Don’t let praises PUFF you up or accusations SNUFF you down..!

Let’s read Matthew 3:16, 17; 4:1, 2 & Matthew 12:22-28

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.

 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.

“….they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see.  All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David? But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons that this fellow drives out demons.” 

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?  And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

God is the ONLY one who is truly worthy of all honour and praise (Psalm 145:3) because he is GREAT. His greatness is beyond the boundaries of our understanding. However, there is a counterfeit “greatness” that the world tries to bestow on its men - “great actor”, “great sportsperson”, “great leader” etc. Most often, this so called “greatness” bestowed by the world makes a mockery of the priceless Grace of God by highlighting only the self-strength and self-ability of a man or a woman who may seem to have achieved something through their hard work & perseverance alone. The labourer deserves his wages (1 Timothy 5:18). It is OK to accept the recognition & encouragement ONLY for God’s glory, but it is never OK to accept the counterfeit “greatness” that the world has to offer.

The world also has a lawless “punishment” to offer. It mocks, slanders, reviles or even crucifies those who are dedicated to please God and God alone.

A true child of God never lets the counterfeit “greatness” to puff him/her up with pride or never lets the lawless “punishment” to snuff his/her confidence down – both are equally harmful if yeilded to.

JESUS CHRIST is a perfect example for us to follow when we find ourselves at the receiving end of both “praise” and “slander”.

There are 2 scripture portions above.The first scripture portion (Matthew 3:16, 17; 4:1, 2) explains how God the Father Himself expressed His pleasure in His Son. Did Jesus puff up with pride by this heavenly re-assurance? – Absolutely NOT. What did he do instead? – “..He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry….”  What a great example..!

John the Baptist said this about Jesus – “…the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit…” (Mark 1:7, 8) Did Jesus puff up with pride by this “genuine praise” by another man? – Absolutely NOT.

The second scripture portion (Matthew 12:22-28) talks about the height of Phariseean “slander” & “false accusation”. The Pharisees addressed Jesus, the Son of God as “Beelzebul”. The Prince of Peace was falsely accused of being the Prince of Devils. Did Jesus let this very offensive “blasphemy” to snuff His confidence and authority down? - Absolutely NOT. Instead He was firm enough to boldly present the truth to those self-righteous, spiritually-blind Pharisees.

Let us follow the example of Jesus in being humble and in having the right attitude to handle both “praise” and “accusation” - ALWAYS….!