..."Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, ²⁴but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD." —Jeremiah 9:23-24
The New Oxford American Dictionary defines boasting as “excessively proud and self-satisfied talk about one's achievements, possessions, or abilities.” We see this throughout society from the smug smile of a person on social media to an athlete kissing his own biceps after a play. Most of us were taught in our youth that boasting is wrong. Generally, it is. But, our passage this week shows us that this is not always the case.
On the one hand, the Lord rightly chides us not to boast in our wisdom, our strength, or our wealth. This is for at least two reasons. The first is that each of these are gifts given by our Creator so we have no basis to boast. They all come from Him! The second is that everything we have will one day be gone. Upon our death, none of these will be of any help to us.
Then, on the other hand, the Lord commands us to boast, telling us what we can boast in—Him! The Lord wants us to confidently and energetically speak of Him and the fact that we rightly know Him.
Note how the three attributes God shares about Himself–steadfast love, justice, and righteousness–give a full-orbed view of Him. We need to embrace all three lest we be like those who focus solely on God’s love and thus end up being squishy on obedience to His commands. Or those who lock-in on His righteousness and justice and thus have little room for grace.
To rightly know God is to have all of His attributes in view. The apex of God’s faithful love can be seen on the cross. But God’s justice and His righteousness are as present at the cross as is His love.
The person who rightly understands and revels in all of God’s glorious attributes can boast as he tells of all God has done and all of who He is. This boasting is legitimate, and glorious, because it draws attention to the greatness, the sufficiency, and the beauty of God. This boasting is also for our good because rightly knowing God is our highest good. Consider, friend: Are you boasting in the Lord?
For Reflection
Which attribute of God do you find most praiseworthy? Why?
In what ways might you be boasting in yourself instead of in God?
How can you boast in the Lord this week? How might you encourage someone in your family or friend group to boast in the Lord this week?
Pat Dirrim and his wife Barbara helped start Grace Fellowship church in Cumming, Georgia 20 years ago and have worshipped there ever since, outside of the two years when they served as missionaries in Guatemala. They've been married for 29 years and have seven children, three of whom remain at home, and one grandson. Grace Fellowship has been using Truth78 curriculum from the start and the Dirrims have introduced it to many other churches, as well as trained others how to use it.