Friday, March 7, 2014

A Gentle Reminder...

In reading Proverbs this morning, I stumbled upon this verse...
"All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits" (16:2).
And there are many other verses that echo this same thought...
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (Prov. 14:12).
 "I am blameless, yet I do not know myself" (Job 9:21).
"For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord" (1 Corinthians 4:4).
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven" (Matthew 7:21).
It's so, so, so easy to become complacent, to see ourselves as "good people" and therefore "good enough" for heaven. It's easy to convince ourselves that we've done all our studying in the past - we've already developed our convictions - and therefore, have nothing more to learn...or change. It's easy to think "we got this." Heaven's a sure thing for us, right?

There's nothing wrong with conviction and confidence (1 John 5:13), but there is something wrong with arrogance, close-mindedness and complacency. Don't let it happen to you. Continue to examine your faith, to pray for wisdom, to diligently study the Scriptures. Don't give up. Don't think that you're beyond change or repentance. Don't think that you have it ALL figured out.

Of course, we all think of ourselves as open-minded. But that's a lot easier said than done.
"Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy and the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you" (1 Tim. 4:13-16).

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