In a passionate plea to seminary students, Reformed theologian C. J. Mahaney, President of Sovereign Grace Ministries, cautioned them against becoming “puffed up” believers in Christ.

The temptation of pride is there, especially as Christians grow in their knowledge of the truth, Mahaney warned on Thursday. But rather than being filled with pride, believers should be more and more humbled, knowing the grace of God.

He cited Apostle Paul’s letter to the Corinthians who were drifting from the centrality of the Gospel, becoming increasingly attracted to human wisdom, and desiring the applause of the world.

“We often bear a striking resemblence to the Corinthians,” he said.
Mahaney pulled three sobering questions from the New Testament book, posing them to Christians today as Paul did some 2,000 years ago:

“For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”

While the believers in the Corinthian church were proud of their spirituality, gifts, and their exclusive identification with a certain leader, they had no basis for being “puffed up,” Mahaney noted.

Citing Paul’s letter, Mahaney stressed that it was God who saved them, chose them, and revealed the mystery of the Gospel to them.

“They didn’t discover God; He revealed Himself to them,” the longtime pastor highlighted. “Everything distinctive about them is attributed to God alone.”

Addressing the second rhetorical question, Mahaney reminded Christians that everything they have is from God.

Read More: http://www.christianpost.com/article/20110211/theologian-deflating-the-puffed-up-church/
Link to Audio: http://www.sbts.edu/resources/chapel/deflating-the-puffed-up-church/