Proverbs 16:2. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit.
By nature, or should I say by our fallen nature, we believe that we are righteous. We tend to think that we are making right choices for right reasons. That our motives are pure. We convince ourselves that we simply had to do what we did, that there was no other option. In our own eyes, the path we took is always the correct one. But is it really?
Solomon is telling his children that they need to be far more critical of themselves, especially of their spirit, their motivations. We all need to understand that our motives are never completely pure.
For example: I am a pastor which means I help people all the time. I always go to church, I serve, I sacrifice, and I make choices about what I can and cannot do. I would love to say that I always help with a pure motive – love for others. But the truth is that my motives are mixed. Yes, I love people (good motivation), but I also do good things to look good to others (bad motivation). I do things from both compassion and compulsion. And when I decide that I’m not going to help in some way I can always justify my decision.
What about you? Do you ever do things from a mixed motivation? Of course you do.
Our proverb says that the Lord weighs the spirit. Yikes. God doesn’t just look at what we do; he looks at why we do it. This is why Jesus tells us that no one can simply stand before him on judgment day with a list of their accomplishments. I cast out demons in your name. Yes, but I never knew you, Christ replies. This is why, on judgment day, only what is done in faith, only what has built upon the work of Christ, will survive – gold, silver, precious stone. Everything else we did will burn in the fire – wood, hay, stubble.
Christian, God weighs your spirit, and that’s good news. You see, when you are united to Christ and have the Spirit joined to your spirit, it is easy to have a mixed motivation. Why? Because the Spirit and the flesh are trying to occupy the same space in your soul. Galatians 5 describes this struggle:
Galatians 5:16-17. 16But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
The exposure of our motivations by the Spirit is good news, not bad news. In Christ, there is no condemnation. Therefore, letting God show us our sinful hearts, our wrong motivations, and our bad attitudes is the path to wisdom and victory. It is the path to loving from a pure heart. It is the path to learning to trust fully in the indwelling life and love of Christ, rather than in our own fleshly self-efforts.
The everlasting love of Christ allows us to invite the Lord to weigh our spirit, knowing that his grace and mercy will convict, comfort, and conform us into the likeness of the heart of Christ.
You: Can you identify your mixed motivations and self-righteous justifications of your choices?
You in Christ: In Christ you have both the indwelling Spirit and the indwelling flesh. How does this help you to understand yourself better?
Christ in you: What motivation (spirit) might the Spirit of Christ in you be asking you to check today?
Pray: Spirit, keep revealing my motivations to me so that I can learn to trust you. Amen.
To Live is Christ 