BBD 06.22.05 Just for Show
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
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The Burning Bush Devotional
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06.22.05
Just for Show
Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax
collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, "God, I thank
You that I am not like other men--extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even
as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I
possess." And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as
raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to
me a sinner!" - Luke 18:10-13.
Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you
may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails
much. - James 5:16.
I have been spending a lot of time with my Dad the last few weeks and I have
picked up another little pearl of wisdom from him. As we were driving over
to see my Mother at the nursing home, we passed a house in the country,
which had a nice white wooden rail fence around the edge of the property.
The fence was made with three one by six boards in each section between the
posts. I had driven by the fence many times and had always admired the way
it looked. My Dad had a different thought about it. He said, pointing at the
fence, "A fence like that is just for show - it doesn't really serve any
purpose."
Actually, I think the fence can serve a purpose, although it might not be
the best kind of fence to keep in cattle. Thinking about this I realized
that people do many things "just for show", myself included. Jesus tells of
the prayers of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. I have pictured the
Pharisee as being surrounded by others when he begins to pray loudly, "God,
I thank You that I am not like other men.." He brags by insinuating his
higher level of holiness, brags of his fastings and his financial giving.
You have to wonder if he really fasts, really tithes, and is really more
holy than the Tax Collector and others he mentions. Or, is all of the
praying of the Pharisee - "just for show"? Or, if the Pharisee does try to
publicly present a life that is more holy, and actually does fast and pray -
is it all "just for show"?
Public praying can be a challenge and it can be intimidating. Usually my
public prayers are not like my private prayers. Because when I am praying
privately, my prayers are more like a conversation. The temptation with
public prayers is to pray "just for show." Meaning that we would pray
thinking of what others would think we ought to pray about or to in some way
impress someone else.
We can carry this thought even further to how we present ourselves to our
brothers and sisters in Christ. James indicates that we ought to be open
with our fellow Christians about our "trespasses". Revealing our trespasses,
i.e. our sins to others will also reveal our own lack of perfection and
automatically drop us to the level of the Tax Collector (Which is where we
all are any way.). The temptation is to present a front of everything being
perfect in our lives when the truth is that everyone knows that no one is
perfect (Except for the our Lord Jesus - Romans 3:23; Hebrews 4:15). This
persistence in keeping up a front of perfection "just for show" is perhaps
the greatest obstacle to true Christian fellowship.
Copyright © 2005. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
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