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“Christians are self-righteous.” It seems this charge is becoming more common today. I see it on comment threads following a news article or video. I hear it on call in shows when a Christian tries to defend the Christian worldview. I sometimes hear it from political commentators who charge the “religious right” or “social conservatives” with some sort of phobia or bigotry. Christian has become a dirty word that describes angry, bigoted people who self-righteously judge everyone else.

It is quite ironic to charge Christians with self-righteousness. A Christian is supposed to be a person of the “good news,” that Christ died to save us from our sins and bring in the kingdom of God. We can’t save ourselves or do enough good works to earn salvation. That would be a kind of self-righteousness. So by definition, we’re supposed to be far from self-righteous. So how did we get this label?”

Maybe it has something to do with the practice of some religious people to live outwardly “good” moral lives according to the Bible. Then they compare themselves to others who aren’t living that way. They conclude they are doing better or are better. This belief spills out of in their words and body language.

Such religious people have been around for a long time. Jesus took them on during His time on earth. I was especially struck today by this statement from Jesus. “And he said, ‘Woe to you lawyers also! For you load people with burdens hard to bear and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.’” (Luke 11:46). The lawyers knew God’s law very well. They would explain or teach the law along with all its expectations. They loaded people with burdens hard to bear. Yet they would do nothing to help the people deal with these burdens.

Did you notice the image Jesus used to point out their complete carelessness to others? “You yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.” So imagine a person walking down the road with a very heavy backpack. They can barely stand up under the weight. Yet they continue to struggle down the street gradually. The person (lawyer) walks by and doesn’t touch their burden with a finger – even though just the touch of a finger wouldn’t help. But Jesus is saying that the lawyer would not even reach out with one finger to just touch the other person’s burden. More convicting to the lawyer is that he put that burden on the person. He explained the high demands of God’s law. But he wouldn’t lift a finger to help the person figure out what help looks like.

It’s like coming across a person who steals food to survive. We discover this and then sternly pronounce God’s law on this. “You shall not steal.” Then we go on our way with little regard for the person. We don’t explore why they might be in a such a circumstance where they need to steal to survive. It’s like a drive by self-righteousness bomb.

Then think about Jesus’ approach. He proclaimed God’s will and word. He showed us the high standard God calls us to for our own good. Then He didn’t just walk away and leave us to struggle down the road with a weight of guilt. He gave not just a finger but His whole body. He carried not just a portion but our complete burden. He joined His Word with His Love so that we could receive the good news.

“Lord, remind us of the magnitude of our own sin and the even greater magnitude of your salvation. Then please empower us to be people who not only speak the good news but live it out with those heavily burdened around us.”