Day 10 - Love First: Beyond Arrogance

Love First: Beyond Arrogance

Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 18:9-14

Did you ever see the animated movie Despicable Me? There are a couple of different times during the movie where the main character, Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), recognizes that he needs to change something—either about himself or something he is doing. At the moment of the realization, he intones, “Light bulb” in a sing-song kind of voice. That’s seriously what the Pharisee in the parable above needed to do. He needed to take a look at the tax collector—his demeanor, his posture, his attitude—and recognize that he needed to change. Light bulb.

Suppose the Pharisee had recognized he needed to change his attitude of arrogance. How else could the scene have gone? He might have apologized to the tax collector...maybe not. Maybe he wouldn’t have broadcasted his “prayer” to everyone within earshot. He might have recognized that his arrogance didn’t practice Love First.

We know from what Jesus said the tax collector never even looked up—he never acknowledged the Pharisee. What did that communicate to the people in the temple?...to the Pharisee?...to God? Jesus also told his audience that the tax collector went home “justified before God.” And then Jesus ended his lesson with a hard truth: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

If we are committed to Love First, how will it benefit us (then eventually humankind and ultimately God) to change from arrogance to humility? How can we—if we want to share Christ with someone who struggles with the challenge of arrogance—communicate the benefit of change? Love First demands we try. If we can overcome arrogance in our own lives, can we share the benefits with someone else who also struggles with this challenge? Will we dare to help them out of the overflow of our own blessings and benefits?

Your Mission
In your prayers today, use the phrase, “Father, help me to love those who are insecure and help me with my insecurity.” Treat those around you with kindness.