Since we are still at the beginning of the new year, it is a good time to start forming good habits as it relates to our need for people’s approval.
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to render righteous or such he ought to be
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to show, exhibit, evince, one to be righteous, such as he is and wishes himself to be considered
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to declare, pronounce, one to be just, righteous, or such as he ought to be
The above definition was very interesting to me. I had never thought about the fact that when we justify our position, we are trying to prove ourselves righteous. I thought it more as clarifying a position or a misunderstanding., but in truth we don’t want people to see us in a negative light.
Can we really prove to anyone we are righteous!? Do we have any true righteousness apart from Jesus!? If we believe that Jesus is our righteousness, why do we spend so much time and energy worrying about how others see us!? Can we add to what Jesus has done on the cross!?
Furthermore, the above verse tells us that God knows our hearts. Whether our internal condition is good or bad, God knows about it. We may convince people of our righteousness and innocence, but God cannot be mocked. We should be more concerned about what the Lord thinks rather than being worried about man’s opinion and trying to justify ourselves.
I can think of few ways we can be man pleasing that may not be obvious.
- We try to explain something in detail in order to convince others to see it from our point of view.
- We may argue with people pushing to get our point across and expecting to change their position.
- We make excuses for something in the hopes that others won’t think any less of us.
- We defend our actions instead of admitting we were wrong or apologizing for it.
- We blame others in order to take the limelight off of us and avoid being seen in a negative light.
What are some of the ways that you try to justify yourself? Do any of the above patterns sound familiar to you? Prayerfully make an intentional decision to be aware of those patterns so that when you find yourself in them, you can stop yourself and refrain from to gain man’s acceptance.