Over the years, I have been called many variations of smart, and I’ve had additional words tacked on the end of smart, like aleck. People were generally commenting on the fact that I appear intelligent. Though I enjoyed the complement when I was younger, what that means has become slightly muddied as I got older. What is intelligence? A psychology class I had said it was the ability to adapt to different situations. That is not something I’m good at. F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.” That describes me at times.

What most of the people who called me smart were referring to is the fact I got good grades and could spout out answers to questions. All that really means is that I can memorize facts. I can tell you something that is correct, and still look ignorant. My “intelligence” is just a memory full of facts. That doesn’t mean I’m an idiot, just that I’m in a persnickety mood right now.

But all that does bring up a question, how often do we call ourselves good Christians just because we remember Bible verses and can recite a prerecorded prayer? Memorizing verses is great, the cookie cutter prayers, not so much. Neither, however, are beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt proof of Christianity. One verse says that blessings and curses cannot come from the same mouth, just as fresh water cannot come from the same place as salty water. Before you skip over that, what do you say when the referee makes a bad call? Or someone pulls out in front of you?

Does messing up mean that we aren’t saved? Not by itself, but that isn’t my point. We are quick to say we are “good” when we are still trying to do things on our own. Jesus said no one is good but the Father (that statement includes Jesus and the Holy Spirit), so that means we are not good on our own. We still have to depend on God.