It's Not About Your Resume

Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Let’s pull the mask off: we love to feel righteous. We love to think we’re the “good guys” in the story. But Deuteronomy 9 is a cold bucket of water to the face. Moses looks the people in the eye and says, “Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land… for you are a stiff-necked people.” Ouch.

Moses recounts the Golden Calf disaster: the moment they traded the glory of God for a piece of jewelry shaped like a cow while the mountain was still smoking with God’s presence. It’s a brutal reminder of human depravity. We are experts at self-sabotage and idolatry. The only reason Israel survived that moment was because of an intercessor. Moses stood in the gap, pleading for mercy.

This is the Gospel in technicolor. We are the stiff-necked people. We are the ones who trade the Eternal for the immediate. But we have a better Intercessor than Moses. We have Jesus, who didn’t just pray for us on a mountain, but died for us on a cross. Our “land” is our salvation. Our relationship with God is a gift given despite our resume and righteous convictions, not because of it.

When we look at the beauty of God’s kingdom, which is the “Mount Zion” described in Psalm 48, we shouldn’t be thinking about how great we are to be there. We should marvel that a God so holy and great would even let us through the gates. It’s all mercy. It’s all grace. So, drop the act. You don’t have to be perfect to be loved, but you do have to be honest, especially about yourself.

Devotional Prompts:

Why is it important to remember that God’s favor is not based on your own righteousness?
How does the “beauty of Zion” in the Psalm inspire you to trust in God’s eternal protection?
In what areas of your life are you tempted to feel self-righteous about your spiritual progress or your social silos?
How does the intercession of Jesus provide you with confidence when you realize your own moral failures?

Prayer: Merciful Father, I confess that I often lean on my own supposed righteousness instead of Your grace. Thank You for Jesus, my Great Intercessor, who stands in the gap for me and brings me into Your holy presence. Be my guide to the end. Amen.