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MESSAGE: 2TS06
Preached: 7 Aug 83 ▪ Edited: 13 Dec 07
I. Why is pride in our lives so serious and problematic? | II. Proper response and attitude | Example of King David | Example and teachings of Paul | The teaching of the Lord Jesus | Having sound judgement of ourselves | Concluding remarks
In this message, I would like to continue to consider with you the
subject of pride. I will cover two main issues:
I. Why is pride in our lives so serious and problematic?
II. What should be the proper response and attitude on our part?
Pride is a constant problem in the lives of man. It is an area where the evil one often attacks. You may wonder why pride is highlighted as such a serious sin and why it is a major objective of the evil one to stir up pride within us.
Firstly, pride involves thinking more highly of ourselves than we
ought. We do not have a proper understanding of ourselves or our true
condition. We do not properly appreciate the meaning and implications
of our being without hope and that we are helpless apart from God and
His grace.
Secondly, we do not properly appreciate and understand God, His
greatness and His grace in our hearts and minds. A mental recognition
or verbal acknowledgement is insufficient. At times, we may express
words like: “Yes, I know God is great and God is gracious”; however
there is insufficient appreciation of God and His grace in our
hearts.
Thirdly, there is a failure to properly appreciate others. In fact, we
may sometimes even despise them.
These three areas of improper and inaccurate understanding, coupled
with improper attitudes and wrongful desire for prominence, power,
position and recognition, lead to adverse effects on our well-being and
that of others. Pride leads to improper attitudes and actions, which
hinder our fellowship with God and with others. It also exposes us to
spiritual manipulations and attacks leading to destruction.
We may not be immediately destroyed by pride in our lives. However, if
we remain unrepentant and persist in being proud and arrogant, then
ultimately we will be destroyed.
Our well-being has to do with our knowing and rejoicing in our proper
position in the context of a healthy relationship with God and with
others. Pride hits at the core centre of these areas. Many of the basic
problems of man arise from a failure on man’s part to know and to
rejoice in his proper position and a failure to maintain a proper
relationship with God and with his fellowmen.
Satan fell because he did not rejoice in his proper position. He wanted
to exalt himself and lay hold of an exalted position far above what God
intended for him.
We also see this in the life of King Uzziah. He went beyond his proper
position and did something that was designated only for the priest.
Similarly, Eve was tempted in this direction of going beyond her proper
position and to reach out for things that God did not intend for
her.
A proud person does not fully recognise or understand his helplessness,
sinful state and unworthiness. He thinks of himself more highly than he
ought and does not fully appreciate God’s grace nor see that he is
unable to overcome sin and live a righteous life apart from God’s
grace. This frame of mind and attitude of heart hinder deep gratitude
to God, healthy relationship with God and proper worship of God.
Ephesians 2:12 tells us how we were without hope before we became
children of God and Romans 7:18 tells us that in ourselves, we are weak
and helpless to overcome sin or to do anything that is really good.
Romans 7:18
For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for
the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.
Man often experiences this struggle described in Romans 7:18 because of
the weakness of the flesh. We can live an overcoming and fruitful life
only by the grace of God, as we abide in Christ and are empowered by
the Holy Spirit. The proud man does not properly recognise and
appreciate this reality and behaves as if he can accomplish many things
in his own strength.
The essence of worship has to do with the proper response of the
creature man to our creator God. It springs forth from our
understanding of our true state and knowing how to respond in humility
to the great almighty God.
When we do not properly understand our own condition, it also means
that we do not properly appreciate God’s greatness and grace in our
lives. We may utter words like: “Lord, I thank You”, but is there true
quality of gratitude in our hearts? Do we really appreciate who God is
and His grace in our lives?
The Scriptures tells us that pride is detrimental to our relationship
with God. James 4:6 tells us that God is opposed to the proud but gives
grace to the humble. If God is opposed to the proud, then those who are
proud will not be able to have a close relationship with God.
James 4:6
But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the
proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
The Scriptures also emphasises the importance of humility if we want to draw near to God. Those who are contrite in heart and spirit are the ones who can draw near to God and God will draw near to them.
Isaiah 57:15
For thus says the high and exalted One
Who lives forever, whose name is Holy,
“I dwell on a high and holy place,
And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit
In order to revive the spirit of the lowly
And to revive the heart of the contrite.
When we think of ourselves more highly than we ought to and fail to
appreciate others properly, we will have difficulty in having proper
relationship with other people. Because of pride, we fail to relate
with others in a healthy manner. A person who is proud often cannot
perceive the truth accurately because the spirit of arrogance within
his heart deceives him.
Pride blinds us to many things. It blinds us to our deficiencies, our
failures as well as the merits in other people. When we fail to
appreciate others, it also hinders us from learning from them and
benefiting from their lives because we think we know better.
The irony of pride is that the person who is proud can show intolerance
or a hatred for pride. However, it is often hatred for pride in other
people but not in themselves. When the Lord speaks to them, they may
try to rationalise it away or say: “Oh, it is a very minor thing and it
does not matter.” It is doubly ironic when what they perceive as pride
in others is not true.
Pride often gives rise to improper attitudes and actions. It can lead
to despising other people. We saw the example of the Pharisee recorded
in Luke 18, how he thought so highly of himself, boasting that he
tithed, that he was not like the tax collector or other people. Not
realising that his true state was actually very terrible, he despised
others.
Proverbs 28:25 tells us that pride stirs up strife.
Proverbs 28:25
An arrogant man stirs up strife,
But he who trusts in the Lord will prosper.
The conduct and ways of a proud person can cause much difficulty in
relationships. A proud person is often self-centred; he has selfish
ambitions and hungers for power in his heart. Such attitudes, whether
in the worldly or Christian context, give rise to inconsiderate
behaviour and can be expressed in ugly conduct towards others. Pride
promotes strife and division in the body of Christ, which grieves the
heart of God. With the evil one taking advantage of the situation,
believers may even resort to scheming, deceptive ways and despicable
conduct in order to attain their personal desires.
Ephesians 4:1-2 emphasises to us the importance of humility in
fellowship.
Ephesians 4:1-2
1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a
manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,
2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance
for one another in love,
Paul implores us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling, “with all humility and gentleness”. This is linked to “being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” in verse 3. The context of chapter 4 is about the building up of the body of Christ in love and fellowship, service unto God and outworking together. Paul emphasises that humility is important for such outworking of fellowship. When we are proud, it will hinder the outworking of church life.
Pride has adverse effects on our being and our spiritual development
because God is opposed to the proud (James 4:6). Our well-being and
spiritual development is dependent on God being pleased with us and on
His working in our lives and His helping us learn and grow. Pride
impedes God working in our lives and our receptivity to what He has to
say to us and teach us.
A proud person is boastful and thinks of himself more highly than he
ought. His pride and boastfulness would hinder his receptivity,
teachability and perception of truth, which will in turn affect his
spiritual development. The adverse effect varies, depending on how
proud the person is. Any degree of pride that comes into our lives
would always hinder us.
The person who is proud may not be very conscious of his own state or
admit that he is proud. It is not unusual for a proud person to deny
that he is proud. When boasting about his achievements, he may say or
think in his heart, “I am not proud. I have only told you a fraction of
my achievements.”
John 5:44 tells us that the attitude of wanting recognition from men
will hinder us from believing in the truth.
John 5:44
“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you
do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?
This desire for glory, honour and recognition from men generally has to do with the desire to feed our pride. Such desire will hinder us from recognising and believing in the truth. If we are hindered from recognising and receiving the truth, our response to God, worship of God and our growth will be impeded. At the same time, we become more vulnerable to deception and the wiles and attacks of the evil one.
In the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted by the evil one to desire to be
like God. The evil one is continually seeking to tempt us with fleshly
desires. If we harbour personal ambitions and fleshly longings for
greatness, the evil one will promote and feed such longings and we will
find ourselves in a very dangerous position.
We considered the case of Simon in the last message. Simon was formerly practising magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria. He was able to draw attention to himself and was claiming to be someone great. He liked this kind of attention and was succeeding in the sense that people were thinking of him as someone great.
Acts 8:10-11
10 and they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to
him, saying, “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.”
11 And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time
astonished them with his magic arts.
When Simon witnessed how Peter and John (vs. 14-15) prayed for the disciples to receive the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit fell upon them, he also wanted similar power.
Acts 8:18-19
18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying
on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
19 saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom
I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
Why did Simon want such powers? It was not primarily because he was concerned about the welfare of other people and that he wanted them to be blessed by the Lord. Rather, his desire for such authority and power was to draw the attention of people to himself so that people will recognise him as someone great. Thus Peter rebuked him.
Acts 8:20-23
20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you
thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
21 “You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not
right before God.
22 “Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord
that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you.
23 “For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage
of iniquity.”
Peter told him that his heart was not right and he was in the bondage of iniquity and he needed to repent. People who harbour such desires in their hearts are in a very vulnerable position and the powers of darkness can easily manipulate their lives. There is a need for repentance and the forsaking of such desires.
Although we are not clear as to the degree and the manner in which the
evil one had manipulated the life of Simon, the Scriptures records how
the powers of darkness manipulated and took advantage of the weakness
of King Saul. Pride was a major problem in Saul’s life. He failed to
repent and the Spirit of the Lord departed from him and an evil spirit
manipulated him.
Let us refer to 1 Samuel 15 to see the indications of pride in Saul’s life.
1 Samuel 15:12
Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel,
saying, “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for
himself, then turned and proceeded on down to Gilgal.”
Saul set up a monument for himself. Why did he do so? This is an indication of pride in his life. This expression of pride is even more significant as this act took place after the pronouncement of God’s judgement on Saul that his kingdom will not endure because he had foolishly disobeyed the Lord by presenting the burnt offering himself instead of waiting for Samuel to do it (1 Sam. 13:11-14). Even after Samuel had pronounced God’s judgement, Saul still acted in this way.
1 Samuel 15:23
“For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
He has also rejected you from being king.”
Samuel restated God's rejection of Saul from being king because he again disobeyed the Lord's specific instruction to “strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has” (v. 3). In verses 27 and 28, it is recorded that as Samuel turned to go, Saul seized the edge of Samuel’s robe and it tore.
1 Samuel 15:27-28
27 As Samuel turned to go, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it
tore.
28 So Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from
you today and has given it to your neighbor, who is better than
you.
After this second pronouncement by Samuel of God's judgement on Saul, he was still preoccupied with being honoured before the elders and the people of Israel:
1 Samuel 15:30
Then he said, “I have sinned; but please honor me now before the elders
of my people and before Israel, and go back with me, that I may worship
the Lord your God.”
Instead of deep repentance on his part, Saul was still thinking of
being honoured before the people.
In 1 Samuel 16:14, it is recorded that the Spirit of the Lord departed
from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord terrorised him. The phrase
“an evil spirit from the Lord terrorised him” is an emphasis from the
angle of God’s sovereignty. God is the sovereign ruler of all creation
and in the ultimate sense, we know that unless God permits, no evil
spirit will be able to operate in the lives of men.
Saul was very seriously manipulated by the evil spirit such that he
became very violent.
1 Samuel 18:10-11
10 Now it came about on the next day that an evil spirit from God came
mightily upon Saul, and he raved in the midst of the house, while David
was playing the harp with his hand, as usual; and a spear was in Saul’s
hand.
11 Saul hurled the spear for he thought, “I will pin David to the
wall.” But David escaped from his presence twice.
Because of his failure to repent, the powers of darkness were able to
continue to harass and manipulate Saul and his life became uglier and
uglier.
What was the context in which Saul did these things? Verse 10 says,
“Now it came about on the next day...” Now what was it that happened
the previous day? The preceding two verses tell us what took place the
day before.
1 Samuel 18:7-8
7 The women sang as they played, and said,
“Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands.”
8 Then Saul became very angry, for this saying displeased him; and he
said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, but to me they have
ascribed thousands. Now what more can he have but the kingdom?”
David was becoming more and more popular in the sight of the people.
Saul became very angry because the women were singing praises of David.
His pride was hurt. His self-desire for power and authority was
threatened, as he wanted to cling on to the kingship.
If God wants us to be in a certain position, it is proper and correct
that we faithfully seek to fulfil our part in that position. But if God
no longer wants us to be in that position, it will be wrong for us to
cling on to it.
We see a very different attitude in David. David knew that the Lord
wanted him to be king, and he trusted God to open the way for him.
David did not do anything improper to attain it. In spite of many
attempts by Saul to kill him, David did not retaliate or try to take
over the kingship from Saul by his own effort, but patiently waited for
God's timing and undertaking.
But in the case of Saul, he was very angry and jealous because he heard
the people praising David. He felt that his position and authority were
being threatened. In such a state, it was very easy for the evil
spirits to manipulate him. In verse 10, it is recorded that an evil
spirit came mightily upon Saul the next day. From then on, he sought
relentlessly to kill David and in the process he destroyed his own
life.
If we refuse to repent, we may not be immediately destroyed, but the
direction is degeneration and destruction. Sometimes in serious areas
of pride, very serious consequences can take place very rapidly. The
life of Saul is an object lesson for us. The Scriptures portrays an
unrepentant Saul. He was guilty of terrible wrongdoings, but did not
repent. Instead he degenerated, came under the judgement of God and was
killed.
We have also in the earlier message looked at the life of
Nebuchadnezzar who was proud and God punished him. However, he repented
and was restored to kingship. But this was not the case for his son,
Belshazzar. Belshazzar was proud and unrepentant and was eventually
destroyed.
Daniel pronounced God's judgement on Belshazzar for exalting himself
against the Lord and failing to learn from what happened to his father
Nebuchadnezzar:
Daniel 5:20-23
20 “But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit became so proud
that he behaved arrogantly, he was deposed from his royal throne and
his glory was taken away from him.
21 “He was also driven away from mankind, and his heart was made like
that of beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys. He
was given grass to eat like cattle, and his body was drenched with the
dew of heaven until he recognized that the Most High God is ruler over
the realm of mankind and that He sets over it whomever He wishes.
22 “Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even
though you knew all this,
23 but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they
have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your
nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from
them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze,
iron, wood and stone, which do not see, hear or understand. But the God
in whose hand are your life-breath and your ways, you have not glorified.
Daniel interpreted the meaning of the inscription on the wall to Belshazzar, telling him that God had pronounced judgement on him. He told him in Dan. 5:26-28:
Daniel 5:26-28
26 “This is the interpretation of the message: ‘MENE’-God has numbered
your kingdom and put an end to it.
27 “ ‘TEKEL’-you have been weighed on the scales and found
deficient.
28 “ ‘PERES’-your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes
and Persians.”
Verse 30 tells us:
Daniel 5:30
That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain.
The scriptural teaching is clear: pride destroys us, and the judgement of God will come upon those who are proud.
Proverbs 16:18
Pride goes before destruction,
And a haughty spirit before stumbling.
Jeremiah 50:32
“The arrogant one will stumble and fall
With no one to raise him up;
And I will set fire to his cities
And it will devour all his environs.”
The one who is arrogant or proud will stumble and fall and the
judgement of the Lord will come upon him unless he repents and takes
corrective measures.
The prime example for us is Satan. The Scriptures records that Satan
fell because of pride and that he is destined for destruction in the lake of fire.
How then should we respond to the Lord and what kind of attitude should we have?
David is an example of one who has good attitude of heart. We will refer to two occasions recorded for us in 1 Chronicles 17 and 1 Chronicles 29.
1 Chronicles 17:3-4
3 It came about the same night that the word of God came to Nathan,
saying,
4 “Go and tell David My servant, ‘Thus says the Lord…
God spoke to David through Nathan about what He had done and what He would continue to do for David and Israel.
1 Chronicles 17:7-9
7 “Now, therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says
the Lord of hosts, “I took you from the pasture, from following the
sheep, to be leader over My people Israel.
8 “I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all
your enemies from before you; and I will make you a name like the name
of the great ones who are in the earth.
9 “I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, so
that they may dwell in their own place and not be moved again; and the
wicked will not waste them anymore as formerly,
In verse 7, the Lord told David how He took him from tendering sheep in
the pasture to lead Israel. The Lord was with David wherever he went
and had helped him to defeat his enemies. The Lord also indicated to
David that He would make him great on earth (v. 8). In verse 9, we see
God’s promise to watch over Israel.
In verses 11-14, God revealed to David what He would do for him in
the future:
1 Chronicles 17:11-14
11 “When your days are fulfilled that you must go to be with your
fathers, that I will set up one of your descendants after you, who will
be of your sons; and I will establish his kingdom.
12 “He shall build for Me a house, and I will establish his throne
forever.
13 “I will be his father and he shall be My son; and I will not take My
lovingkindness away from him, as I took it from him who was before
you.
14 “But I will settle him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and
his throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
In my understanding of this passage, there are two parts with regard to
the fulfilment of God’s promise to David. The first part was fulfilled
by Solomon, the son of David. The second part is fulfilled by the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Son of David, whose throne and kingdom will last
forever. The Lord highly exalted David. God blessed him during his
lifetime and also promised him that the Messiah will be his descendant.
This is indeed a great honour for David.
How did David respond to all these? Great things were happening in his
life. He was a great king over the land of Israel and the Lord had
blessed him greatly. He had done many great things. The following
verses record how David responded in a spirit of deep humility:
1 Chronicles 17:16-19
16 Then David the king went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who
am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that You have brought me this
far?
17 “This was a small thing in Your eyes, O God; but You have spoken of
Your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have regarded me
according to the standard of a man of high degree, O Lord God.
18 “What more can David still say to You concerning the honor bestowed
on Your servant? For You know Your servant.
19 “O Lord, for Your servant’s sake, and according to Your own heart,
You have wrought all this greatness, to make known all these great
things.
What comes through in David's response is a deep sense of unworthiness.
There was no trace of pride of any sort in David’s expression. Rather,
his response was, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that You
have brought me this far?” (v. 16). It was God who had done it: “You
have wrought all this greatness” (v. 19). He was deeply grateful to God
and knew that he was undeserving of what God had done for him or what
God would do for him in the future.
David was deeply impressed with the greatness of God and the
spontaneous overflow of his heart was an expression of worship, praise
and gratitude to God for who He is and what He has done:
1 Chronicles 17:20-22
20 “O Lord, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You,
according to all that we have heard with our ears.
21 “And what one nation in the earth is like Your people Israel, whom
God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make You a name by great
and terrible things, in driving out nations from before Your people,
whom You redeemed out of Egypt?
22 “For Your people Israel You made Your own people forever, and You, O
Lord, became their God.
David recognised that God had not only done mighty things for him but for the people of Israel as well. He did not forget God’s goodness and he saw all these things in the right perspective. He did not draw attention to himself nor exalt himself. The whole focus was on God and what God had done. God was the One who had delivered the people of Israel. God was the One who had blessed him and the nation of Israel. God was the One who had done all the great things.
1 Chronicles 17:23
“Now, O Lord, let the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant
and concerning his house be established forever, and do as You have
spoken.
David trusted God and was confident that all the great things that God had said would come to pass not because he was great but because God had spoken.
1 Chronicles 17:24
“Let Your name be established and magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord
of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel; and the house of
David Your servant is established before You.’
We read in verse 24 again the focus and attitude of David’s heart. His
primary concern was for God’s name - “Let Your name be established and
magnified forever.” To him, the important thing was to magnify the name
of the Lord.
If we reflect on the life of David, we can see that David had actually
accomplished a lot. He was a great king. He defeated many of his
enemies and established the kingdom of Israel. It is recorded that he
“administered justice and righteousness for all his people” (2 Sam.
8:15). He was also a gifted musician and a great psalmist. But David
knew it was all by the Lord‘s enabling and there was none of the “I
have done it” kind of attitude. There was no sense of pride or boasting
in self-accomplishment. There was also no trace of such attitude like:
“Oh, it is only proper and fair that God should treat me in this way
after all that I have done.” David expressed that he was unworthy and
undeserving and it was God who had blessed him richly.
We read in 1 Chronicles 29 the attitude and response of David in
another context. This context has to do with providing and offering for
the building of the temple. David had been trying his best to provide
for the house of God (v. 2) and had challenged the people to consecrate
themselves to the Lord for this project (v. 5). In verses 5-9, we see
the people rejoicing because they had offered generously and
wholeheartedly. King David also rejoiced greatly with them.
The verses that follow reveal the heart of David towards service to
God. This is an example to us on the attitude and spirit we should have
in serving the Lord and giving to His work.
1 Chronicles 29:10-14
10 So David blessed the Lord in the sight of all the assembly; and
David said, “Blessed are You, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever
and ever.
11 “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the
victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and
the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as
head over all.
12 “Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in
Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great
and to strengthen everyone.
13 “Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious
name.
14 “But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer
as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand
we have given You.
David and the people had contributed significantly to the building of
the temple. But instead of drawing attention to what they had
contributed, David led the people in blessing the Lord; they worshipped
and praised Him for His greatness, power, glory and majesty. Instead of
claiming credit for what they had done, David affirmed the truth that
all things come from God and whatever they were able to give and
whatever they had given, they were able to do so because God had first
given to them. There was no sense of pride as he gave and served the
Lord. In fact, he thanked the Lord for the great privilege that he and
his people could offer something to the great almighty God.
In order that pride may have no place in our lives, it is important for
us to recognise this fundamental truth: We are able to give and to
serve only as God has given to us and as God has enabled us. We are
not able to give anything to the Lord if He has not first given to us.
We are also not able to serve the Lord if God has not in the first
place enabled us or given us the capability to do so.
In other words, there is nothing any one of us can boast about because
whatever good things or capabilities we have, we have received them
from God above, from the Father of lights. Whatever we are able to
attain to and to accomplish is by the grace of God.
We should regard it a privilege that God should see it fit for us to
participate in and contribute something to His work and eternal
kingdom.
Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 4 that there is no place for boasting in what we have or in our capabilities. 1 Corinthians 4:7 impresses me deeply in relation to this issue of why there is no place for pride in our lives. If we are deeply convicted of the truth in this verse, and learn how to go through daily situations with greater consciousness of its implications, it will be a very helpful safeguard against pride coming into our lives and the evil one manipulating and attacking us in this area.
1 Corinthians 4:7
For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not
receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not
received it?
The whole context of 1 Corinthians 4 and the earlier verses has to do with service and stewardship. Paul was warning the Corinthian believers against being arrogant as they compared themselves with one another with regard to the area of service and accomplishments. He puts the truth across clearly: there is no place for pride or boasting because there is nothing we have that we did not receive.
1 Corinthians 4:6
Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and
Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what
is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one
against the other.
As Paul explained to the Corinthian Christians, if we realise that all we have is from God, including all our capabilities, then we will realise that there is no place for boasting at all. There is only place for rejoicing and praising God for all that He has accomplished in our lives. Even though we are weak, helpless and sinful, in His grace and goodness, God has cleansed us and has seen it fit that we have a part in His work.
It is clear to Paul that he should never boast in anything pertaining to himself or his accomplishments but only in the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Galatians 6:14
But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I
to the world.
The word “boast” here can also be translated “glory” - glory in the Cross. The same idea is expressed in Philippians 3:3, where it is translated as “glory” in Christ.
Philippians 3:3
for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and
glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,
Following this verse, Paul went on to describe how he counts all his accomplishments, his status and position in life as loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, he puts no confidence in all these things that belong to the natural man or in his personal accomplishments in the flesh.
The Lord Jesus teaches us in Luke 17:10 what ought to be our proper attitude and response. He teaches us that no matter what we may have done or accomplished, the proper attitude is to recognise that we are unworthy slaves, even if we have done all that God has commanded us.
Luke 17:10
“So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say,
‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have
done.’ ”
When the Lord blesses us or enables us to do things, it is easy for us
to think we have done well and for pride to come into our lives. We saw
this in the case of Uzziah. Initially he did right in the sight of the
Lord but when the Lord prospered him, he began to feel proud. It is
easy for us to become proud too if we are not careful. When the Lord
enables us and we begin to accomplish or are able to do various things
to contribute to the Lord’s kingdom, it is easy for pride to creep into
our lives and we begin to have the sense that “I have done it, I have
accomplished it.”
If we look at the teaching of our Lord Jesus here, it is quite clear
that no matter what we have done or what we have accomplished, our
attitude should be: “We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that
which we ought to have done.”
The question that I want to pose to you to reflect upon is: Have you
done all that the Lord has commanded? Has any of us done all that God
requires of us, or desires of us? Even if we have, our attitude should
still be that we are only unworthy slaves.
It does not mean that God will treat us as unworthy slaves. If our
attitudes are right, and we walk humbly with the Lord, He will draw us
into a very deep level of fellowship. The Lord Jesus tells us that He
wants to treat us as His friends. But on our part, our attitude must be
one of humility, that no matter what we have done, or even when
we have done all that God has commanded, we are still unworthy
slaves.
It is quite clear that none of us has done everything God has commanded
or desired of our lives. If this is so, how can we still feel proud?
Instead of being proud, we should be humble and come before the Lord,
on the one hand thanking Him for His grace and enabling, rejoicing in
whatever the Lord has done in and through our lives, and on the other
hand expressing to Him that we are sorry for all the failures in our
lives and for areas where we have not done our best. Not stopping at
that, we press on, calling upon the Lord to help us to be more diligent
and to know how to strive according to His power, which mightily works
within us.
Instead of patting ourselves on the back and saying: “What great things
I have done”, we should from time to time reflect on our lives and,
while rejoicing in whatever the Lord has enabled us, also realise that
we are unworthy slaves. Where we have failed or have not done our best,
we should feel sorry. It is important to maintain the sense of
unworthiness to serve and to receive all the blessings. We acknowledge
that it is a privilege for us to labour together with Him and that God
in His grace and goodness has given us a part to fulfil in His
kingdom.
Adopting the posture of being unworthy slaves does not mean that we
should go to the other extreme and feel that we are useless. Although
man is helpless in himself, he is useful in the Lord's work if he
abides in Christ and walks with God.
Romans 12:3 is a helpful verse to reflect upon so that we will have a
wholesome approach to the subject of pride.
Romans 12:3
For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to
think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as
to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of
faith.
This verse tells us that we should not think more highly of ourselves
than we ought to. One aspect of pride involves thinking of ourselves
more highly than we ought. But this verse also tells us that we should
“think so as to have sound judgment”. It means that we should learn to
have an accurate understanding of ourselves. We should not think that
the right attitude is to have a low view of man, and to think of
ourselves as lower than the objective reality. A humble spirit does not
mean we think of ourselves as useless.
We are not useless as God has allotted or given to each a measure of
faith. Paul tells us that we are members of the body of Christ. We have
gifts (Rom. 12:6) and we have a place in the body of Christ. Each one
of us can be useful and we should seek to serve the Lord as He leads
and enables us. We must not be proud and think of ourselves more highly
than we ought, but at the same time we must realise that we can be
useful as we walk with God because He will enable us to bear good
fruit. All these are in the context of consecrating our lives unto the
Lord as a living sacrifice and being transformed and renewed in our
minds (Rom. 12:1-2). In this context of transformation, renewal and
consecration, we seek to walk humbly with the Lord and to serve
Him.
This is the attitude we should adopt as we seek to contribute to God’s
kingdom. We recognise that we have a place in the body of Christ and we
can contribute to the building of God’s kingdom.
As we seek to contribute, we should constantly recognise that it is all by the grace of God.
1 Corinthians 15:10
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not
prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but
the grace of God with me.
It is always by the grace of God that we are able to attain to anything. On the other hand, we need to labour and cooperate with God. But even as we labour, we still recognise that it is not just a question of “I labour”. As Paul says, “Yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” It is labouring by God’s grace.
We see that pride can be very destructive in our lives. It hinders our
relationship with God and with other people. It has adverse effects on
our lives as well as on the lives of others. Pride will destroy us
unless we repent and take corrective measures.
As we reflect on the example of David, we see clearly what ought to be
the proper response and attitude. From the Scriptures, we learn that
there is absolutely no place for pride or arrogance in our lives. There
should not be any trace of pride or arrogance because whatever we have,
including our capabilities, we have received from the Lord. Whatever we
are able to accomplish is by God’s grace.
Rather, we should rejoice and worship God, and thank and praise Him for
all that He has seen fit to do in our lives. Even in the context of
what we are able to accomplish and do, we should still have the
attitude that we are unworthy slaves, even if we have accomplished all
that God has commanded us. In reality, we know that we have not and so
there should be no place whatsoever for any trace of pride or
arrogance in our lives.
If we are not careful in this area, various aspects of our lives can
begin to go wrong. The evil one will try whenever he can to attack us
in this area of pride. To counter the attacks by the evil one in our
thought life in the direction of pride, there are two steps that we can
take.
Whenever we recognise that the evil one is trying to plant thoughts in
our minds in the direction of pride, whether obvious or subtle, the
first step is to straightaway reject firmly all such thoughts in the
name of Jesus our Lord. The second step is to counter all such thoughts
with the truth. We need to see clearly and affirm categorically that
there is no place at all for pride in our lives. We acknowledge that we
are unworthy slaves, that we are weak and helpless in ourselves, and
that it is all by God’s grace that He has enabled us to do anything
useful. It is a great privilege to contribute something to the Lord's
work and there is absolutely no place for pride. At the same time, we
also meditate on the greatness and the grace of God and our own
unworthiness, weaknesses and helplessness.
At times taking the first step of rejecting the negative thoughts may
not be effective as these thoughts may keep coming. This may be due to
the fact that our understanding and conviction of the truth on this
subject is not strong and clear and we may be subtly affected by the
thoughts which give rise to a sense of self- importance and
accomplishment. When we complement the first step with the second step
in a decisive stand and affirmation of the truth, we can effectively
counter the attacks of the evil one.
Let us praise God and worship Him and thank Him for all that He has
done for us, for His provisions and blessings. Let us ask the Lord to
examine our lives to see whether we have harboured unhealthy longings
or personal ambitions for positions or anything in the direction of
pride. We should confess any area of failures and take corrective
measures. At the same time, we can rejoice wherever the
Lord has enabled us.
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