Deep, deep down I’ve got this feeling that I’m almost always right. For example, if my boss asks me to account for something I’ve done, I’ve got an answer. Sometimes survival instincts tell me to keep my mouth shut, but that’s only a facade. True, there are a few minutes on Sunday morning when I set my self-justification aside, in the confession and absolution part of the church service. At that time I put my head down and say what a miserable sinner I am. “You are forgiven” come the expected words from the ritual, my head pops up and my deep-seated instinct again takes control. Are all people like this?
I suspect so. The most basic question the Bible puts to us is who do you love and trust above all else? In other words, who is your God? Is it you or the one who created and judges you? “I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind.” (Jeremiah 17:10) A person in recovery strives to get past self-justification. I heard of a man whose job involved getting complaints. He often responded briefly and to the point, “You might be right.” Truthful, too. “Keep back your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me!” (Psalm 19:13)
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