Guarding Your Zeal Against Self-Righteousness

A Bible class teacher was presenting the lesson to a children’s class about Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector who “went up to the Temple to pray.”

The Pharisees said, “God, I thank You that I am not like other men.” He then began to recite the sins he didn’t commit. Extortion. Adultery. And injustice. He even cited the Tax Collector saying, “Thank God, I’m not like him.”

Then the Pharisee reminded God of his good deeds, including fasting and tithing.

The Tax Collector, Jesus said, stood at a distance and “would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Luke says, Jesus told the parable “to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt.”

So, as not to miss the point, Jesus concluded saying, “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

At the conclusion of teaching this powerful and pointed parable, the teacher then said, “Now children, let’s all bow our heads and thank God that we are not like the Pharisee.”

I have to believe this story is apocrypha, yet it makes the point on how subtle and insidious self-righteousness really is.

While spiritual zeal is an admirable quality to be fanned into a burning passion for the Lord’s Word and work, it can become dangerous when it is focused on our good deeds and becomes self-relying. Some signs that we may be slipping into a self-righteous attitude include:

• Being quick to judge other’s failures rather than extend grace.
• Boasting about what we give or how we serve.
• Feeling entitled to our blessings because of our obedience.
• Speaking harshly about the “big sins” of others, while minimizing our sins as small, insignificant, or failing to see them at all.
• Feeling superior to others because of the things we don’t do.
• Believing we’re better than others because of our knowledge or where we go to church.
• Lecturing others on social media about morality and religion while being rude, unkind, and dismissive.
• Constantly criticizing others who don’t work as hard, know as much, or live as godly as you.
• Flaunting your piety and purity to show others you’re not conformed to this world.

To guard your spiritual zeal against the pitfall of self-righteousness, begin with these three steps.

#1 Cultivate a humble spirit.

Remember that “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble”
(Jas. 4:6). “Pride makes us artificial; humility makes us real,” opined Thomas Merton. Spiritual growth and true zeal is impossible apart from humility. As Augustine once wrote, “Humility is the mother of all other virtues.”

#2 Develop a deeper relationship with Jesus.

The more we seek to be like Him, the more we are filled with His goodness, grace, and mercy. And the less we are judgmental, censorious, and proud. Paul admonished that we should “have the attitude of Christ” (Phil. 2:5). This is what it means to be His disciple. As Dallas Willard wrote, “Discipleship is the process of becoming who Jesus would be if He were you.”

#3 Regularly engage in self-examination.

Paul’s exhortation in 2 Corinthians 13:5 will greatly aid in subduing a self-righteous attitude. “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you are disqualified.”

Self-Examination allows us to see ourselves the way God sees us. To see our sins and shortcomings. To admit our failures. To repent of our wrongs. To pray for God’s forgiveness. And to be more charitable toward the weaknesses of other people.

Zeal, like a blazing fire, can warm the soul and provide passion that will spark the spiritual growth of fellow-Christians, and enhance God’s Kingdom. Yet, zeal, undisciplined and self-absorbed, can like a raging fire out of control wreck havoc and leave utter destruction in its wake.

Finally, consider this. You can be on fire for the Lord without constantly scorching everyone around you.

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman