“This is what the LORD says: ‘Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 9:23-24 (NIV)

What Do You Boast In?

I’ve seen a little saying on Facebook recently that says: “I don’t want to brag or make anyone jealous but I can still fit into the earrings I wore in high school.” This makes me laugh because I could proudly add that I still have and can fit a sweater and my Tall Flags jacket from high school. Though I don’t usually go around telling people this fact, if I was honest, I just might have a tad of excessive inward pride about it.

Boast: to speak with exaggeration and excessive pride or vanity especially about oneself.

What kinds of things do you boast in? Are you overly proud of a family recipe, a job, a talent, your children, or your possessions? These things are definitely gifts from God and should be tended to properly but we should not speak of them with excessive pride or vanity as if we had anything to do with it.

According to God, as written in Jeremiah, if we boast, boast about knowing and understanding GOD, the great I AM. Wow, can you honestly say you know and understand God to the point of boasting about it? I’m sure I can’t.

 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor” (Romans 11:34 NIV)?

“Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being His counselor has taught Him” (Isaiah 40:13)?

God gives us a clue as to how to know Him in this passage above. He delights in kindness, justice and righteousness on earth. We will do well to follow His example by living kindly with people and seeking to do justly and rightly in our daily tasks. This is enough to do so we shouldn’t have time to boast about ourselves.

“He has shown you, O man what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8)?

We should walk humbly with our God.

Humbly: not proud or arrogant, low in rank or importance.

Humility is a tricky thing. Do we lose it if we say we have it? C.S. Lewis says in his book Mere Christianity that the truly humble man “will not be thinking about humility; he will not be thinking about himself at all.” We can accomplish this only through the power of Holy Spirit as we submit our will to His.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interest but each of you to the interests of the others” (Philippians 2:3-4).

“Heavenly Father, we want to know and understand You. Help us to live kindly, justly and rightly upon the earth. Teach us humility as we submit to You today. Amen.”