Accidental Pharisees: Avoiding Pride, Exclusivity, and the Other Dangers of Overzealous Faith
Zealous faith can have a dangerous, dark side. While recent calls for radical Christians have challenged many to be more passionate about their faith, the down side can be a budding arrogance and self-righteousness that “accidentally” sneaks into our outlook.
In Accidental Pharisees, bestselling author Larry Osborne diagnoses nine of the most common traps that can ensnare Christians on the road to a deeper life of faith. Rejecting attempts to turn the call to follow Christ into a new form of legalism, he shows readers how to avoid the temptations of pride, exclusivity, legalism, and hypocrisy,
Larry reminds us that attempts to fan the flames of full-on discipleship and call people to Christlikeness should be rooted in love and humility. Christians stirred by calls to radical discipleship, but unsure how to respond, will be challenged and encouraged to develop a truly Christlike zeal for God.
Top Highlights
“According to Jesus, it didn’t matter how moral or zealous he was. His arrogant trust in his own righteousness, and his pattern of looking down on everyone else, nullified all the good he had done. It left him worse off than a low-life tax collector.” (source)
“If we fail to understand how spiritually impressive the Pharisees were, we will remain blind to the danger of becoming like them.” (source)
“Spiritual comparisons are particularly silly. We don’t always know the full story. All we see is the outside. There’s no way to see the heart. This means that a lot of our conclusions about people are flat-out wrong. As we’ve already seen, the Pharisees looked impressive on the outside. But they were dead on the inside.” (source)
“But the problem with spiritual comparisons is that we can’t read hearts. We don’t know backgrounds. We don’t know whether someone has come a long way or has barely grown. We don’t know what God has done behind the scenes or what he has in store for the future.” (source)
“We can’t take a few of Jesus’ statements and turn them into a global assignment and responsibility for all. We have to interpret his words in light of the totality of Scripture. Anything else is cut-and-paste theology.” (source)
Product Details
- Title : Accidental Pharisees: Avoiding Pride, Exclusivity, and the Other Dangers of Overzealous Faith
- Author: Osborne, Larry
- Publisher: Zondervan
- Publication Date: 2012
- ISBN: 9780310494454