And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance, a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denari and gave them to the innkeeper, saying “Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.” Which of these, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Luke 10:25-37

The lawyer entered this engagement to test God and justify himself. In that posture, he already has the answers and isn’t here to be changed. He already thinks he’s right. He merely engages to showcase publicly and to God his knowledge and reasonableness. Jesus’ brilliant response to the deeper heart posture of the question rather than the question expands the lawyer’s concepts of neighbor and love and demonstrates the futility of justifying one’s righteousness before God. Simply, do the work.

Approaching God with curiosity is vulnerable. That sort of curiosity connotes humility and an openness to change. We lay our knowledge and reasonableness before God in order for him to reveal the gaps in them. We lay our achievements and our accolades before God so that he can point us to where are our next steps. We lay our lives down to pick them back up in the direction of God’s work. The surrender and the curiosity are followed by listening and then action.

We don’t need to approach God for justification. There is NOTHING we can do to justify ourselves. However, Christ has already, and if you believe that, you can approach God unarmored and ready. But whatever God says might not be what we want to hear because the plans and purposes God has for us are so much bigger than we could ever imagine. As we expand our capacity for love and act upon that, it will take us to places that no knowledge and no reason can explain. That is living by grace, by faith and with God.

Prayer: I don’t want to justify myself anymore. I don’t need to prove that I am right before your eyes. Help me to receive your discipline and your directions courageously knowing that there is nothing on earth that can separate me from the love of God. Help me to listen well and act without missing a beat.

When you feel like you already know or feel a need to justify yourself, what are you trying to protect? Who are you afraid of? What happens if you cannot justify yourself before others?