Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

The Ugly Christian

PSALM 17:15 – As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.”

 

THEME OF THE DAY:  THE UGLY CHRISTIAN.   No, today’s theme is not a Christian beauty contest.  We are not looking at attire or physical beauty, but if we were to define the opposite of today’s theme – the beautiful Christian – we would go no further than these words of the Apostle Paul because they describe the truly attractive Christian – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23).  That person is attractive because he or she is reflecting the Lord Jesus!  But back to the theme of the day – the ugly Christian.

 

Such a believer has the following qualities in their heart and manifested in their lives.  First, they are consumed with themselves.  The thought of putting the interests of others ahead of their own rarely impacts their lives.  Oh, they may serve someone or visit a suffering saint, but more out of obligation and not genuine love. And those are isolated acts of service, not consistent patterns in life. In writing to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul uses some of the Roman Christians as sad examples of such self-centered Christians – I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ (Philippians 2:19-21).

 

Another quality in the ugly Christian is pride; a self-exalting attitude that looks down on others through the ugliness of spiritual superiority and seeks to be recognized in giftedness and service.  Both are so contrary to the Lord’s instructions – An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great” (Luke 9:46-48). Let me encourage us to do a word study of “pride” in our Bibles with the purpose of seeing God’s attitude towards it and actions against.  Such a study should be life-altering as we see how serious and ugly is the sin of pride.

 

And when it comes to serving the Lord?  Pride will disqualify us quickly. Remember, God will have no self-exalting servants. All will be humbled to draw no attention to themselves. His servants will live and serve with a noticeable absence of promoting what they do, what they have achieved, and who they are apart from God’s grace. The Apostle Paul recognized himself as a slave of Christ, the chief of sinners, and nothing of note in and of himself. And God will spare us no pain to purge us from the ugliness of self-exalting pride.

 

The ugly Christian? Nothing to do with outward looks but everything to do with the inward and the presence and practice of pride.

 

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me for those times I exalt myself, I let ugly pride think more highly of myself than I should.”

 

QUOTE: “The Christians ruled by pride choose to place self on the throne of one’s heart and dethrone Christ.”

 

In the affection of Christ Jesus,

 

Pastor Jim