Boasting

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Scripture: Jerimiah 9:23-24 (ESV)

23 Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”

Devotion

            Ours is a boastful age. Athletes boast of their accomplishments on the field. Politicians boast of their power. Business men and women boast of their wealth. It seems that there is no end to how much boasting there is to be done in our culture today. We are not a humble society. We seek to promote ourselves as much as possible. Our pride knows no end. We even boast about doing things that are in violation of God’s laws and man’s laws. Thus, we flout all restraint. We declare ourselves to be the rulers over our own sovereign selves and deny that laws are valid.

            How differently the Christian is to view the world. The Christian knows that God has laws that cannot be ignored except at grave peril to our souls. Our Lord’s commands are sometimes hard to obey but obey them we must. I mean who wants to love our enemies or to pray for those who persecute us. Yet the Lord is adamant about loving everyone just as the Lord loves everyone. Even those who we find disagreeable. The law of love is God’s irrevocable command to us. Therefore, boasting in our accomplishments or talents, or anything else cannot be allowed.

            If we boast it must be in done in the Lord. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV) says this: “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9 not by works, so that no one can boast. We cannot boast in our salvation or in anything else because all that we have, all that we are able to do, and all our accomplishments pale in significance to what Jesus did for us on that cross in Calvary. Everything we have is, in the words of the late Rush Limbaugh, “talent on loan from God”. Every good thing about us is a gift from God we can’t boast in any of it.

            The question is how we can live in this world without joining in their boasts? Jerimiah’s words here might hold the key. Jerimiah says that the Lord practices love, justice, and righteousness and that he delights in these things. We, then are to be imitators of God. We must follow our Lord in practicing these qualities and if we are successful, we will avoid the temptation to boast in ourselves. Living out lives of loving service we will avoid the temptation to boast in ourselves. Though we will be always ready to boast in the Lord.

            Prayer:

            Holy God who is worthy of our praise, keep us in our service to you. Let us boast of the great things you have done for us and the world. We pray that we may become selfless servants in your kingdom. May we be always ready to practice love, justice, and righteousness in a world where these qualities are in great shortage. In your son’s precious name, we ask it. Amen

           

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