We make such an effort to prove to ourselves and others that we are people of honesty, character, and trust.  We want to be considered as moral people who do all the right things at all the right times for all the right reasons.  And it’s in our efforts to be righteous that we find ourselves guilty by the writer T. S. Eliot’s line in his play, “Murder in the Cathedral”.  That one powerful line says, "The last temptation is the greatest treason: To do the right deed for the wrong reason."  And how often have we justified ourselves for doing something morally good for no other reason than to get something we selfishly wanted that was driven by morally corrupt and manipulative thought.  Then come all the reasons we did what we did to get what we wanted to make our actions appear well intentioned.  And so, we lead ourselves to believe that by not violating all of the ethical laws of the universe, our actions were appropriate.  And so, it can be both the violation of the law and the motivations in front of and behind our actions that make us guilty.  And justifying ourselves only complicates the crime.  And so, God justifies us irrespective of our obedience to the law, because no one can be totally obedient.  Yet God, it is God’s grace justifies us by reconciliation through faith, making allowances for both those who do the right thing for the wrong reasons and those who might do the wrong thing for the right reasons.  How many times did Jesus ask the Pharisees, “Is it right to do good on the Sabbath or not?”  And while it might have been legally wrong, God’s grace would justify the person who set out to do good, even though it violated the law as “Not Guilty”.  We must fight the temptation to justify ourselves because we believe we are good people and accept God’s grace through faith to justify us.  God is the only one who can declare us not guilty.

• Is it possible for a person to justify themselves as “Not Guilty” for doing the wrong thing for the right reason?
• What would be the error in justifying yourself even if you did the wrong thing for the right reason?

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
Merciful God, forgive me for the times I seek to justify myself to alleviate my guilt. Teach me to lean on Your grace as a way to justify my actions that might be improperly motivated.

         One of our great human desires is to please others — to show ourselves as persons who are honorable, trustworthy, truthful, and even praiseworthy.  And yes — we may also have a desire to please ourselves.  But even that desire is tied to an emotional desire for be self-approval.  If we can approve of ourselves, then we can justify ourselves as-righteousness, not only in our eyes, but hopefully in the eyes of others.  And with that comes the self-appointed ability to place ourselves above others, and by engaging in that type of judgment, we justify ourselves by our decisions and ultimately, our actions as being right and righteous.  We by our own authority declare ourselves “not guilty.”  But though our desire to please ourselves and others is great, it’s also one of our tempting temptations.  That suggests that our standard of self-assessment which allows us to justify ourselves does not and cannot stand before God.  There is no greater temptation that destroys a relationship than the one that occurs when we seek to earn God’s approval by what we do declaring ourselves not guilty by our standards when God actually sets the standard for guilt or justification.  When God becomes the standard for judgment and righteousness, we all seem to fall incredibly short.  None of us can justify ourselves.  None of us can approve ourselves.  None of us can make ourselves righteous.  That means we must rely on something or someone else to justify us, something or someone who can make us righteous in the eyes of God.  And since things are born or our own creation, it must be some “One”.  Once we yield our efforts to justify ourselves to a higher authority, the only person we can turn to is Jesus Christ who died that we might be reconciled to God and justified before God.  So, it is by faith in God’s grace through Jesus Christ that we please God, learning to love God because God first loved us, learning to love ourselves because God loves us, and learning to love and accept each other, acknowledging our faults and accepting by God’s grace that God knows everything good about us there is to know, and God knows everything bad about us there is to know and loves us anyway.  It is by God’s grace that we’re declared not guilty.

• What ways have you used to justify yourself in the past?
• How did those attempts at self-justification fall short?
• How did faith through God’s grace help you to be justified?

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
Gracious God, when temptation tempts me to justify myself by my own merit, help me to resist. Humble me by Your grace and my faith in Jesus Christ to relying wholly on Jesus’ name to be justified and found “Not Guilty” in Your eyes.

         Author Marianne Williamson, in her book titled “Return to Love” wrote a powerful quote that was used in two movies.  One of the movies was “Akeelah and the Bee.”  The other movie was “Coach Carter.”  The quote came at a pivotal moment in each movie.  As each actor was confronted with facing the truth about who they were, they said (quoting from Marianne Williamson’s book):

         “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?'  Actually, who are you not to be?  You are a child of God.  Your playing small does not serve the world.  There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.  We are all meant to shine, as children do.  We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.  It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.  And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.  As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Perhaps this is nothing more than a paraphrase of Jesus’ words in Matthew.  Or perhaps it offered to lift the cover off of one of our most tempting temptations — to deny the glory of God present in us and shield the world from God’s glory present in us.  This quote and our Scripture for today serve to highlight the fact that we are extraordinary.  But it is God and God’s glory that makes us so.  It is our fear of letting that glory shine that dulls the glory of Christ and hide God’s glory present in us.  How the world would change if we could stop trying to put out the light of others and let God’s glory shine in and through everyone.  That would be truly extraordinary — allowing the light of Christ to illumine the world so that the world could see that we are extraordinary — each and every one of us.

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
Mighty God, free me from the temptation to hide your glory because of my fear. Empower me to let my light shine as I encourage others to allow their light to shine.