“I thank thee, that I am not as other men are...” Be careful; words such as these are always associated with a pharisaical spirit, whether they be spoken audibly or a hidden attitude of the heart. The truth is, we are all cut from the same cloth. There is nothing in life that touches another that we are not susceptible to. The Scriptures tell us it is common to all men.
The people of James’ day, like many of us, believed the Patriarchs of old to be in a separate category from them. Thus, James speaks of one such saint as being “a man of like passions as we are.” Peter made the grave mistake that so many of us are making: “Although all shall...yet will not I.” The most dangerous words that can come from our lips are, “How could they do such a thing? I would never do that.” Whenever we see or hear of such things, we need to remind ourselves, “But for the grace of God, there go I.” Paul admonishes believers to consider their own selves, lest they end up in similar circumstances.
We become vulnerable when we vaunt ourselves against another.
No comments:
Post a Comment