TOPIC: THE LORD RESIST THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE
Pride is a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one’s own achievement; The achievement of those with whom one is closely associated or from qualities or possessions that are widely admired.
It is centered on consciousness of one’s own dignity.
Some have feelings that they respect themselves and deserve to be respected by others.
When this pride is in the center of your life, God hates it.
Some are proud without knowing it, while others are proud and know it.
People who are overconfident or too arrogant are likely to fall.
Prov 16:18-19(NKJV)18 Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. 19 Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud.
Pomposity makes you un-teachable and it does not allow input.
It creates party spirit. It is the root cause of segregation, quarrel, misunderstanding, hate, undermining others, negligence, enemity etc
It does not understand what the Lord means when He says ‘come let us reason together’ – Isa 1:18(KJV) Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord.
The origin of pride is Lucifer, the devil. So many have assumed this nature. Isa 14:12-15(KJV)12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
Prov 3:34(NKJV)34 Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble.
Prov 29:23(NKJV)23 A man’s pride will bring him low, But the humble in spirit will retain honor.
Prov 8:13(NLT)13 All who fear the Lord will hate evil. Therefore, I hate pride and arrogance, corruption and perverse speech.
James 4:1-3(NLT)What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? 2 You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.
V 4:6(KJV)6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
V7-10 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.
No government succeeds without humility. Respect and honour are interrelated.
Peter 5:5-6(KVJ)5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Ps 138:6(NLT)6 Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,
but he keeps his distance from the proud.
The way of servant leadership is humility – Matt 23:11-12 (KJV)11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
It was David that said, ‘How are the mighty falling. A great man today, a failure tomorrow – Luke 1:51-52(KJV)51 He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
If we are not careful, pride will rob us of the humble attitude that allows God to impart His wisdom.
When you acts as a demigod, you have assumed the place of God and His glory .
Isa 42:8(NLT)8 “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to anyone else, nor share my praise with carved idols.
What is it you have that was not given to you?
1 Cor 4:7(TLB)7 What are you so puffed up about? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if all you have is from God, why act as though you are so great, and as though you have accomplished something on your own?
John 3:27(KJV)27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.
People who are over confident of their own righteousness and looked down on others. Luke 18:9-14(NLT)9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
God wants your total dependency on Him and not on yourself, for this what gives Him glory.
The proud are only concerned about their plans for the future without consideration for others.
A proud person’s life dwells on what they have done, what they are doing and what great plans they have for their future.
Luke 12:16-20(NLT)Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. 17 He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ 18 Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. 19 And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”‘ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’
The Psalmist says in Ps 10:2-8(NIV)2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises. 3 He boasts of the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. 4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. 5 His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies. 6 He says to himself, “Nothing will shake me; I’ll always be happy and never have trouble.” 7 His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. 8 He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent, watching in secret for his victims. 9 He lies in wait like a lion in cover; he lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net. 10 His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength. 11 He says to himself, “God has forgotten; he covers his face and never sees.” 12 Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless. 13 Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, “He won’t call me to account”? 14 But you, O God, do see trouble and grief; you consider it to take it in hand. The victim commits himself to you; you are the helper of the fatherless. 15 Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out.
