Don't fall into the Pharisee trap

  • Amber Rice Miller
  • June 9, 2014
  • 422
                        
Summary: Read as Amber explains what the Pharisee trap is and how to get out of it. There is a trap I want everyone to be aware of. It is sly, cunning, and will suck you in without you even realizing it. About everyone I know, myself included, has slipped into it at one point or another. Many are still stuck in it without even realizing it. I want to help those who are in it to get out of it and prevent others from falling in. I hadn’t even known I was in it, I think because so many people were in it with me. And the apostle Paul was in it much deeper than I ever was! He also came to realize he was in it and got out as quickly as he could. What am I talking about? The Pharisee trap: the thought that your good works and following of the law earn you right standing with God. Paul was the “cream of the crop” when it came to works of the flesh. If anyone could brag about their flesh, it was Paul. He was born a Hebrew, of the tribe of Benjamin, and had followed the law all his days. He was a chief among the Pharisees. But once Paul experienced Jesus, he saw that all those things didn’t get him anywhere in terms of God’s righteousness. Sure, they produced a lot of self righteousness, but that is not Godly righteousness. Paul states in Philippians 3:8-9: “Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.” I love those verses! Paul is saying that all those things he had done in the flesh to earn the approval of God he now counted as rubbish. He followed the law, and what does the scripture say it produced? Godly righteousness? No. He said not having his own righteousness, which is from the law. When you look at a set of rules you need to follow to be right with God it will only produce self righteousness if you think you have followed them all correctly. You will have the attitude of “look at me and how good I have been.” I know. I used to be like that. “Wow, God must be proud of me because I am living so well” was often my way of thinking. That only leads to self righteousness, which is exactly what the Pharisee trap is. (Side note: that was my way of thinking about half the time. The other half of the time I was condemned, because I realized how far short I really came. That was the true purpose of the law, to condemn us to make us see our need for Jesus). Godly righteousness isn’t about looking at ourselves and what we have to do but rather at Jesus and what He has done. Sometimes I still have those Pharisee thoughts come to me when I do something nice. Personally, I think it is from the enemy to distract me. But I have learned to counteract that thought with NO, it is not about me. It is not what I have done because my works could never be enough. The Bible says our righteousness “is as filthy rags” – Isaiah 64:6. Our holy deeds pale in comparison to the holiness of Jesus. It is all about what Jesus has done! He is pure and he is holy, and the only way I can become holy and righteous is through faith in Him. I am relying on His righteousness to make me righteous. Maybe you have fallen into the Pharisee trap. Are you continually looking at yourself and what you have done in order to achieve right standing from God? The only way to get out of this trap is to realize you can’t earn your right standing with God and to look to the one who has paid the price for your righteousness – Jesus! Continually keep your eyes on Him and what He has done for you. That is the key to staying out of that nasty old Pharisee trap once and for all! Questions or comments? Amber can be reached at amberdeemiller32@gmail.com


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