The One Who Humbles Himself Will Be Exalted

The way in which we come to know God and are saved is such a mysterious and complex process.  Without delving too far into doctrine, the Bible is explicit in stating both that God has predestined us to salvation (Romans 8:29-30) and that we must also exercise belief in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior in order to be saved (John 3:16).  Even still, in our depravity, we are unable to respond to God’s calling or believe in Jesus on our own accord and, therefore, our election to salvation is based on no inherent qualities of our own – it is unconditional and was predetermined by God in eternity past (Ephesians 1:3-6).  How we are both predestined and must choose is a mystery to me, but we know this to be true based on the inerrant Word of God and that, in His will, it all makes perfect sense.  One thing that is neither mysterious nor complex, but completely obvious, is that we are saved by mercy (an act of kindness or compassion) and grace (unmerited favor) – this, I love.  There is no other god I’d rather worship than one who has saved me based on His love, compassion, and sovereignty alone and there is no other person I’d rather be than one who is completely undeserving of it – it puts things in the right perspective.

In light of that unbelievable, yet undeniable truth, how is it then that our flesh still seeks to exalt itself in self-righteousness?  Let’s have an honest moment of self-reflection:  for most of us, the minute someone questions our character, integrity, or judgment we immediately become defensive – we are so assured of ourselves and the lifestyles we lead.  From believers to unbelievers alike, none of us seem to escape this pitfall.  It is astonishing and frightening to see how many of us have allowed ourselves to live in such arrogance and disillusion, as if we have no need for a savior.  Some of us think that by our own good deeds we merit or have earned our way to heaven – although this is impossible (Galatians 2:15-16).  Others of us justify ourselves based on our own flawed morals and standards, ignoring the fact that we are held accountable to God’s standards.  Even worse, there are those of us who live in outright, deliberate, defiance of God’s commands with no regard for His authority or judgment.  We’ve come to a day and age where we’ve justified our sin and live in it out in the open with no shame whatsoever – we have declared ourselves righteous according to our own desires and will (Romans 1:28-32). 

How then, does this self-righteousness distort our ego, our compassion, our humility, our self-perception, our honesty, and our love towards one another?  Of greatest concern is how does this change our view of ourselves in relation to God?  Do we love God?  Do we desire God?  Do we obey or understand our need for God?  Or, have we gotten to the point that we don’t even acknowledge God?  It is obvious then that our self-perception is naturally corrupted and therefore the question cannot be how do I feel about my lifestyle, but rather what does the Bible say about my fallen nature?  Without a Biblical context, we will undoubtedly come to the wrong conclusion of who we really are and this allows us to perpetuate our self-righteousness and forfeit the true gift of God.

In Luke 18:9-14 Jesus tells the parable of “The Pharisee and the Tax Collector”.  The parable is basically about how two men approach God in prayer – the Pharisee boastful in his own self-confidence and the Tax Collector mindful of his sin and seeking God’s mercy.  The Pharisee in his self-righteousness was completely blinded to his true sinful nature and the Tax Collector, truthfully self-aware, acknowledged his need for God’s mercy.  The truth is, until our eyes are opened by the Holy Spirit to the true nature of our depravity, we are just like the Pharisee – lost in our own arrogance.  In living this way, we will never comprehend our true need for Jesus.  However, once the Spirit of God has revealed to us who we really are, we then see the hopelessness that is lived in a life without a Savior.  We are sinners that deserve nothing short of God’s wrath for living in outright disobedience to Him – but what a loving God that paid the price for us in Jesus Christ that we sinners might be saved.  If we really want to know God, we must lay our self-righteousness aside, come to terms with who we really are, and discover the love of a God who sacrificed Himself for us while we stood as enemies of the cross (Romans 5:6-11).