If there’s one thing humans will always thrive at, it’s being competitive. Something in our nature causes us to constantly prove our worth by outsmarting and outwitting our peers, if only to make ourselves feel better for a fleeting moment.
Unfortunately, this obsessive, aggressive competitiveness often sneaks its way into our spiritual lives.
How many times do you remember speaking up in Bible Study or Sunday School only to have your points and comments ripped to shreds by the person next to you?
There’s honestly no feeling more defeating than that. You thought you had a handle on a piece of scripture and here comes Bible Betty to trounce allover your brilliant idea.
Or are you the Bible Betty? Always taking other people’s comments about scripture and searching for an error or a mistake so that you can prove just how well you “know” God.
Since when did scripture become a competitive sport? Do you win extra points with God when you prove that others have “misinterpreted” scripture?
Somehow, I highly doubt it.
When I think of Bible Betty’s, I’m always reminded of Luke’s description of Jesus criticizing the religious leaders in Chapter 11:
“Yes,” said Jesus, “what sorrow also awaits you experts in religious law! For you crush people with unbearable religious demands, and you never lift a finger to ease the burden. 47 What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago. 48 But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments! 49 This is what God in his wisdom said about you: ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them, but they will kill some and persecute the others.’
50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world— 51 from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will certainly be charged against this generation.
52 “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.”
Even though these religious leaders followed the law to the letter, they never followed it in its spirit. In fact, they used the laws to oppress and suppress their brothers and sisters.
The same can be said for those who take pleasure in pointing out the flaws in other people’s religious statements. You will never be an expert in God’s law, nor should you ever desire to be one.
You should instead wish to be a person who uses their religious knowledge to lift others up and show them compassion, truth, and love—but most of all love.
As Christians, we should always seek to use our knowledge to show other people their calling, instead of using our “calling” to criticize and belittle others.
I only pray that I can use my knowledge in a way that brings everyone closer to God, instead of pulling us all apart—because then I will truly “know” God.
