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Just trying to help here. :)
Okay, so I hope this is going to be helpful, you know, I've seen a couple of people kind of use these two words, arrogance and humility, in a very mystifying kind of a way. Arrogance and humility. And they've called what John MacArthur said, arrogant, called him arrogant for saying go home to Bethmore.
And one of the things that I want to make sure you all understand is like, if you haven't seen this video, he didn't just say go home. That was meant mostly as a joke. He was serious, but it was mostly intended to be sort of a little bit shocking and funny.
He went on for like 10 minutes to explain in a very nuanced, careful kind of way why he said that, what he meant by that, that was extremely helpful, very biblical. And people have called that arrogant.
And then they've called on the flip side, they've called what Bethmore has said in her response to this humble and an example of humility and grace and all this kind of stuff. And I'm just mystified by that.
Let's look at the definitions of these words. I'm not one of these guys that's like, okay, like we have wooden definitions and we can't use this word in any other way. But I think in this case, the definitions are very helpful, right?
So here's the definition of arrogant, ready? Having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one's own importance or abilities. So having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one's own importance or abilities, thinking that you're more important or more able or more capable than you actually are.
That's what arrogance is. And on the flip side of that, humility is essentially an antonym of arrogant. And it's saying having a modest or low view of one's own importance or humbleness. That's another way to say it.
So humility is having a low view of one's own importance. Arrogance is having a higher view, an exaggerated view of your own importance or abilities. And I would kind of quibble with this. I think humility is more like having an accurate view of your own importance or ability.
But that's okay. So on the flip side, we've got having a lower view of your abilities. And on the arrogant side, we have a high view, an exaggerated view of your abilities, thinking you're more important or more capable than you are.
And here's the thing, guys. I think we kind of use these words to mean tone, essentially. You have an arrogant tone. But really, it's about your position and your view of yourself. And there's really only when you're talking about the scriptures and you're talking about theology and you're talking about God and you're talking about spiritual matters, the only way to be humble is to preach and teach the book, what the book says.
Because if you're teaching and preaching what the book says, you're not considering your own ideas, your own abilities, your own interpretations, your own opinions that important. You're actually saying that God's view is important.
So you have an accurate view of your own abilities. When it comes to my own abilities, I have no opinion that's worth anything in comparison to God's opinion. I try to organize my worldview according to what God says is.
So whatever God says is, that's what is. So I might have opinions and I might have ideas of what's good and what's right and all these things. But if it doesn't match up to God, then they're wrong. That's a humble position to take.
An arrogant position to take, on the other hand, is to elevate your own opinions and your own subjective experiences and things like that to the same level as God's or above God's. And so you're always arrogant if you're teaching error.
If you're saying that God said something that he didn't say, you can't prove that he said it or actually worse, it goes against what we know God said, then you are by definition arrogant. You're not humble.
There's nothing humble about that. There's nothing humble about taking your own subjective feelings and opinions and saying that they're just as important or hold other people to that standard as if it was God that said it.
I mean, that was the biggest problem with the Pharisees. They were arrogant. They held their own traditions and their own ideas of what was good and they said it was God. It was just as good as God's.
That's arrogant. And so in this situation with MacArthur and Beth Moore, Beth Moore is the definition of arrogant. That tweet that she put out where she said, I'm following God's calling by preaching.
In other words, I'm following God's calling, not man. I'm not going to not listen to God. What she's doing is putting her own subjective feelings and opinions above the scripture. We know for a fact God did not call her to preach.
This is not a complicated issue, guys. The Bible is hard to understand in some areas. This is one area where it's not hard to understand. It's very easy to understand. If you're educated and you know how to read, this is easy.
So we know for a fact that God did not call her to preach and yet she is saying that Jesus called her to preach. That is arrogance defined. That is arrogance personified. And John MacArthur, though he says it in a forceful way, though he says it in that old white male, you know, elder statesman kind of a way, it's humble by definition because he's not saying, I think Beth Moore should go home.
I think Beth Moore shouldn't preach. I think that she's a terrible preacher. I think, no, he's saying the book says I've got only one thing to do. I can't preach my opinions. I can only preach the book.
I can only teach the book. That is the definition of humility. God says it. So I've got to believe it. I have no choice. I'll never forget one time I saw RJ Rush Dooney interviewed. It was like on 60 Minutes or something.
It was an old video, either 60 Minutes or like Dateline or something. I don't remember. And they were questioning him about theonomy. And they were saying, so you believe like they thought they had. And they're like, you believe that homosexuals should be stoned?
And I remember Rush Dooney, I was expecting him to be like this really like, you know, harsh kind of guy. And he said, I don't believe that. And I was shocked when he said that. I was like, what? What Rush Dooney says?
I don't believe that, but the book says it. So what other choice do I have? And he said it just like that. And I remember thinking about that. That is the definition of trying to have a biblical worldview.
Now, you might disagree with his interpretation. That's fine. But you can't question the fact that Rush Dooney was trying to see things God's way. And even though he didn't agree with it, even though in his heart, he didn't want it.
Look, I don't want to have to make videos about how women can't preach. In my heart, I just want everyone to get along, right? I just want to be like, I just want to go along with the flow. I don't want trouble.
I don't think people think I like trouble. I don't like trouble. I don't like controversy. I know it might be hard to believe, but it's true. I don't like controversy. But it would be arrogant of me to say the Bible hasn't spoken in an area it has.
It would also be arrogant for me to say that the Bible is unclear about something that it's crystal clear on. If you want to be humble, you just have to go with what the book says. And the book is very clear on this issue.
So if you want to talk about arrogance and humility in this Beth Moore and John MacArthur situation, it's very clear. It's very obvious who's the arrogant one and who's the humble one. Anyway, I hope this is helpful.
God bless.
