Pharisee, Part 1

Pharisee - Phar·i·see /ˈfærəˌsi/ –noun 1. a member of a Jewish sect that flourished during the 1st century b.c. and 1st century a.d. and that differed from the Sadducees chiefly in its strict observance of religious ceremonies and practices, adherence to oral laws and traditions, and belief in an afterlife and the coming of a Messiah.
2. (lowercase) a sanctimonious, self-righteous, or hypocritical person.

I found this on a website that is some kind of posting forum; it's weird so I can't really give credit where it's due. But, I loved it.

YOU MIGHT BE A PHARISEE IF...

…you get upset when people leave your church because, after all, yours is the only one in town that is truly "doing it right".

…you think any Christian music written in the last 50 years is from the devil.

…you pay exactly 10% of your income to your church each year; no more, no less.

…you ask questions like, "if I get a birthday gift from a friend, am I supposed to pay a tithe on that?"

…you make sure everyone notices all the underlines and highlights in your Bible.

…you wonder if someone is really a Christian when they casually mention they had a glass of wine with their dinner last night

…you always quote the chapter and verse reference when speaking of scripture.

…you ever gave your pastor a doctor’s excuse for missing a Sunday evening service

…you ever worried about whether or not you should read the italicized words in you King James Bible because they weren’t in the original text

…you refuse to read any other Bible except the King James version.

…you display your Sunday School perfect attendance award prominently in your office or home.

…you rub down the ends of the pages in your Bible that relate to the Old Testament, just like the ends of the pages in your New Testament section, so it will look like you spend much time all over the Bible.

…you casually mention your giving habits in conversations with your pastor.

…when asked to consider being an elder in your church, you get excited because your name badge will now have an important title on it.

…you always let people know, "I’m praying for you", even if you haven’t been.

…some sins are okay to admit you struggle with, but others are not.

…you are seen with a calculator right before the contribution basket comes around.

…you boycotted The End of the Spear because the part of Nate Saint was played by a homosexual.

…you think someone else’s baptism "didn’t work".

…you ask questions like, "isn’t the church staff breaking the sabbath by working on Sunday?"

…you immediately conclude someone is not a Christian when you hear them use a cuss word.

…you love to wrestle with questions about the Christian life that start with the word, "should".

Finally, you might be a Pharisee if after reading all the above you say to yourself, "I thank God that I am not a sinner like those guys…"

More on the Pharisee mentality to come.