Pharisees Anonymous

     
     

I was born a Pharisee; even though my family was not religious, I was born a Pharisee. The reason is because every human being is born a Pharisee. Atheists are Pharisees; a fact which will be proven within the pages of this blog. My parents and their parents were Pharisees. I come from a long tradition of Pharisees and have been surrounded by them my whole life. I have carried the banner quite faithfully. Even when I learned the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, I became a grace Pharisee. I think you get the picture.
It all began on May 18, 1962 in Hoboken, NJ. This day still holds the title for the record high heat for that day in history. It was a wicked 98* which was far above the norm for a day in May for NJ. My mom reports is was 103* in the hospital. Nevertheless, they wrapped me in a little Pharisee robe and handed me to my Pharisee mom. I was born into the world of sin and death with two ways to cope on my own. One way to cope was to become a Pharisee, and the other way to cope was to make myself feel good no matter the cost. I have coped both ways, mostly flip flopping between the two daily. A friend of mine John Glenn once said that there are two ditches on both sides of the road to grace. The ditches are licentiousness (doing whatever it takes to feel good) and legalism (being a Pharisee). He said the only time he was on the road to grace was when he was crawling out of one ditch into another. That is my story to a tee, but I wanted to give John credit for recognizing it. 
I grew up in a town that is on the map for its football program and coach. I played football which naturally leads to a performance equals worth mentality. I grew up in a normal middle class American Family which means I come from a dysfunctional family. Nevertheless, my parents did the best they could with what they had, and I always knew that I was loved although I lived with a haunting feeling I was a disappointment to my father. My knowledge of what was right and wrong was totally situational due to the need for approval and the need to be loved and accepted. My bent towards music and poetry caused me to reject the culture’s definitions, but I did not realize in rejecting the culture's definitions of right and wrong, I made my own definition and, thus, mercilessly judged my culture according to my own law system. And this is where the entire world lives, and it is as old as the story of Adam and Eve in the garden. Adam was instructed not to eat off of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eating off of this tree is the root of the Pharisee’s Dysfunction. This is how we are born, and this is where we feel comfortable. I know this is where I am, and I wish I could report a miraculous awakening where God revealed everything to me all at once and I am so enlightened that I will never hate, judge, or be obnoxious again. All I know now is where I don’t want to be and where I want to go, but I have no idea how to get there except to give up trying to save my own ass on a daily basis and let Jesus Christ do His work within.