Catalina

     When we are guilty of one sin we are guilty of them all.  James 2: 10 says,  "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking it all."  If you tell a lie but do everything else just right, and you judge someone else who is steeling and fornicating, you might as well be steeling and fornicating as well.
     But the good news is, because of what Jesus did on the cross, we are forgiven of all of our sins.  That means we can't clain to be righteous by the good works we do.  And I would think that the closer you become to being like Jesus, the harder it is to stay humble.  We all want to think of ourselves as doing well, but the truth is all have sinned and fall short.  So we are all equally guilty and we are all equally forgiven, if we ask, a humbling thought.
     There is a story about three guys, standing on the peir at Huntington Beach.  The first guy ran a bit and jumped straight out into the ocean.  He yelled up to the other two, "Hey I did pretty good!"  The second guy took a couple strps back, ran a few feet, and he to jumped straight out into the ocean, just farther then the first guy.  He yelled, "I did better!"  The third guy got quite a bit of a running start, then out and down into the ocean.  He boasted, "I did the best!"  One of the on lookers yelled down to the men in the water, "What are you doing?"  The men yelled back, "We are jumping to Catalina."
     When we do good, sometimes we want to boast.  But for us to be as good as Jesus, is as hard as trying to jump off huntington peir to Catalina, impossible on your own.  Only through the blood of Jesus, can we clain to be righteous.  So when we get the urge to boast, boast of Jesus and his unequaled goodness and power.
     1 Corinthians 1: 30 and 31, "It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God- that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.  Therefore, as it is written: let him who boasts, boast in the Lord."