The Pharisee Inside of Me
June 17, 2015
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Acts 4:13-17
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. 16 “What are we going to do with these men?”they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. 17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”
There’s a Pharisee inside of me.
He lives in my head
and he blocks the flow of blood from my heart.
He disguises himself as spiritual intellect –
a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
He so kindly provides me with all the answers,
while at the same time explaining away all strange phenomena.
I read about people like him in Scripture
and I shake my head,
until I’ve realized there’s one being jostled around up there.
The Pharisee inside of me
lies about spiritual progress,
confusing intellect with maturity.
The Pharisee inside of me
promises righteousness,
though it is of a different kind than what Christ promises.
The Pharisee inside of me
looks with contempt on others
from a place of self-induced pride.
Lord, redeem the Pharisee inside of me.
Lord, redeem all that lives in my head.
Lord, redeem the flow of blood from my heart to my head.
And be gentle, Lord, because a Pharisee lives inside of me.
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