#self righteous

Noatak/Amon Appreciation Post

Or more accurately, it’s failures to do so.

The nation of Israel, meant to bring blessings to all the nations, ended up blaspheming the name of their own God and misrepresenting His character to the masses.

They accomplished this in a variety of ways, but the method I want to focus on is what the gospels of Jesus Christ really showcased; their self righteousness.

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He continually confronted the corrupt religious leaders of His day. He claimed that they were misrepresenting the character of their own God, trading His praise for the praises of men.

These leaders created their own traditions that nullified the word of God (see Matthew 15 and Mark 7), and completely missed the entire goal of God’s word; to love God and to love your neighbor.

In their efforts to appear sinless, their sin became all the more evident and magnified.

But how did they accomplish this? And how can we make sure not to fall into this same trap?

Paul tells us plainly in Romans 10:3, “For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness”.

The Pharisee’s biggest sin, the one from whom all their other sins stemmed from, was their pride and self righteousness (the same sin that got Lucifer kicked out of heaven).

In their efforts to be like Abel, they ended up being like Cain. They took pride in adhering to God’s Law, rather giving God the glory through their obedience to it. They put themselves on the altar of their hearts while putting God on the physical alter of the temple, failing to see that one was useless without the other.

When we begin to trust in our own efforts rather than the grace and perfect righteousness of Christ, we run the risk of falling into the same trap of the Pharisees. By trusting in our own efforts, we begin to reflect the heart of the enemy than the heart of Christ.

Christ trusted in the will of the Father, never doubting His authority and will. Lucifer trusted in himself and his own efforts, and look where that got him (what a loser).

The Pharisees lifted themselves up, and were brought down by God (just like He warned in Proverbs 29:23). Jesus humbled Himself before the Father, and was exalted as a result (see Acts 2:33).

Trusting in the righteousness and grace of our Lord Jesus is the key to our salvation.

What makes our salvation so special is the fact that it is a gift. It was completely orchestrated by God Himself. He drew us to Him (John 6:44), took our punishment (Isaiah 53:5-6), and conquered death on our behalf (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). We have contributed nothing to our salvation, it is entirely a gift from God Himself.

If we believe that we can earn God’s favor and salvation, we reject this beautiful gift from God, claiming that our efforts are worth more than those of God Himself.

And as stated above, this is something that God will not stand for.

But this is only on example of how we can fall into this trap.

If we constantly think our lives are a result of our own efforts, we risk resembling the Pharisees. As Christians, we are called to humble outpaces before the Lord in every aspect of our lives. We are called to acknowledge the fact that everything we have we received from above (James 4:16). Everything in our lives, including our very breath, is a gift from God Himself.

If we refuse to acknowledge this, and humble ourselves before God, we only end up building ourselves against Him. And God will have no problem pushing us over.

Humble yourself before the Lord, and He will exalt you in His due time.

From the “Womb of All Creative Things” A work of poetry created by SVW —for the wombs in the womb

🔹FINALLY SILENT

there are no words to convey

my infinite, eternal essence

I closed my own damn lips

I relaxed my own vocal chords

-there are many other ways

to vibrate-

like in the flutter of an eyelid

as one’s gaze suggests focus,

from left to right and all around,

a slight smirk, a quick wink

words are of useless

company anyway,

their sounds are fleeting

and mostly half understood

however—

the vibrato of my whole heart,

this is where i am found

reading, swinging

surrounded by green,

this is where i come to roam free.

telepathy in sweet communion

with the trees is the balance I favor,

meditation next to a rustling river

is how I remain attractive,

and my intention is the energetic

magnetic force inside it all

a delicate sigh

—silent finally.

I’ve had all sorts of nasty names thrown at me over the years including some brave souls who have hidden their identities behind VPNs and false email addresses… I found you though didn’t I? 😉 Bitter is a common one and self righteous being another. Now I’ve given myself a good lick and I don’t taste bitter, sometimes a bit salty (in the original sense of the word) but mostly I taste of nothing…