Luke, 16:15 is important when we’re examining our conscience. “You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.”
We should remember that advice when we want to obtain something. Usually, when we think of buying something, or going somewhere, we usually find ourselves rehearsing what we will tell others about it.
“I didn’t really want a Rolex, but . . .”
“I really didn’t need an engraved, nickel-plated Colt .45 with ivory handles that was carried by an American officer in the Spanish-American War, but . . .”
“I just wanted a full-length mink coat.”
“It’s not his best work, but it has a certain quality that’s missing in so much of what he did.”
“Most tourists don’t go there this time of year, but I find it’s the ideal time to get to know the people.”
We may recognize similar thoughts in our own behavior as we “justify ourselves in the sight of others” because that’s what all those sentences do. For a specific insight into our own self, we may try to fill in the following blank:
“I have seen several ________s, but this one is so (much nicer, cheaper, newer, classy, more distinctive) that I just have to have it.”
There’s an easy way to examine our self. Before going any farther, fill in that blank with the first word that comes to mind. Stop for a couple of seconds, go back, re-read the sentence, and think of the word you’d use.
If we fill in that blank, and then re-view the passage from Luke, 16:15. We understand that the word we’ve put in the blank is an insight as to what distracts us from God.
It is very probable that we will find one of the things God finds most disappointing in us is the fact that we spend so much time thinking about the various words we put in the blank and not about Him.
