Let's take a look at righteousness in the quality of bestowal and righteousness in the quality of selfishness:
- Righteousness In The Quality Of Bestowal:
- True righteousness focuses on our internal qualities changing from personal selfishness (seeking to benefit ourselves) to mutual bestowal (seeking to benefit others).
- Righteousness in the quality of bestowal is about seeking to benefit others instead of ourselves. This may happen in two ways:
- Not Harming Others: We can benefit others (and Nature) by restricting our egos so as to not harm them. By doing so, we protect them from ourselves. Rising above our egos isn't the goal, connection is the goal.
- Seeking To Benefit Others: It's not enough to restrict our egos, we have to take the next step and actively seek to benefit others and Nature, to do good to others and Nature and seek to benefit them in a positive and constructive way. The goal is connection.
- Righteousness In The Quality Of Selfishness:
- In Error, Some People Think They're Righteous:
- This is often connected to religion. Religion focuses on externality (the world that we see) instead of on our internality (our internal qualities).
- Some people mistakenly think they're righteous because of the things that they do - they go to church, the mosque, the synagogue, the temple, they read The Bible, The Quran, they engage in religious rites, rituals and customs, the help the poor etc.
- They perform these actions for two reasons: They're afraid that if they don't, God will punish them; and/or because they're selfishly seeking a personal reward, such as going to heaven etc.
- They think they're better than other people. They think they're right and everyone else is wrong.
- Jesus explains this situation in a parable. (Luke 18:9-14, NIV)
- Jesus also condemns the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. (Matthew 23: 25-28, NIV)
- Some People Deceptively Want To Be seen As Righteous:
- This may happen in two ways:
- Seeking to Benefit Themselves:
- Some people want to be seen as righteous because they want the praise, honor, fame, celebrity, admiration, special treatment, money etc., that comes with being seen as righteous. It feeds their ego and potentially benefits them financially.
- They intentionally pretend, act, lie, put on appearances etc.
- Jesus talks about this. (Matthew 6:1, NIV)
- Also, it is written, "...they loved human praise more than praise from God." (John 12:43, NIV)
- Seeking To Harm Others:
- Some people want to be seen as righteous because they intentionally and malevolently want to misdirect people from the true path.
We have change from personal selfishness (seeking to benefit ourselves) to mutual bestowal (seeking to benefit others).
In everything we do, we should seek to benefit others instead of ourselves.
Copyright © 2014, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.
