Have you ever heard the phrase, “Don’t toot your own horn”? If not, it is a saying encouraging us to avoid braging about our accomplishments, because if we do, we can come across as arrogant, prideful and full of ourselves. Instead, it is best to remain humble and reserved, only allowing others to speak well of us. If you’ve ever met someone who continually talks about how wonderful they are, or who always seems to share their lists of accomplishments, you may be able to understand how annoying that could be. Because it almost always appears to be self-serving and self-elevating. Instead, we should be like Cornelius, a centurion Gentile believer who let his actions speak for themselves. And in doing so, everyone knew how righteous he was - even God. It says in Acts, chapter 10, verse 22:
“The men replied, ‘We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to have you come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.”
The Bible recounts that it was because Cornelius was devout and God-fearing, giving generously to those in need and praying to God regularly, that God gave him a vision of an angel telling him to send for Peter. And in this passage, we learn that his righteousness was evident to those around him as well. It goes on to say that he was respected by all of the Jewish people even though he was a Gentile. I believe that we should aspire to live a life that speaks for us, like Cornelius did. If we are walking in step with the Spirit, we shouldn’t feel the need to tell others how good we are, because they will already know.
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Everyone was aware of Cornelius’ devout lifestyle, even the Jews, and all without Cornelius saying a word. He didn’t concern himself with trying to impress anyone by letting them know how much he gave to the poor. He didn’t tell everyone about how frequently he prayed to God. And he didn’t do his good deeds so that he could be seen, or praised, by men. He just lived a devout and God-fearing life, and not only did God notice, but men did too. I would submit to you that it is always more powerful, and more credible, to be spoken of highly by others than to “toot your own horn”, so to speak. So I would encourage you to not concern yourself with impressing men. Live to glorify God, and he may choose to lift you up on his own.