by John Grant
“Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.” Proverbs 25:26
He was a rising political star first as a Congressional staffer and then being elected to the Congress. He was right on track to be the Mayor of one of the country’s largest cities. He had all of the right qualities, young, articulate, photogenic. Well, he had all of the exterior qualities, but something was or went wrong inside. Then with one click of the camera and an inappropriate Internet posting, his career was over.
It happens to people in positions of notoriety and power like political stars and athletes who read their press clippings, think they are above everyone else and that the rules don’t apply to them. Their self-focus can build walls of arrogance and distance from the real world and they become vulnerable for the enemy to move in for the kill.
It happens to pastors and evangelists as well. The Christian community is not immune. Over the past 10 years we have witnessed how “men of God have fallen from grace,” into the grip of sexual temptations and biblical abominations. Religious arrogance, pride, and lack of prayer time with God have contributed to the downfalls of highly visible ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And laypeople in the Church are just as vulnerable.
We are all sinners, but there is a distinct difference between committing a sin and living a lifestyle of sin that abuses the grace of God. Temptation to sin is ever-present, but falling into temptations is quite different from trying to justify a sinful lifestyle. Jesus said in the Gospel of St. John, Chapter 4:24, that God is a spirit and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
So what is spirit and truth? Spirit means the intent of heart in worship. Truth means the actions of your deeds as a lifestyle of worship. We all must walk our talk and admit our guilt where necessary.
Worship is not just about singing in church or singing in the choir. Worship is the consistent actions in one’s Christian walk/lifestyle and commitment to the service of people of the Christian faith and the greater community as a whole – to reflect the love and grace of God.
High-profile people in positions of prominence and power, including ministers and others have fallen hard from grace because they were gods unto themselves and their constituencies and congregations worshiped them. I once was legal counsel to a top NFL star who ran into the game and came off on a stretcher, never to play again. His life later in shambles, he sat across my desk and asked if I “knew what it was longer like to not have 75,000 people stand and cheer” the entry into the stadium.
Jesus said if he be lifted up, he would draw all men unto himself. Spiritual pride is dangerous. Spiritual arrogance is even more dangerous. People need to pray and read their Bibles more for themselves and stop worshiping themselves.
It’s still all about Jesus. Take your eyes off the focus of our faith and sooner or later your walls or arrogance will come tumbling down.
Question: What leads us to become “spiritually arrogant”?
You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughtsaboutgod.com/blog/2011/10/02/jg_walls-of-spiritual-arrogance/
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney
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Short Thoughts for Cell Phones – God-daily.com
