As a Christian, has someone ever quoted Ecclesiastes 7:16 to you? It says, "Do not be overly righteous, nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself"? If them never quote am for you before, you never start. I remember one of my cousin telling me that switching off my phone in church is over righteousness, in fact, she was the first person that used that scripture on me directly.
Some people uses it in place of over spirituality. Come to think of it, what has this scripture got to do with over spirituality? In fact, is there anything like over spirituality in the Bible? The way some Christians quote verses out of context is disheartening indeed.
Let's look at Romans 8:6–7 (KJV)
6 "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." The Bible only talks about two types of mind, the spiritual mind and the carnal mind (topic for another day).
Our main passage and verse is always misunderstood by a lot of people and as a result prompted this write up. I hope this blesses as many as are concerned.
First and foremost, Spirituality and righteousness are not the same because there are so many seemingly spiritual people that are not righteous and their mind is dead or carnal. My point is, a lot of people like native doctors and occultic men, do spiritual things, they claim to be even more spiritual but still they are not spiritually minded according to Romans 8. So, using Solomon's word in place of over spirituality, to me, is wrong interpretation on its own, you may disagree but just follow me.
The verse says; do not be overly righteous or overly wise. So, my focus is not on over spirituality but on getting the message of the preacher.
To start with, who in the Old Testament was wiser than Solomon? Your answer is as good as mine. If the wisest King of his time is telling you not to be overly wise then you really need the help of the Holy Spirit to understand the message he is trying to pass across and indeed we need the help of the Holy to interpret and understand every Scripture.
Therefore, I believe he was saying, don't be somebody that thinks or carries yourself as though you have known so much to the point of never taking corrections or to even stop learning. There are people who will even shut down the Holy Spirit because they feel they know, they are righteous in their own eyes and standards and not in God's own standards. They believe they are better than every other person and whatever they say is right and final.
There is nothing like over spirituality because we cannot find it anywhere in the Bible especially when it's said in a bit to bias a consistent balanced Christian. A person is either spiritually minded or carnally minded. Native doctors, traditionalist and some herbalist are also spiritual people because they commune with spirits, (in fact, man is a spirit) they understand the things of the spirit but that of the Devil and not of God, so their mind is carnal and they are their spirit is dead in connection to God but we that are children of God have a spiritual mind because we are redeemed.
Coming down to righteousness, now; what is Righteousness? By definition, it is the quality of being morally right or justifiable. So, how do we become justifiable? Romans 5:1 "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ".
Who is then our righteousness?
1 Corin. 1:30 NKJV "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-" so this verse tells us who our righteousness is. So, if our righteousness is Jesus or from Jesus, can we have Jesus overly? Can a Christian say don't be overly Jesus? No man born of a woman could attain right standing with God outside Jesus.
So, Ecclesiastes 7:16 is simply saying don't ever think you know too much in your own eyes that you can't be rebuked or corrected, as long as we are in the flesh, we haven't attained that level where the Word of God can no longer correct, instruct, teach and rebuke us, no matter who we are.
Always live a life guided by the Word of God, let your standard be the Word and the Holy Spirit leads you and not you living your life just the way you want to because you feel or you think you know too much.
Then, some persons actually deny themselves of good clothes, good shoes and good foods because they feel it is a sin. Some Christians can't go to an eatery and just enjoy themselves. Some, can't just be social, they live as if our God is a moody and unsociable God. Please, don't forget that Jesus was a very social man. See Luke 2:48. That is not over righteousness my brothers and sister, it is an individual's decision based on lack of understanding. Let's grow up!
Nobody knows everything especially when it comes to knowing God but you become overly righteous or overly wise when you act as if you are holier than the Holy Spirit by shutting Him out of your life as a result of the knowledge you have acquired or when you deliberately ignore or misinterpret the Word of God.
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