Selfishness?

As I was watching the Korean drama "King and I" with my dad, I could not help but think critically of the Great Queen Mother's actions. The Great Queen Mother (technically the King's grandmother) kept admonishing the King for his tyrannical behavior that ultimately caused an unfix able rift between them. Now the story goes (and is based on actual Korean history) that the King's late mother was unjustly killed by a conspiracy against her. The last several episodes have shown the King getting revenge (by digging up late retainer's graves and "displaying" them while punishing their families). The Great Queen Mother played a significant role in the conspiracy as she did not like the "deposed" Queen and was portrayed as looking for excuses to eventually get rid of her.

So now the King is getting his revenge unchallenged and the Great Queen Mother is trying to correct him. While she is trying to change the King, she keeps saying "Are you trying to scorn me?" She gets very offended and hurt by the King's rudeness and refuses to reconcile with him.

Now this is where I have a problem. The Great Queen Mother had obviously played a role in the King's grief. As the elder, should she not set the example and apologize first? Also, is she not being too prideful and stubborn to admit her true faults? She kept blaming herself for the King's tyrannical reign by supporting his coronation. Yet she refuses to even acknowledge that she might have been wrong for deposing his mother.

This reminded me of Koreans (with their stubborn reputation) and humanity in general. It pains me to see how wicked and sinful the world really is currently. I try to be a good Christian only to see the church say the right things and do another. I have experienced politics, self-seeking agendas, and no sincerity in honoring God. Where is His love that sacrificed His son for us? Where is His light that was supposed to shine in the darkness? Why is the Truth being conveniently ignored?

You can ask me what sin is, and I will give you a single word: selfishness. Sin is looking after one's own interests instead of God's. It is looking to please ourselves instead of our Heavenly Father. It is ignoring Him completely.

Sin makes us too prideful and stubborn to admit our own faults and trusting in His grace and mercy. Sin shifts the blame from ourselves to other things, people, and maybe even God himself. Sin has us scorn God instead of the other way around. Sin prevents reconciliation.

I wish I could sound extra scholarly and include a Bible verse that will make me look all smart and stuff. But all I can ask is that if you find yourself reading this, please take my words to heart. Will you join me in recognizing that we will always fall short of His glory? Will you join me in admitting that we are unworthy of His mercy? Will you join me in casting aside our selfish pride and stubbornness?

Will you join me in praising Him for His grace? Will you join me in celebrating His kindness? Will you join me in thanking Him for His sacrifice? Without His infinite, eternal love for us we would not have reconciliation. We just have to believe.

Thanks for reading.

Comments

Heather said…
Hey Foff,

Thought provoking post. Interestingly enough, the greek word for sin, hamartia, means "missing the mark". It is pretty simple then - God's will is the bull's eye, and missing the bull's eye means one is sinning.

My two cents! :)
April 30, 2008 at 9:08 AM
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