Christian Living

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Love Is..Not Boasting About Yourself
by Chaplain Dan Langerock

Have you ever thought about the ramifications of boasting on others,
as well as how God views it?
What You Are Really Saying We all fall into this trap at times.
Instead of just being informational about what is going on in our lives, we
slip into the next stage of being boastful, without considering how it will
affect others. What are you really saying to someone when you are
boasting, aside from the contents? In essence, you are telling them by your
attitude that what you have accomplished is more important than what they
are doing--a sort of subtle putdown. Think about the motive of why you are
telling someone about your accomplishment before you speak, and it will
help prevent hurting someone.
The Fallacy of Bragging If you have studied logic, then you will
know that bragging can be considered as a fallacy, and what the person is
saying is untrue, because they are promoting themselves. In a spiritual
sense this is also true. The Bible teaches it is better to allow others to
promote us rather than doing it ourselves. Jesus gave the example of a
banquet with a lot of important people present. A person comes in and
assumes the host wants him to sit in a certain place of importance, let's
say at the head table. So later the host comes in and finds this person
sitting where he is not supposed to be. By this time there are many more
people present to witness what is transpiring. The person is asked to sit
at another table and is embarrassed because of their presumption.
How God Views Bragging Many times in the Scriptures, there are
references to what God thinks about pride. If we are proclaiming to be
Christians when we boast, it is probable we will not give the glory to God
for what He has supplied for us. Again, the answer to the question of
whether or not to talk about a subject is the motive behind why you are
sharing this item?
Telling about what we did for others Jesus warned against this one
as well. He intimated that if we spread around what we have done, we lose
our reward from the Father. He advised, instead, to "not let your left hand
know what your right hand is doing". God is the one who sees what you are
doing. So let Him reward you instead of getting the praise of people.
Nobody wants to hear the rest of their life what you did for them anyway.
Jesus promised that if you do something nice for someone in a humble manner
so that it is not broadcast, God will reward you openly. Now we must decide
whether we want man's praise for what was done, or God's acclaim in His
time.
You know why you are telling friends and others about events in your
life. God also knows, and is watching your motives. Be mindful of this
truth as you talk about your life. We can try to fool ourselves sometimes,
but God knows, and will respond accordingly.

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