When was the last time you thought “I deserve to be happy, to eat this, to buy that, to feel this way…” or you may have defended some action by saying “Because I wanted to”?? We all have moments when we are tempted to make choices based on selfish attitudes and wrong thinking and …stay with me…this is indicative of a sense of entitlement. You know what that is—it’s that feeling like we deserve to have what we want when we want it. It’s a form of idolatry and we really need to be aware of our own tendencies in this area.
I recently came across a Scripture that called all this to mind. In 1 Samuel 2, I read about Eli, the priest, and his 2 sons—Hophni and Phinehas (those probably won’t make your list of fav baby names). It seems that these two brothers were prime examples of what happens when a sense of entitlement goes unchecked. Their dad, Eli, was the priest and they developed attitudes that screamed “Hey we can do what we want to do and who cares what you think”. Do you think it’s possible that sometimes our actions come across that way to God? We would never say it out loud but when we defy the Word, or when we consciously choose to gratify our selfish nature, isn’t that what we are saying?
Here’s what’s even scarier about this: Eli saw what was happening and didn’t stop them. He may have rebuked them once or twice but he didn’t put his foot down and God was so disgusted that He declared that both boys would die on the same day. 1 Samuel 2:17 records the reason for the harsh judgment on H&P—it says “they showed contempt for the Lord’s offering”. Hmmm, is it possible that we can do the same thing sometimes? How?
It’s really a cool story if you keep reading and just to remind us that a sense of entitlement left unchecked can get completely out of control, let me give you the highlights. Eli’s sons were part of the reason why the ark of the covenant was captured by the Philistines. Did you catch that? It’s huge. These boys kept on doing what they wanted to do and using the things of God fro their own gain and their own pleasure. They disregarded the reverence our Lord deserves and were instrumental in the ark, which represented God’s presence with His people being captured and the Israelites suffering a ginormous defeat. I bet that was never their intention. But that is what can happen when we choose to believe the lie that we deserve what we want (that’s what the Enemy is whispering). Romans 6:23 says we deserve Hell, God gives us Heaven when we choose Him.
Spare us Lord from what we deserve!!!!
Rachel
Thanks for that reminder Rachel! You know as I walk through difficult days sometimes I just get tired and weary. In my weariness I become weak. In my weakness I become discouraged and in my discouragement my mind begins to tell me “you didn’t deserve this” … “this isn’t fair” … still a sense of entitlement. There will always be things in our lives that aren’t fair, things that didn’t go the way we planned but like you said, if this sense of entitlement or self pity continues you will find one day that you are in bondage to defeat. There is victory in never allowing your weariness to become weakness. Call on the One who provides the strength you need to overcome!
Rachel,
So often it sounds “old-fashioned” to teach our children the consequences of their actions. But his Word clearly teaches us what those consequences can lead to and it’s not pretty! It can be such a slippery slope with just one little slip-up, then another…Before we know it, we’re all in a pit together!
It’s especially easy to usher in this sense of entitlement when children are going through a hard time when they’ve suffered a difficult loss, such as going through a divorce or the loss of a parent through death, or even in a single parent home.
Thank you for this reminder of where our strength comes from and Who we are to call on when we have a need!