“And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.” (Matt. 23:12)
This is a guarantee, a promise if you will from the Lord, the proud cannot stand in His presence, the humble have no desire to, the Sovereignty of the Most High can only be questioned when He is not present.
Pride was the downfall of Lucifer, the desire to be like God was Adam and Eves, again pride. Pride wants to think it is more than what it truly is, it is the man who believes he is stronger than others, the woman who sees herself as better than her peers, it is the deceit of power where there is none. For all mankind it is a great sin against the Lord, but even more so for those who have been born-again.
The pastor who offers sermons without deep, penitential prayer first, the elder or deacon who relishes in his position, those on the finance committee of a church who believe they hold the power of the growth of the church, and those who sit in the pews who see within themselves a type of feigned pride, for they attend the “right church.”
Pride finds its home in works, and every works-based religious organization, each of them that professes that the sacrifice of Christ was not sufficient for the salvation of their souls’ rests in the pride of their works, and they are seen as no less than Satan when he said, “I will.”
“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” (Phil. 2:3)
There is no place for pride in the life of one who professes Jesus Christ as Lord, that man will indeed be abased. From David with Bathsheba, Samson and his strength, Peter who wept bitterly, to Paul and the thorn in his side, pride will be dealt with in the life of the believer and dealt with harshly.
The light that we are to shine is not our light, the fruits we are to bear do not belong to us, the works that are accomplished are done through us, not by us, our lives do not even belong to us, but it is Christ that lives through us. There is no place for pride in our life. But we have free will, and free will can choose pride as well as the path of humility.
That path starts with the unmitigated knowledge that God is Sovereign over all of creation, that He is indeed the Almighty, that without question He is the Most High. It is the man that recognizes these truths that will fight the battle of pride each day, that will submit himself to the will of God, who does not love his life to the end, and recognizes that He who rules in the heavens rules on the earth, and so in his life.
Willful submission is the path that brings a sweet savor to the Lord God, pride is a stench He will not tolerate, that choice is ours.
The way of pride is the way of death, it is the way that all who do not serve the Lord have chosen, whether it be in the corporate boardroom or in the gutter, whether it is found in the life of one who serves themselves or serves others, if Christ is not placed first in our lives, it is by pride that we are living that life.
“Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.” (Psalm 57:5) A life lived for Jesus Christ by the power and strength of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God is a life of humility, and that person will be lifted up. It is God who looks on the heart, but that does not mean that we are not to search our own heart, our own motives, the reasons for what we do in this life and why we live as we do.
You need to look at yourself now, you need to determine why you do what you do, and when you do so honestly, you will see if you will be lifted up, or abased. It is quite simple, and easily seen, if you will but look at the actions of your life, “Thy will” or “I will,” there are only two choices.
