BBd 07.26.06 Foolishness and Arrogance

#1 · July 26, 2006, 4:48 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on July 26, 2006, 4:48 pm
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net

www.theburningbush.org

Several devotional booklets are available for free download in PDF format at
the new site. Just click on the "Free Book Downloads" link.

Be a part of the Burning Bush Community! Share prayer requests,
inspirational material, find help for addictions, and help others. Find out
more at the Burning Bush Community webpage:
www.theburningbush.net/pages.asp?pageid=37647

The Burning Bush Devotional

Welcome to the 2,051 new subscribers since November 1, 2005!!

07.26.06

Foolishness and Arrogance

But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.
And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to
teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God
perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and
that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having
been taken captive by him to do his will. - 2 Timothy 2:23-26.

There is a fact of life and that is that people sometimes will do foolish
even stupid things. Here are a few examples:

Two men had an argument in Syracuse, New York over who it was that drank the
last beer. One of the men ended the argument by robbing the other. He stole
his cell phone, cash and then hit his drinking buddy over the head with a
gun. Ronald Zimmerman is now facing several charges including first-degree
robbery.

Carriel Louah is suing her parents. She showed up unexpectedly a couple of
years ago at her parent's home to surprise her mother on her birthday.
Sounds like a nice thing to do doesn't it? But the next morning Carriel fell
on her parent's icy driveway and broke two ankles. She is now suing her
parents for $75,000 for their failure to properly maintain their drainage
system.

In Jenks, Oklahoma, sadly, a 17-year-old boy has been killed during a
paintball fight between two groups of young men in two vehicles. The fight
does not appear to have been malicious in intent, which occurred after they
left a paintball adventure park - just very tragic. Oklahoma Highway Patrol
Lt. Pete Norwood said about the accident, "I have seen a lot of horseplay
over the past years, but I think this is the first time I have ever seen
somebody playing paintball at 75 mph. The highway is no place to play."

Some things are obviously foolish in nature and other things may not appear
to be foolish until we look at the eternal consequences. So many problems
between people and within a church arise over little things and often simply
because of miscommunication or misunderstanding. Those problems escalate
until the real business of the church is placed on hold.

Sadly, some arguments, disputes, strife in the church and between people
outside of the church occur not because of foolishness but because of
arrogance. When we are involved in an argument or disagreement, we must be
careful to consider our own position. Are you a person that has to always
have your way? Are you always right and everyone else always wrong? Do you
think that everyone else should always have the same view of things and
opinion of things as you do? Do you think that everyone else would do well
to live exactly as you live? If so, it may be that you have a problem with
arrogance.

Arrogance is defined as, "an attitude of superiority manifested in an
overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions." Another
definition defines someone who is arrogant as being, "unpleasantly proud and
behaving as if you are more important than, or know more than, other
people." According to those definitions Proverbs 28:25 is talking about an
arrogant person when it says, "He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife."
Proverbs 13:10 also indicates that arrogance causes strife when we are told,
"By pride comes nothing but strife." The apostle Paul gives a word of wisdom
and warning about arrogance when he writes, "Be of the same mind toward one
another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble.
Do not be wise in your own opinion (Romans 12:16)."

A fool is defined as "a person who behaves in a silly way without thinking."
Sometimes there are fools in the church who unintentionally cause disruption
or strife but it is not something that they planned to do. However, someone
who is arrogant is someone who thinks, considers, contemplates, plans, and
causes disruption and strife through their faulty reasoning. I say faulty
because they think they know better than everyone else, including God, about
everything.

What are the solutions for foolishness and arrogance and therefore a
solution for much of the strife that we encounter in life and in church?
Proverbs 16:3 says, "Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will
be established." Proverb 19:23a says, "The fear of the Lord leads to life,
and he who has it will abide in satisfaction." We are told in Proverbs
19:20-21, "Listen to counsel and receive instruction, that you may be wise
in your latter days. There are many plans in a man's heart, nevertheless the
Lord's counsel-that will stand." What is the solution for foolishness and
for arrogance? It is found in a life committed to the Lord, a life that is
continually listening for and seeking the wisdom that only comes from God.

Copyright © 2006. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has
been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the
Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.

NEW WEBSITE UPDATE: Posting of the 2002 devotionals has been completed and
posting of the 2001 devotionals has begun. A Prison Ministry page has been
added with information for Chaplains and others involved in prison or jail
ministries on obtaining free material to distribute to inmates in bulk
quantities.

The new Burning Bush website is hosted by NetMinistry. Check out their
services at www.netministry.com/?affiliateid=819

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may
subscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org

Streaming Videos of some of my sermons are posted at:
www.theburningbush.org/fbcswvideo.html

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here
is the URL: www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You can unsubscribe to the pure text version of the devotional by sending a
blank email to burningbushdevo-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-subscribe@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.

Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net

http://www.theburningbush.org

Several devotional booklets are available for free download in PDF format at
the new site. Just click on the "Free Book Downloads" link.

Be a part of the Burning Bush Community! Share prayer requests,
inspirational material, find help for addictions, and help others. Find out
more at the Burning Bush Community webpage:
http://www.theburningbush.net/pages.asp?pageid=37647

The Burning Bush Devotional

Welcome to the 2,051 new subscribers since November 1, 2005!!

07.26.06

Foolishness and Arrogance

But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.
And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to
teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God
perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and
that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having
been taken captive by him to do his will. - 2 Timothy 2:23-26.

There is a fact of life and that is that people sometimes will do foolish
even stupid things. Here are a few examples:

Two men had an argument in Syracuse, New York over who it was that drank the
last beer. One of the men ended the argument by robbing the other. He stole
his cell phone, cash and then hit his drinking buddy over the head with a
gun. Ronald Zimmerman is now facing several charges including first-degree
robbery.

Carriel Louah is suing her parents. She showed up unexpectedly a couple of
years ago at her parent's home to surprise her mother on her birthday.
Sounds like a nice thing to do doesn't it? But the next morning Carriel fell
on her parent's icy driveway and broke two ankles. She is now suing her
parents for $75,000 for their failure to properly maintain their drainage
system.

In Jenks, Oklahoma, sadly, a 17-year-old boy has been killed during a
paintball fight between two groups of young men in two vehicles. The fight
does not appear to have been malicious in intent, which occurred after they
left a paintball adventure park - just very tragic. Oklahoma Highway Patrol
Lt. Pete Norwood said about the accident, "I have seen a lot of horseplay
over the past years, but I think this is the first time I have ever seen
somebody playing paintball at 75 mph. The highway is no place to play."

Some things are obviously foolish in nature and other things may not appear
to be foolish until we look at the eternal consequences. So many problems
between people and within a church arise over little things and often simply
because of miscommunication or misunderstanding. Those problems escalate
until the real business of the church is placed on hold.

Sadly, some arguments, disputes, strife in the church and between people
outside of the church occur not because of foolishness but because of
arrogance. When we are involved in an argument or disagreement, we must be
careful to consider our own position. Are you a person that has to always
have your way? Are you always right and everyone else always wrong? Do you
think that everyone else should always have the same view of things and
opinion of things as you do? Do you think that everyone else would do well
to live exactly as you live? If so, it may be that you have a problem with
arrogance.

Arrogance is defined as, "an attitude of superiority manifested in an
overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions." Another
definition defines someone who is arrogant as being, "unpleasantly proud and
behaving as if you are more important than, or know more than, other
people." According to those definitions Proverbs 28:25 is talking about an
arrogant person when it says, "He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife."
Proverbs 13:10 also indicates that arrogance causes strife when we are told,
"By pride comes nothing but strife." The apostle Paul gives a word of wisdom
and warning about arrogance when he writes, "Be of the same mind toward one
another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble.
Do not be wise in your own opinion (Romans 12:16)."

A fool is defined as "a person who behaves in a silly way without thinking."
Sometimes there are fools in the church who unintentionally cause disruption
or strife but it is not something that they planned to do. However, someone
who is arrogant is someone who thinks, considers, contemplates, plans, and
causes disruption and strife through their faulty reasoning. I say faulty
because they think they know better than everyone else, including God, about
everything.

What are the solutions for foolishness and arrogance and therefore a
solution for much of the strife that we encounter in life and in church?
Proverbs 16:3 says, "Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will
be established." Proverb 19:23a says, "The fear of the Lord leads to life,
and he who has it will abide in satisfaction." We are told in Proverbs
19:20-21, "Listen to counsel and receive instruction, that you may be wise
in your latter days. There are many plans in a man's heart, nevertheless the
Lord's counsel-that will stand." What is the solution for foolishness and
for arrogance? It is found in a life committed to the Lord, a life that is
continually listening for and seeking the wisdom that only comes from God.

Copyright © 2006. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has
been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the
Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.

NEW WEBSITE UPDATE: Posting of the 2002 devotionals has been completed and
posting of the 2001 devotionals has begun. A Prison Ministry page has been
added with information for Chaplains and others involved in prison or jail
ministries on obtaining free material to distribute to inmates in bulk
quantities.

The new Burning Bush website is hosted by NetMinistry. Check out their
services at http://www.netministry.com/?affiliateid=819

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may
subscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org

Streaming Videos of some of my sermons are posted at:
http://www.theburningbush.org/fbcswvideo.html

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here
is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You can unsubscribe to the pure text version of the devotional by sending a
blank email to burningbushdevo-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-subscribe@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org and then respond to
the confirmation email.