“16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. 17For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.
18For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, 19since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them. 20From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse. 21For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened. 22Claiming to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles.
24Therefore God delivered them over in the cravings of their hearts to sexual impurity, so that their bodies were degraded among themselves. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served something created instead of the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.” Romans 1:16-25
Recently I was once more called “Arrogant”, which is like so much water off a goose’s back. But it did set me to thinking about why we Christians seem arrogant to others. We are called to humility, not arrogance. What’s going on?
What is going on is the difference being indwelt of the Holy Spirit makes in a person. To the world, the best ‘Christians’ are those who don’t get in their way, won’t make an issue of sin; one who doesn’t trust that the Bible is God’s Word, or, if pressed, admit that there is a God at all.
That is the sort of ‘Christian’ who is accepted by the world.
I’ll give you a hint, kids: Those ‘Christians’ are so easy for you to accept because they do not have God’s Holy Spirit within them.
A true Christian, indwelt by His Spirit, will humble himself before God. He does this not only because he is required to do so, but because in his spirit he recognizes that God is real, is truly there, and is fully deserving of our worship.
The world believes that we are fools, prostrating ourselves before an empty altar.
Unsure of anything, they consider it the height of arrogance to believe that God is there.
“20From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse.”
Our friend Jake recently said something to the effect: “They (Christians) are right because they think they are right. And they think they are right because they are right.” And Jake is close to correct. It’s better stated: “They (Christians) are right because they think God is right. And God is right.”
Who is arrogant?
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