Pride, and Un-Boast-able Works

[newton3005]

‘I did it all by myself.’

Well, not exactly.

If you’re in God, all your good works are the result of God working in you. Philippians 2:13 says, “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Given this Verse alone, it follows that Ephesians 2:8-10 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

We are equipped to do God’s Works. Psalm 139:14 says, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” From the time we were born, God has equipped us to perform His Good Works. But it is evident that whether we perform those good works or not is up to us. To know God is to know good and evil. If God gave you certain talents that you do evil with, He doesn’t want to know you, until you at least acknowledge Him as the condemned man on the cross next to Jesus does in Luke 23:40-43.

Is there anything we can have pride in, regarding the works we perform? We can take pride in the way we love and honor God. 2 Corinthians 10:17 says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” Any other pride is a sin, inasmuch as it’s a sin to take credit for the things that God has enabled you to do and does through you. The works we perform in God’s Name reflect the fact that we are mere instruments in God’s Hands in performing good works.

God considers it to be sinful for us to take credit for things He enabled us to do. Proverbs 21:4 says, “Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, are sin.” And James 4:6 says, “... “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

So, if you’ve made a great accomplishment and people tell you what a great job you’ve done, if such a job promotes God’s Goodness you merely thank them for acknowledging what you’ve done and leave it at that, but inside you thank the Lord for giving you the things needed to make that accomplishment and to lead the way towards you doing it. It’s His works you are performing, not your own. And to the extent your works are His, they are not works that you can boast.

 

[B Griffin]

‘I did it all by myself.’

Well, not exactly.

If you’re in God, all your good works are the result of God working in you. Philippians 2:13 says, “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Given this Verse alone, it follows that Ephesians 2:8-10 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

We are equipped to do God’s Works. Psalm 139:14 says, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” From the time we were born, God has equipped us to perform His Good Works. But it is evident that whether we perform those good works or not is up to us. To know God is to know good and evil. If God gave you certain talents that you do evil with, He doesn’t want to know you, until you at least acknowledge Him as the condemned man on the cross next to Jesus does in Luke 23:40-43.

Is there anything we can have pride in, regarding the works we perform? We can take pride in the way we love and honor God. 2 Corinthians 10:17 says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” Any other pride is a sin, inasmuch as it’s a sin to take credit for the things that God has enabled you to do and does through you. The works we perform in God’s Name reflect the fact that we are mere instruments in God’s Hands in performing good works.

God considers it to be sinful for us to take credit for things He enabled us to do. Proverbs 21:4 says, “Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, are sin.” And James 4:6 says, “... “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

So, if you’ve made a great accomplishment and people tell you what a great job you’ve done, if such a job promotes God’s Goodness you merely thank them for acknowledging what you’ve done and leave it at that, but inside you thank the Lord for giving you the things needed to make that accomplishment and to lead the way towards you doing it. It’s His works you are performing, not your own. And to the extent your works are His, they are not works that you can boast.

There is something to be said about using your talents for the glory of God and giving Him credit. Moreover, the punchline of Jesus' instruction for us to love our enemies as God does is that "He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." (Mt 5:45) In an agrarian economy, sunshine and rain are essential for survival and success. By extension, we can definitively say that no one can rightly claim that their successes in life are due soley to their own effort because God creates the conditions for every success. So, in this respect, I agree with you.

But I think something more than using one's talents for the glory of God and giving Him credit is at work in verses like Philippians 2:13 and Ephesians 2:8-10. Those verses, and others, point us to the God who is leading, guiding, directing, teaching, correctiong, and comforting us from the intimacy of our own hearts. Not only do they point us to Him, but they tell us to walk in the light that He shines in our hearts so that we may fulfill His specific eternal plans that He has for each one of us individually. We do not judge success based on the results, but on how closely our actions adhere to the light He gives. By definition, this is the life of faith which we lead. And of course, there is no room for boasting in this endeavor either.

 

[fhansen]

‘I did it all by myself.’

Well, not exactly.

If you’re in God, all your good works are the result of God working in you. Philippians 2:13 says, “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Given this Verse alone, it follows that Ephesians 2:8-10 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

We are equipped to do God’s Works. Psalm 139:14 says, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” From the time we were born, God has equipped us to perform His Good Works. But it is evident that whether we perform those good works or not is up to us. To know God is to know good and evil. If God gave you certain talents that you do evil with, He doesn’t want to know you, until you at least acknowledge Him as the condemned man on the cross next to Jesus does in Luke 23:40-43.

Is there anything we can have pride in, regarding the works we perform? We can take pride in the way we love and honor God. 2 Corinthians 10:17 says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” Any other pride is a sin, inasmuch as it’s a sin to take credit for the things that God has enabled you to do and does through you. The works we perform in God’s Name reflect the fact that we are mere instruments in God’s Hands in performing good works.

God considers it to be sinful for us to take credit for things He enabled us to do. Proverbs 21:4 says, “Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, are sin.” And James 4:6 says, “... “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

So, if you’ve made a great accomplishment and people tell you what a great job you’ve done, if such a job promotes God’s Goodness you merely thank them for acknowledging what you’ve done and leave it at that, but inside you thank the Lord for giving you the things needed to make that accomplishment and to lead the way towards you doing it. It’s His works you are performing, not your own. And to the extent your works are His, they are not works that you can boast.

I think those who walk in the Spirit pretty well know that they're only doing what they should be doing anyway, and are enabled by God to do. Who can claim to take credit for simply doing the right thing? Augustine put it this way:

"For not only has God given us our ability and helps it, but He even works [brings about] willing and acting in us; not that we do not will or that we do not act, but that without His help we neither will anything good nor do it"

"If then your merits are God's gifts, God does not crown your merits as your merits, but as His gifts."