- Pride camouflages itself in many subtle forms, but when its work is done, the telltale marks of alienation, jealousy, hatred and disloyalty are left behind.
- Pride is an undue sense of one's own superiority and inordinate self-esteem. It is arrogance and conceit. It is raising ourselves above others. It is extreme self-centeredness. It is pretending to be something we are not. It is refusal to acknowledge our weaknesses and natural limitations. It is hiding behind escuses, rationalisations and defense mechanisms.
- If left undealt with, pride will eventually deceive us and blind us to its working in our life. (Obadiah 3)
- Pride is doing things our way instead of letting God have His way.
- The greatest hindrance to loving God is pride. The greatest obstacle to loving other people is also pride.
- God hates prideful people. (Job 35:12, Proverbs 16:5)
- Pride will grow when the conditions are favourable.
- The Bible talks about anyone who wants to be the leader amongst a group shall be their servant instead. (Mark 10:42-43)
- To detect pride in our lives, we need to look for its outward manifestations, of which are broken relationships and alienation.
- Satan is the author of pride. He scorned dependence on God. God, on the other hand, is the author and perfector of humility.
- If we fail to see God as immeasurably superior to ourselves, we fail to see Him at all.
- James 4:6 states that God opposes and resists the proud person, but gives grace to the humble.
- If we judge others to be inferior or superior to us, it will affect our relationship with them. If we think a person is inferior, then we feel justified in putting them down. If on the other hand we think of them as superior, we are the ones who feel put down and unworthy. In this situation our pride turns on us, enslaving us in a preoccupation with what others think.
- The greatest obstacle in loving other people is pride. When someone hurts us emotionally, we end up feeling hurt or depressed, and sometimes may even want to deliberately hurt them back. At this point we are faced with a choice: We can repent of our bitterness, forgive the person for what they have done to us and set the matter right, or we can continue on the path we have set for ourselves - a path that leads straight to destruction. Forgiving a person who has hurt us frees us from the bondage of bitterness and allows us to grow emotionally and spiritually.
- The one thing worse than a fool is a proud man (Proverbs 26:12). A proud man's pride will lead him to his ultimate destruction (Proverbs 29:23).
- A teachable spirit and a willingness to learn quickly from others is the greatest protection there is from the consequences of other people's sins against us.
- The greatest release form hurt, rejection and emotional damage other people force upon us is to walk in humility. It protects us from problems that we otherwise have no control over.
- God's intention in revealing pride in our lives is to help, not humiliate, us.
Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve. What more we?
Soli Deo Gloria,
†darrenshakers
No comments:
Post a Comment