THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 16
“All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.” (Proverbs 16:2)
Just because I think I’m right (short for ‘righteous’), doesn’t mean I am.
Paul thought he was faultless (Philippians 3:4-6), until he met Jesus.
Then he realized thinking he was right didn’t make him innocent (1 Corinthians 4:4).
The Lord sees deeper than we do, into the motives of our heart.
This is becoming more apparent to me as I wrestle with tough issues.
When I am making decisions about things over which others struggle.
I read the bible and carefully discern what others have to say.
I mean well, but that does not make my view right, or someone else’s wrong.
Wisdom compels me to be humble about myself, to avoid destruction (Proverbs 16:18).
I believe in right, wrong, good and evil; I just don’t think I’ve figured it out.
I no longer hold my beliefs with certainty; rather I hold them with humility.
No two Christians around the world have ever agreed on everything.
Thankfully we don’t need to be right to be saved; Jesus took care of that or us.
But we do need to be humble, and God sees into our hearts if we are or not.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, it is not my rightness but Your rightness that counts. I cannot avoid making conclusions and holding positions, but help me to do so in a humble, gracious way.