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“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:16).
Scripture warns us against pride. It has caused the downfall of many strong leaders and stops us from humbling ourselves before God. Many times, pride is referred to as being “puffed up.” It causes us to judge people and think that we are better than others. In truth, pride is a tool of Satan.
In many congregations, the Old Testament is ignored. There are many lessons to be learned from the Old Testament accounts of history. For instance, Satan was very puffed up about himself, and pride caused him to think he could raise himself above God. There’s nothing in all of creation higher than God. Pride is what Satan used against Eve. He first twisted God’s words to confuse her into questioning God’s truth, then he convinced her she could be like God if she only would eat the forbidden fruit.
“For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5).
I don’t know about you, but I have no desire to be God. He is the only one I want to follow. Satan had touched the pride in Eve and convinced her to go against God’s truth. When life is lived according to God’s words, there is peace within you.
Let me say that just because something is spoken from the pulpit, that doesn’t mean it’s correct. I saw a video clip of a woman preacher (she shouldn’t have been in the pulpit in the first place) teaching that God really wants to worship you. That’s a lie straight from Satan.
We all know what happened to Adam and Eve. Eve believed Satan, then convinced Adam to ignore God’s truth, and all of creation has been under the curse of death ever since. Set your foolish pride aside and humble yourself before the Lord.
God has given us Scripture to guide our path. A wise person will prayerfully study Scripture and conform to God’s word. People have never stopped twisting God’s words into something other than what is clearly stated. For instance, we read in Genesis about the corruption of mankind.
“And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose” (Genesis 6:1-2).
People twist these words to mean that Seth’s sons married Cain’s daughters. How that ever came to be believed is beyond me. “Ben ‘elohim” is translated “sons of God” and is always “angels”, but “ben set” would be “sons of Seth.” “Bat adam” is translated “daughters of men,” while “bat qayin” would be “daughters of Cain.” This misinterpretation has led to many wrong ideas.
By missing the point that the fallen angels had children with humans, you can only conclude that God was unfair for sending the flood to kill all life just because humans were naughty. The naughtiness went far deeper than just being mean to each other; genetic tampering was happening. We are living in a time that is similar to Noah’s time. Scientists today are genetically altering food and also the genetics of people and animals. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.
“All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not” (1 Corinthians 10:23).
Christians have freedom in Christ, but that doesn’t mean we should allow our pride to corrupt us.
It’s very important for Christians to study all of God’s truth and believe it. There are many accounts of good and bad behavior, pride and humility, throughout Scripture. It’s important to study in context and glean lessons for our own lives. First and foremost, we need to seek God and His righteousness in all we do.
Israel is the one nation established by God. Other nations may support Israel, or claim to be Christian, but if God isn’t kept first, then the nation will fail. Israel didn’t always honor Him, but He has always provided for their well-being.
The greatest king over Israel was David, although he didn’t always fully honor God. The important lesson from David is that when he sinned, he recognized it and humbly and desperately went to God for forgiveness.
When David died, his son Solomon became king. When Solomon died, his son Jeroboam became king, but there was a split in the kingdom, and it became two kingdoms. The Northern Kingdom, called Israel, fell deep into idolatry and sin. The Southern Kingdom, called Judah, was also guilty of sins against the Lord. Eventually, Ahab became king over Israel, and Jehoshaphat became king over Judah. Ahab wanted to go to war with Syria and asked Jehoshaphat to join him. Jehoshaphat was willing, but wanted God’s approval.
“And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day” (1 Kings 22:5).
That was wise advice. Ahab was prideful and wanted no advice that was contrary to his own desire. He gathered 400 of his own prophets and asked them if he should go to war. Jehoshaphat didn’t trust Ahab’s prophets.
“And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might enquire of him?” (1 Kings 22:7).
The 400 prophets were not true prophets, but men who would only give Ahab the advice he wanted to hear. Ahab was very evil and full of pride; he didn’t want to know what God had to say.
“And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the LORD: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so” (1 Kings 22:8).
Micaiah was called. He was told that all the prophets said to go to war so he should say the same thing. “And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak” (1 Kings 22:14).
So it was, Micaiah didn’t say what Ahab wanted to hear. It takes courage to stand firm on God’s word in the face of opposition, but Micaiah was a man of integrity. Because he spoke truth that didn’t please Ahab, he was sent to prison and fed only bread and water. Ahab insisted on war but should have humbly followed the advice of the man of God. Because of pride, Ahab was killed.
“Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).
Remember that as you face challenges in life.
A little pride is good; it helps us to dress appropriately and to comb our hair and brush our teeth. Rainbow-colored hair is a symbol of pride taken to the extreme. Paul had good advice for men and women about how they should behave.
“I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; but (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works” (1 Timothy 2:8-10).
The world today encourages extreme attitudes that are ungodly. When you go out into a public place, such as a store, it’s easy to see very revealing clothing, multi-colored hair, heavy makeup, vulgar words on t-shirts, and more. This is all evidence of foolish pride. We might expect such behavior from worldly people, but as Christians, we should always point people to Christ.
“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10).
Model your life after Christ, and honor Him in all you do.
Pride will always lead to trouble. Unfortunately, it’s easy to give into a prideful attitude, and we must learn from an early age to submit. Children must submit to their parents, a wife must submit to her husband, and a husband must submit to Jesus. God’s ways are always best, and everybody needs to submit to God.
God bless you all,
Nathele Graham
Recommended prophecy sites:
www.raptureready.com
www.prophecyupdate.com
www.raptureforums.com
All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.
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“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.” Psalm 122:6.
The post The Foolishness of Pride :: By Nathele Graham appeared first on Rapture Ready.
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