But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. (James 4:6)
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. (1 Peter 5:5)
Pride is perhaps the most dangerous of all sins. If a person is proud then God will resist them. The English rendering resist here is exceedingly soft compared to the Greek word, which is a military term meaning to arrange in battle against (antitassō). This is a most sobering thing to ponder; that God withholds grace from the proud and effectively declares war on them. Pride calls out Gods armies. No wonder, therefore, that it goeth before destruction. (Vincent) Our Greek word for proud is Huperēphanois (huper, phainomai) is like our vernacular stuck-up folks (Romans 1:30), haughty persons. (A.T. Robertson) It is described as the error and condemnation of the Devil. (1 Timothy 3:6) It has been defined as excessive self-esteem. Pride is having an excessively high opinion of oneself or one's importance. It is a sense of exaltedness over ones fellow man. The bible describes that a person is lifted up with pride for some reason. For Satan it was his beauty and brightness; for others it can be their wealth, their position in life, their accomplishments, their education, their popularity or their talents. Proud people typically think that others envy them and believe envy and jealousy to be the true cause of why others are offended at them. You just wish you could be me
" is what the proud in heart says within themselves.
The Deceptiveness of Pride
I have heard it said that, Pride is the only sin about which the devil will not make you feel guilty. Proverbs 16:18 reminds us, Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. You will notice that people usually say, Pride goes before a fall. That is not what the Bible says. The Bible says, Pride goes before destruction. We cannot continue in that way, because the end is destruction. Pride is a danger to all of us. We have to be on guard any time we advance in this life. How will we handle success when it comes? Will we seek opportunities to lift ourselves up above others? How will we handle wealth, position in life, accomplishments, perceived advancements, knowledge or education, popularity or talents?
from: http://realrevival.blogspot.com/2012/01/looking-down-long-nose.html
_________________ SI Moderator - Greg Gordon
|