Topic: THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE ROOM SYNDROME – Right From The Heart Daily Devotional by Bryant Wright Ministry 10 August 2023
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THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE ROOM SYNDROME
August 10, 2023
“Now about food sacrificed to idols: we know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” 1 Corinthians 8:1
Have you ever known someone who always acts like they are the smartest person in the room?
You know the type. In every room they enter, they carry themselves with an air of superiority. They pretend to know more about a particular subject than they actually know. And while they might have a high IQ, they think they have nothing to learn from other people.
Know anyone like that?
Do you ever act like that?
Some of the so-called ‘mature’ believers in Corinth were exhibiting symptoms of the ‘Smartest Person in the Room Syndrome.’ They had allowed their “knowledge” about an issue to “puff them up” with pride.
You see, also in the room were newly converted Christians.
Without taking into consideration how the newer believers might see their actions, the ‘smarter’ believers ate meat that had been sacrificed to idols in pagan temples. They reasoned, “We know that an idol is a false god. So, what’s the big deal if we eat something offered to a god that doesn’t exist in the first place?”
While that might not sound like a big deal to us, it was a huge deal to newly converted Christians who were trying to leave behind an idolatrous lifestyle. To them, any association with idol worship was incompatible with their newfound faith in Christ. Needless to say, tensions started to mount.
Now, I recognize that eating food sacrificed to idols isn’t really a hot-button issue in our day. Still, we have much to learn from how Paul addresses it.
Paul advises that love, not knowledge, is to be the number-one guiding principle in all Christian conduct.
Is knowledge important?
Sure. But it’s not what is most important. Love is.
Paul’s logic is simple and sound: we don’t live in a vacuum. The choices we make affect those around us. So, just because we can (in this case, eat food sacrificed to idols) doesn’t mean we should. As Jesus-followers, we are to “love our neighbors as ourselves” (Matthew 22:39). Love requires that we pause to consider how our actions might negatively impact our neighbors. Love always seeks to build up, not tear down.
Honest confession: At times, I have lost sight of love and prided myself on my biblical knowledge. I have looked down on others who don’t possess the same degree of knowledge that I have. (Yuck!) What’s more, I have wrongly equated spiritual maturity with having a brain crammed full of Bible trivia and insight. (Double-yuck!)
Friends, the goal of the Christian life isn’t to possess Bible knowledge, as important as that is. The goal is for that knowledge to transform our behavior and make us more caring and considerate of others. Spiritual maturity isn’t measured by the books we’ve read or the verses we know. It’s measured by the people we love.
Paul echoes this a few chapters later in 1 Corinthians 13, the famous ‘love’ chapter in the Bible. It says, “If I can fathom all mysteries and knowledge…but have not love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2).
Any type of knowledge, not just spiritual knowledge, can cause us to lose sight of love and grow blind to those around us. Perhaps it’s your knowledge about the ‘business world’ or ‘leadership’. Or maybe it’s your so-called expertise in politics, current events, parenting, family life, or a certain hobby. Whatever it is, if our knowledge has led to a condescending attitude, we’ve gotten way off course.
How have you allowed knowledge to puff you up?
Jesus perfectly embodies Paul’s advice to the Corinthians. Think about it. No matter what room Jesus was in, He was literally the smartest, the wisest, the most knowledgeable person in that room. Yet, He never allowed His knowledge to inflate His ego. Instead, with great humility, He sought to love and serve those around Him.
Today, don’t seek to be the smartest in the room.
Instead, be like Jesus.
Be the most loving person in the room.
Written by Jonathan Munson, Executive Director, RFTH
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