“There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” Proverbs 14:12 “The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, But the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.” Proverbs 15:14 “Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 16:18 Boasting of our advancements, name dropping, salary comparisons, bragging of exotic vacations, new possessions, we just love to speak of our successes amongst our peers, friends and relatives. We try to out-do and one-up each other. We compare ourselves to each other always quacking amongst ourselves with arrogance and competitiveness. Braggarts come in all shapes and sizes. Big egos with big mouths as well as the smaller egos with less self-aggrandizement dripping from their lips are both an offense to the Lord. Why is it necessary to put on display and make others aware of our status, of our connections and our measly measures of power? What is missing that we must fill up on the praise, envy and empty congratulations of our fellow man? I will tell you that God is missing and that Jesus Christ is not a part of any life that is self-centered and full of ego and pride. You may think that it is just a part of our socializing to be vocal about our climbing the ladders of success, of sharing our new toys, of verbalizing our progress on the paths to our goals yet these spoken words are delivered with pride and have become a way that we challenge one another. We are not sharing our lives with those we know when our motivations are driven by selfish needs. You see, when we are empty of the love of Christ, we do not live our lives for Him, we live our lives for ourselves and that comes with seeking validation from those we encounter. With this agenda in our hearts, whether we realize it is there or not, it will never provide us the satisfaction of peace and contentment that we seek. We will always need more, bigger, better and even if it is gained, we will still be left feeling empty inside, whether we admit that to ourselves or not. When will we learn that the window dressings of this world are superficial and guaranteed to pave our paths straight to hell? When we become convinced of the value of our lives we lose sight of the value of our souls. It is not our lives we should be talking about, it is not our lives we should concern ourselves with; it is the salvation of our eternal souls that should consume our thoughts, words and actions. It is our Redeemer and Savior that we should be seeking. Strip your lives bare and free yourself from the chains of this life. Come to Christ and pursue the narrow gate that leads to eternal life. “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36 Love That Cross, Pastor John Collins
Posted on: Thu, 06 Nov 2014 13:23:13 +0000