They meet weekly to work through a Bible study, pray for one another, and fellowship. He’s been part of a small group with ten or twelve other men for close to a year now. That makes us feel good, and we like that feeling.įrom Outreach Magazine Why We Can't Seem to Follow the Golden Ruleīack to Bill. We think we’re in the top 10 percent of performers. Whether or not we admit it to ourselves, we start to believe we’re ahead of others in terms of being a good Christian-almost as if we view life as a spiritual marathon. Symptom 3: Developing Spiritual ArroganceĪnother common symptom of trying to live the Christian life is developing a level of arrogance when it comes to our spirituality. It makes him feel less mature as a Christian. Choosing to watch football over attending a church service makes Bill feel guilty and uncomfortable because he perceives it as a missed opportunity to be seen prioritizing spiritual things over his own desires. Bill decides to stay home and watch the game, but he feels guilty, and he doesn’t really enjoy the time to himself.īill doesn’t know how to articulate this sense of guilt, but he’s built his life on a foundation of spiritual performance not only for himself but also for others. He also confesses his sin during his prayer time and commits to “doing better” the next time he’s left alone in the house.īill often feels guilty when he chooses something he enjoys over the opportunity to do something “spiritual.” For example, his favorite football team is playing on Sunday Night Football, but his church is having a worship night the same time as the game. The next morning, he reads his Bible for an extra thirty minutes. But then his wife takes their children to a movie on Friday night, and Bill indulges while they’re away.

For most of the week, he tries his best to resist the temptation. He knows this is both sinful and harmful, and he genuinely would like to have victory over this addiction-but on his terms. He’s familiar with the Bible, he has no public vices, and he’s known as an active member of his church community.īill also has an addiction to online pornography. Now in his forties, he considers himself spiritually mature. His parents were Christians, and he grew up in church.

In many ways, people with this approach to following Jesus act as if heaven has a spiritual bank that stores credit in our accounts whenever we do something “spiritual” and deducts from our accounts whenever we sin.īill has been a Christian his whole life. The first symptom of trying to follow Jesus is believing that spiritual growth and spiritual maturity can be earned. Symptom 1: Striving to Earn Spiritual Maturity

Christian ways of life