This article seems to read as if written by someone who is at least half awake.
Your thoughts?
Article on self-righteousness written by one of the conscious-class?
by Fernando 29 Replies latest watchtower bible
-
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 29 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
IN THE first century, the Pharisees enjoyed the good reputation of being righteous worshipers of God. They were earnest students of the Scriptures and prayed frequently. Some people viewed them as being gentle and reasonable. Jewish historian Josephus wrote: “The Pharisees are affectionate to each other and cultivate harmonious relations with the community.” No wonder they were probably the most respected and highly regarded individuals in Jewish society at that time!
However, today the word “Pharisaic” and related terms are derogatory, synonymous with sanctimonious, self-righteous, holier-than-thou, overpious, and giving lip service. Why did the Pharisees lose their good name?
It was because, unlike most Jews, Jesus Christ was not deceived by the Pharisees’ outer appearance. He compared them to “whitewashed graves, which outwardly indeed appear beautiful but inside are full of dead men’s bones and of every sort of uncleanness.”
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 29 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
Jesus voiced God’s rejection of the Pharisees: “You hypocrites, Isaiah aptly prophesied about you, when he said, ‘This people honors me with their lips, yet their heart is far removed from me. It is in vain that they keep worshiping me, because they teach commands of men as doctrines.’” (Matthew 15:7-9) Their righteousness was really self-righteousness. Understandably, Jesus warned his disciples: “Watch out for the leaven of the Pharisees.” (Luke 12:1) Today, we too must “watch out” for self-righteousness or guard against becoming religious hypocrites.
In doing so, we should recognize that a person does not become self-righteous overnight. Rather, this tendency creeps in progressively over a period of time. Even inadvertently an individual can acquire the undesirable traits of the Pharisees.
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 29 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
What are some of the traits that we must “watch out” for? Self-righteous individuals usually “speak, and stand, and look as if they had never done a wrong,” explains the Encyclopædia of Religion and Ethics. The self-righteous are also boastful and self-promoting, which was a major problem with the Pharisees.
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 30 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
According to one Bible encyclopedia, a self-righteous person “considers himself either morally upright or in right standing with God because of his adherence to the letter of legal requirements without regard to their spirit.” Another work describes the self-righteous as “excessively religious people who spend all their time seeking out wickedness in others.”
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 30 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
How unpleasant it is to be in the company of someone who sets himself up as judge, always looking for faults, scrutinizing and policing everyone around him. Really, no one in the congregation has the authority to impose on others his opinions and self-made rules. (Romans 14:10-13) Balanced Christians realize that many aspects of daily life fall into the realm of personal decision. Especially must those who have a tendency to be perfectionists and demanding avoid judging others.
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 31 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
Self-righteousness may also promote the view that if a Christian is undergoing many personal difficulties, he must be spiritually deficient.
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 31 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
Self-righteousness and zeal are often interrelated. The apostle Paul spoke of religiously inclined Jews as having “zeal for God; but not according to accurate knowledge; for, because of not knowing the righteousness of God but seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.” (Romans 10:2, 3) As a Pharisee, Paul himself had been extremely zealous, though his zeal was misguided, not based on Jehovah’s righteousness.—Galatians 1:13, 14; Philippians 3:6.
Appropriately the Bible admonishes: “Do not become righteous overmuch, nor show yourself excessively wise. Why should you cause desolation to yourself?” (Ecclesiastes 7:16) In the congregation a Christian may start out conscientious, but his conscientiousness and zeal can degenerate into self-righteousness. When guided by human wisdom rather than by Jehovah’s righteousness, religious zeal can hurt others. How?
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 31 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
Extreme zeal can also deprive us of tact, empathy, and tenderness, which are vital in our dealings with others.
-
Fernando
*** w95 10/15 p. 31 Watch Out for Self-Righteousness! ***
We must avoid a superior attitude, the habit of judging others, and blind zeal based on human wisdom.
As we “watch out” for Pharisaic attitudes, instead of judging others as self-righteous, it would be better to focus on our own tendencies and inclinations. True, Jesus judged the Pharisees and condemned them as “offspring of vipers” deserving of eternal destruction.