SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS #1

By David J. Riggs

Intro.
   A. There is a class of people pictured in the N.T. that no one
      particularly likes.  They are the Pharisees.
   B. God in His wisdom has taught us by revealing the bad
      examples as well as the good ones.
      1. If Jesus had come to this earth and said, "Here is a list of
         my commandments; you are required to follow them"
         and then gone back to heaven, He probably would not
         have had much of a following.
      2. Instead, along with His commandments, He gave much
         "on the job" training.
         a. We have true-life experiences of both the good and
            the bad.
   C. There are many obvious evils which the Pharisees had:
      prejudice, hypocrisy, pride, traditions of men, etc.
      1. There is one trait, though, that is often overlooked. It is
         self-righteousness.
      2. With this lesson, we begin a two-part study regarding
         self-righteousness.
      3. First, let's look at what self-righteous is, as exemplified
         in the Pharisees.
         a. We will follow with another lesson on how to
            overcome self-righteousness.

I. FIRST, LET'S DEFINE SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS.
   A. "Self-righteousness" is "Over confidence in one's own
      righteousness, esp. when intolerant of the opinions and
      behavior of others."  (Webster)
      1. Thus, self-righteousness is an over-estimation of one's
         own goodness, leading to disrespect for others. 
   B. The self-righteous are often the spiritual elite who have no
      time nor regard for the spiritual pulpiers.
   C. Now, let's examine several verses where self-righteousness is
      clearly demonstrated.

II. Luke 15:25-32
   A. The three parables given in Luke 15 (the lost sheep, the lost
      coin, and the lost son) were given for the benefit of the
      Pharisees.  Luke 15:1-2
      1. Luke 15:25-32 is the account of the reaction of the elder
         brother when the prodigal son came home.
   B. The older son well represented the condition of the Pharisees
      at that time.
      1. Notice the over-estimation of himself in verse 29, "I
         never transgressed your commandment at any time."
         a. Some children are very good, but I don't think it
            could be said of any that not a single time did they
            ever transgress their parents wishes.
   C. Also, notice how he looked down on his brother.
      1. He said, "...As soon as this son of yours came."
         a. He didn't say, "As soon as my brother came..."
      2. Also, he said, "who has devoured your livelihood with
         harlots..."
         a. He had no way of knowing this.  It may have been
            true, but he only assumed that it was true.
      3. He did not rejoice that his brother had come home.
         a. The father was the one who had genuine love for the
            wayward boy.  Luke 15:32

III. Luke 18:9-14
   A. Here we can see self-righteousness clearly exemplified.
      1. What the self-righteous one does in his own mind is to
         elevate certain qualities, and then set out to excel in     
         those qualities.  Verse 12
         a. Furthermore, because he has excelled in those
            qualities, he doesn't see the weaknesses he might
            have in other areas.
         b. He doesn't ask for forgiveness, because he doesn't
            think he needs forgiveness; after all, he fasts twice a
            week; he gives tithes of all that he has.
         c. Thus, his self-righteousness causes him to overlook
            an evident problem which he has - no humility.
      2. He looked down on others because, in his own mind,
         they didn't measure up to himself.  Verse 11
   B. We can easily fall into this same category.  We attend every
      service of the church, and have for many years.  We give
      liberally, live a good moral life, etc.
      1. We can get the idea that since we have excelled in certain
         areas, we don't need forgiveness.
         a. We might say in our prays, "Forgive us of our sins,"
            just in case we might have committed one.
      2. Also, since we excel in various ways, we can begin to
         look down on those who don't measure up.
         a. Even children have this same problem.  For example,
            "I have my Bible lesson prepared every week; others
            don't; therefore, I'm better than the others.

IV. Matt. 9:10-13; Mark 3:1-5
   A. Here we see the disdain (lack of love) in these self-righteous
      religious people.
      1. They thought they were righteous, and this brought on
         arrogance, pride, lack of love, disdain, and no concern
         for others.
   B. They should have rejoiced that many were being lead to
      repentance, and better still, they should have been led to
      repentance themselves.
      1. The only time in the N.T. that Jesus is said to be angered
         is when He saw their hardness of heart regarding the man
         with the withered hand. Mark 3:1-5
         a. They should have rejoiced that people were being
            healed, instead of carefully looking for something
            with which they could accuse Jesus.
   C. Today, in the church, the self-righteous are not concerned
      about helping anyone.
      1. Spiritually - They say, "They should be strong like I am."
      2. Physically - They say, "I'll not give any money to help
         them, because if they were righteous like I am, they
         would not be in this predicament."
      3. Thus, by a self-righteous attitude, one doesn't notice
         others who are in need because he doesn't care to notice. 
         Matt. 25:44-46

V. Mark 7:1-2
   A. These self-righteous religious people could not see their own
      faults, but they could readily see the faults of others.
   B. To mention a few of their faults:
      1. They followed the traditions of men.  Mark 7:9,13
      2. They loved the praise of men more than the praise of
         God.   John 12:43
      3. They did not practice what they taught.  Matt. 23:2-3
      4. They omitted the weightier matters of the law.  Matt.
         23:23
   C. Some can only see the faults of others, not their good. 
      1. A preacher tried to help a young man who was
         constantly disturbed and upset about the weakness and
         faults of the other members of the congregation. He
         caused a small black mark to show on a large white
         screen, and asked, "What do you see?" The young man
         said, "A black mark."  The preacher asked, "Is that all
         you see?"  He said, "Yes." The preacher said, "This is
         your problem; you only see the black marks (the faults)
         of the other members. You do not see the large white
         screen (the enormous good of those members)."
      2. It is wrong to focus only on the faults of others.  Let us
         appreciate, commend, praise, and pray for those who
         continue to do good.
         a. Consider Paul's example.  1 Thess. 1:2-3

VI. John 11:47-48
   A. They blamed others for their problems.  Jesus wasn't
      responsible for their problems with the Romans.
      1. Since they had such an exalted opinion of themselves, in
         their own minds, it couldn't have been their fault.
   B. Today, when some makes mistakes, do sinful things, they
      blame others.
      1. This has been a problem with man from the beginning.

VII. John 11:53; 12:9-11
   A. In the end, the Pharisees developed a stubborn, calloused will
      and they actively set about to destroy their opposition.
      1. Because of their own self-righteousness, they couldn't
         take rebuke.  Prov. 9:8; 23:9; 29:1
   B. They didn't deny that Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead.
      1. They should have fallen before Jesus and said, "We have
         fought You all this time, but there's no way we can
         withstand You anymore. The evidence is overwhelming,
         You have raised a man from the dead who had been dead
         four days, and the witnesses are everywhere. All we can
         do is believe on You as the Son of God."
      2. Is this what they did?  Not at all.
   C. They eventually destroyed their enemy, so they thought, by
      putting Him to death.
      1. They only succeeded because Jesus' death was
         foreordained by God.
      2. After they killed Jesus, Joseph and Nicodemus took the
         body of Jesus and carefully wrapped it in linen cloths,
         and put it into a new tomb, and a stone was placed over
         the entrance of the tomb.
      3. The Pharisees came to Pilate and said - Matt. 27:63-66.
      4. Matt. 28:1-4, 11-15 - One would think that surely the
         Pharisees would believe after their own guard gave their
         eye-witness testimony.
         a. What they did was downright dishonest.

Concl.
   A. We think of the Pharisees as an exceedingly evil bunch of
      people, and they were.  They killed the Son of God, the most
      righteous person who ever lived.
      1. We have carefully examined the basis of an evil character
         flaw which caused them to be as they were and do what
         they did.
   B. Jesus, in many ways, tried to help those self-righteous people.
      1. Jesus loved them, and tried to expose their sin.
      2. They should have acknowledged their evil and repented.
   C. In our next lesson, we will give exhortation on how to
            overcome self-righteousness.

Chart: Self-Righteousness

1. Luke 15:25-32
   a. Over-estimation of self.
   b. Lack of genuine love for a brother.

2. Luke 18:9-14
   a. Elevating certain qualities and excelling in them.
   b. Overlooking other important requirements.

3. Matt. 9:10-13; Mark 3:1-5
   a. Lack of love; disdain for others.
   b. Had no concern, physically or spiritually.

4. Mark 7:1-2
   a. Could not see their own faults.
   b. Could only see the faults of others.

5. John 11:47-48
   a. Blamed others for their problems.
   b. "Since I am righteous, it can't be me!"

6. John 11:53; 12:9-11
   a. Fought against the opposition.
   b. Developed a very calloused heart.
   c. Used evil means;  were dishonest.