A man's pride will bring him low, But the humble in
spirit will retain honor. Proverbs 29:23
Pride is the great enemy of the
Christian. Pride is an overly high opinion of yourself. It motivates you to do
things that you know are not Christlike, and it hinders you from doing what
brings glory to God. Pride influenced Adam and Eve to try to become like God
(Gen. 3:5). Pride motivated Cain to murder his brother (Gen. 4:5). Pride
provoked Joseph’s brothers to sell him into slavery (Gen. 37:8). Pride caused
King Saul to resent David so deeply that he tried to murder him (1 Sam. 18:8).
Pride led King Hezekiah to foolishly reveal his nation’s wealth to his enemies
(Isa. 39:2). Pride was at the root of the Pharisees’ anger toward Jesus. Pride
was the reason the disciples argued over rank in the kingdom (Luke 9:46).
Pride is your relentless enemy.
If you succumb to its influence, there will be consequences. You may know that
you have offended someone, but pride holds you back from asking forgiveness.
You may realize you need to reconcile a broken relationship, but pride will
lead you to deny that need. The Spirit may convict you that you are living a
sinful lifestyle, but pride will discourage your admitting it. Pride will
convince you that you deserve better treatment. Pride will impede your serving
others. Instead, pride will have you striving for places of prominence. Pride
will have you listen to flatterers and ignore honest counselors. Pride will
lead you to isolate yourself so that you are not accountable to others.
Humility, on the other hand, is
pleasing to God and places your life in a position where God will honor you. If
pride has crept into some areas of your life, ask God to give you victory over
it before it robs you of God’s will for you.
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