PRIDE
I have to share my husbands message on PRIDE. It is so true. He will not fit into anyone's mold. He is very real! He hates slick presentation, or fake people. He is truly real! What you see is what you get. If he does not feel good he is not going to fake it for you. It is what it is. He does not perform for no one.
Recently, I was at a conference where I met someone who reminded me of the past. When I run into this type of person I cringe. One thing I try, and that is to be as real as I can! I am not going to posture for you. If you like me fine if you don't that's ok too. This person has set himself to be superstar slickster. It reminded me as a young evangelist who just wanted to do the work of the Lord and go where he wanted me to go. I was never good at being a suit wearing ( not all who wear suits are included), name dropping, number bombing with all the right moves and phrases to move a crowd. So you know how I feel about positional titles, I think that those that are in Apostolic order are great, but they need to be called by God alone and not through manipulation. I hate it to this day if someone smooches their way to the top for power and control! When I ran into this person at a recent conference I wanted to pull back the bed sheets of his life and expose his fake demeanor. As long as he is in a crowd he comes to life. When we played golf he was in our group. I did not let him know I was a pastor as well, and he never talked to me one time the whole golfing trip. We were playing the same hole. PRIDE and arrogance was written all over him! I am not upset at all he never spoke to me. I just got to see a small glimpse of who he really was. I hate crowd performing! When you get them to themselves they are as fake as a three dollar bill. I have many pastor friends and some have really large churches yet, they are amazing Godly men. Humility is a great part of their person. They are REAL!
Why did this bother me so much?
I came out of a religion that exudes PRIDE. They are about outward appearances and titles.(Not all, there are some really good people) We grew up with one's who love to politic for position. They exaggerate numbers and set men up to be superstars. They have all the right clothes, hairstyles, cars, but underneath they are extremely shallow. They have all the right hand gestures, voice influxes and phrases to manipulate the crowd. They can not get enough of performance. They brag about being exclusive and holy, like they are extremely elite.(more like narcissistic) I know all of it displeases God. Thank God my wife and I have been out of this denomination for almost 15 years now. So, I know that "smell" on a person who comes from that background who has not been delivered of that spirit.
Five Things to Know About Pride & Humility
1. Pride Is the Root of All Evil (Genesis 3:5; 1 Timothy 3:6; 1 John 2:15-17)
2. God Hates Pride (Proverbs 8:13; 16:5; Isaiah 23:9; Daniel 4:29-37; James 4:6; 1 Peter
5:5)
3. God Loves Humility (Proverbs 11:2, 15:33, 18:12, 29:23; Isaiah 57:15, 66:2; Micah 6:8;
Luke 14:11; 1 Peter 5:6)
4. What Pride Is Not
a. Acknowledging and appreciating the gifts and abilities God has given you.
b. The presence of godly desire, ambition and purposeful direction in your life (1
Timothy 3:1)
c. Acknowledging the work of God within you.
d. The pursuit of excellence.
E. Thankful and full of gratitude
5. Pride Is Deceptive (John 8:31-36; Jeremiah 49:16; Proverbs 16:2, 21:2
Fruits of Pride
1. Want to be Well Known or Important (Isaiah 14:13-15; James 3:13-16; Romans 12:6)
“I am selfishly ambitious. I really want to get ahead and make a name for
myself. I want to be someone important in life. I like having a position or title.
I far prefer leading to following.”
2. Sinfully Competitive
“I am overly competitive. I always want to win or come out on top and it
bothers me when I don‟t.”
3. Want to Impress People (Luke 10:38-42)
“I want people to be impressed with me. I like to make my accomplishments known.
4. Draw Attention to Myself (Proverbs 27:2)
“I like to be the center of attention and will say or do things to draw attention to myself.”
5. Like to Talk About Myself
“I like to talk, especially about myself or persons or things I am involved with.
I want people to know what I am doing or thinking. I would rather speak than
listen. I have a hard time being succinct.”
6. Deceitful and Pretentious (Psalm 24:3-4, 26:2-4; Jeremiah 48:10; Proverbs 26:20-22
“I tend to be deceptive about myself. I find myself lying to preserve my
reputation. I find myself hiding the truth about myself, especially about sins,
weaknesses, etc. I don‟t want people to know who I really am.”
7. Desire Recognition and Praise (John 5:41-44; Matthew 6:1, 23:5-7)
“I desire to receive recognition and credit for what I do. I like people to see
what I do and let me know that they noticed. I feel hurt or offended when they
don‟t. I am overly concerned about my reputation and hate being
misunderstood.”
8. Not Fulfilled Serving Others (John 3:30)
“I am not very excited about seeing or making others successful. I tend to feel
envious, jealous or critical towards those who are doing well or being
honored.”
9. Self Sufficient (Matthew 4:4; John 15:5; Acts 17:25; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
“I tend to be self sufficient in the way I live my life. I don‟t live with a constant
awareness that my every breath is dependent upon the will of God. I tend to
think I have enough strength, ability and wisdom to live and manage my life.
My practice of the spiritual disciplines is inconsistent and superficial. I don‟t
like to ask others for help.”
10. Anxious (Psalm 4:8; Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Peter 5:6-7)
“I am often anxious about my life and the future. I tend not to trust God and
rarely experience his abiding and transcendent peace in my soul. I have a hard
time sleeping at night because of fearful thoughts and burdens I carry.”
11. Self Focused (Exodus 4:11; Job 10:8-11; Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 53:2; Jeremiah 1:5)
“I am overly self-conscious. I tend to replay in my mind how I did, what I said,
and how I came across to others. I am very concerned about my appearance
and what people think of me. I think about these things constantly.”
12. Fear Man (Proverbs 29:25)
“I fear man more than God. I am afraid of others and make decisions about
what I will say or do based upon this fear. I am afraid to take a stand for things
that are right. I am concerned with how people will react to me or perceive my
actions or words. I don‟t often think about God‟s opinion in a matter and rarely
think there could be consequences for disobeying him. I primarily seek the
approval of man and not of God.”
13. Insecure
“I often feel insecure. I don‟t want to try new things or step out into
uncomfortable situations because I‟m afraid I‟ll fail or look foolish. I am easily embarrassed.
14. They want their children or family to succeed more than others. They set up a kingdom dynasty like mentality for their children to inherit what they have built. All of this completely justified. They Politician games for their children to receive positions.
15. Self Righteous (Luke 18:9-14)
“I tend to be self-righteous. I can think that I really have something to offer
God. I would never say so, but I think God did well to save me. I seldom think
about or recognize my total depravity and helplessness apart from God. I
regularly focus on the sins of others. I don‟t credit God for any degree of
holiness in my life.”
Feel Better or Superior
“I feel special or superior because of what I have, who my dad is or what I do.”
The list can go on and on....You get the picture!
We are all guilty at some point in our life of PRIDE. But at some point you have to stop and realize it really not about us. There are no SUPERSTARS in Gods kingdom except Christ!
Stop parading your messages, your titles, your slick presentations, your positions, your wealth, your numbers, your building sizes, and all the other things that make God sick. Know if you do not work at humbling yourself before men you will get humbled by an almighty God. When he humbles you it is no laughing matter.
Why did this bother me so much?
I came out of a religion that exudes PRIDE. They are about outward appearances and titles.(Not all, there are some really good people) We grew up with one's who love to politic for position. They exaggerate numbers and set men up to be superstars. They have all the right clothes, hairstyles, cars, but underneath they are extremely shallow. They have all the right hand gestures, voice influxes and phrases to manipulate the crowd. They can not get enough of performance. They brag about being exclusive and holy, like they are extremely elite.(more like narcissistic) I know all of it displeases God. Thank God my wife and I have been out of this denomination for almost 15 years now. So, I know that "smell" on a person who comes from that background who has not been delivered of that spirit.
Five Things to Know About Pride & Humility
1. Pride Is the Root of All Evil (Genesis 3:5; 1 Timothy 3:6; 1 John 2:15-17)
2. God Hates Pride (Proverbs 8:13; 16:5; Isaiah 23:9; Daniel 4:29-37; James 4:6; 1 Peter
5:5)
3. God Loves Humility (Proverbs 11:2, 15:33, 18:12, 29:23; Isaiah 57:15, 66:2; Micah 6:8;
Luke 14:11; 1 Peter 5:6)
4. What Pride Is Not
a. Acknowledging and appreciating the gifts and abilities God has given you.
b. The presence of godly desire, ambition and purposeful direction in your life (1
Timothy 3:1)
c. Acknowledging the work of God within you.
d. The pursuit of excellence.
E. Thankful and full of gratitude
5. Pride Is Deceptive (John 8:31-36; Jeremiah 49:16; Proverbs 16:2, 21:2
Fruits of Pride
1. Want to be Well Known or Important (Isaiah 14:13-15; James 3:13-16; Romans 12:6)
“I am selfishly ambitious. I really want to get ahead and make a name for
myself. I want to be someone important in life. I like having a position or title.
I far prefer leading to following.”
2. Sinfully Competitive
“I am overly competitive. I always want to win or come out on top and it
bothers me when I don‟t.”
3. Want to Impress People (Luke 10:38-42)
“I want people to be impressed with me. I like to make my accomplishments known.
4. Draw Attention to Myself (Proverbs 27:2)
“I like to be the center of attention and will say or do things to draw attention to myself.”
5. Like to Talk About Myself
“I like to talk, especially about myself or persons or things I am involved with.
I want people to know what I am doing or thinking. I would rather speak than
listen. I have a hard time being succinct.”
6. Deceitful and Pretentious (Psalm 24:3-4, 26:2-4; Jeremiah 48:10; Proverbs 26:20-22
“I tend to be deceptive about myself. I find myself lying to preserve my
reputation. I find myself hiding the truth about myself, especially about sins,
weaknesses, etc. I don‟t want people to know who I really am.”
7. Desire Recognition and Praise (John 5:41-44; Matthew 6:1, 23:5-7)
“I desire to receive recognition and credit for what I do. I like people to see
what I do and let me know that they noticed. I feel hurt or offended when they
don‟t. I am overly concerned about my reputation and hate being
misunderstood.”
8. Not Fulfilled Serving Others (John 3:30)
“I am not very excited about seeing or making others successful. I tend to feel
envious, jealous or critical towards those who are doing well or being
honored.”
9. Self Sufficient (Matthew 4:4; John 15:5; Acts 17:25; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
“I tend to be self sufficient in the way I live my life. I don‟t live with a constant
awareness that my every breath is dependent upon the will of God. I tend to
think I have enough strength, ability and wisdom to live and manage my life.
My practice of the spiritual disciplines is inconsistent and superficial. I don‟t
like to ask others for help.”
10. Anxious (Psalm 4:8; Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Peter 5:6-7)
“I am often anxious about my life and the future. I tend not to trust God and
rarely experience his abiding and transcendent peace in my soul. I have a hard
time sleeping at night because of fearful thoughts and burdens I carry.”
11. Self Focused (Exodus 4:11; Job 10:8-11; Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 53:2; Jeremiah 1:5)
“I am overly self-conscious. I tend to replay in my mind how I did, what I said,
and how I came across to others. I am very concerned about my appearance
and what people think of me. I think about these things constantly.”
12. Fear Man (Proverbs 29:25)
“I fear man more than God. I am afraid of others and make decisions about
what I will say or do based upon this fear. I am afraid to take a stand for things
that are right. I am concerned with how people will react to me or perceive my
actions or words. I don‟t often think about God‟s opinion in a matter and rarely
think there could be consequences for disobeying him. I primarily seek the
approval of man and not of God.”
13. Insecure
“I often feel insecure. I don‟t want to try new things or step out into
uncomfortable situations because I‟m afraid I‟ll fail or look foolish. I am easily embarrassed.
14. They want their children or family to succeed more than others. They set up a kingdom dynasty like mentality for their children to inherit what they have built. All of this completely justified. They Politician games for their children to receive positions.
15. Self Righteous (Luke 18:9-14)
“I tend to be self-righteous. I can think that I really have something to offer
God. I would never say so, but I think God did well to save me. I seldom think
about or recognize my total depravity and helplessness apart from God. I
regularly focus on the sins of others. I don‟t credit God for any degree of
holiness in my life.”
Feel Better or Superior
“I feel special or superior because of what I have, who my dad is or what I do.”
The list can go on and on....You get the picture!
We are all guilty at some point in our life of PRIDE. But at some point you have to stop and realize it really not about us. There are no SUPERSTARS in Gods kingdom except Christ!
Stop parading your messages, your titles, your slick presentations, your positions, your wealth, your numbers, your building sizes, and all the other things that make God sick. Know if you do not work at humbling yourself before men you will get humbled by an almighty God. When he humbles you it is no laughing matter.
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