City Life Starter

Written by Stefan Johnsson

The Word

Woe to you
when all people speak well of you,
for this is the way their ancestors
used to treat the false prophets.

Luke 6:26 (HCSB)

Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—
a stranger, and not your own lips.

Proverbs 27:2

¹⁸ “If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own. However, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of it, the world hates you.

John 15:18-19

Reflection

As you notice the verses above, you may be wondering why I shared such contradictory passages? Well, yes, it was intentional. Here’s why:

The Bible is full of lessons that is meant to be interpreted based on context and the circumstances surrounding it. Proverbs 27:2 tells us that if we begin voicing our own praises, it comes out of pride, but if we do things in humility, then others will notice are good deeds and praise us to others. This is why actions speak louder than words. If we live with integrity and do right, then we do not need to tell others about how “great” we are. All we should be doing in life is lift others up and give God the glory.

Though, in Luke 6:26, Jesus warns us that if we spend our lives seeking after pleasing others, then we are not looking after pleasing God. We become part of the world rather than apart from it. This is the happy medium. Let others praise our work, but we are not to seek after it or become self-righteous and full of pride. Do good because it pleases God.

It is very easy in life to swing to either side of the pendulum.

Application

A big part of walking the life of a Christian is the tension between two extremes. Many of us will see an extreme on one end and push hard to the other instead of moving to the middle. We do this both intentionally/consciously and unintentionally/subconsciously. As Tim Keller once said it was difficult for him early in life to find the medium between God’s grace and dwelling on his own depravity. Yet, we have to find a way to live with both of these at the same time in order to truly walk a straight and narrow path.

Yes it’s good to hear praise from others, but we cannot let this go to our heads, because in the end, we are here to glorify God, not ourselves. Ask a trusted friend to see if you are hold this tension in your life or if you have drifted to one or the other extreme.

Prayer

Father in heaven, only You were able to live a perfect life on this earth. The tensions we have to hold are difficult in our own power. I need Your power and the Holy Spirit to help me live with these tensions in mind. Thank You for Your continuous faithfulness and goodness in my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.