?

What it all boils down to is that those of us in the body of Christ need to cease with the holier-than-thou attitudes and be more like Jesus.  He had no problems serving others.  He never thought twice about helping people in need, regardless of their background.  He never looked down on a single individual.  His actions were so remarkable, he drew crowds wherever he went.  To those people, he gave messages of hope and in turn, they believed in him and made strides to imitate him.  If Jesus was some self-righteous jerk, there would be no Christianity today!  I am learning to be less full of myself and more full of the Holy Spirit.  If you examine yourself and determine you have some work to do in that area, I encourage you to do so without delay.  You never know when you will be in a position to minister to someone and they will need to see the Jesus in you, not the Pharisee…