Daily Devotions based on the Sermon Series: “Timely Teaching for Turbulent Times”
Week 3 of 6: “The Impact of Humility!”
Full Sunday message, CONTEMPORARY or TRADITIONAL
THIS WEEK: Pride and the Proverbs
We all can notice them.
You know who I’m talking about. The person who seems too good for us? The person who doesn’t give us the time of day? The person who seems to know it all?
Don’t you hate people like this? (I know, “hate” is a strong word.)
But you’re not one of them, right?
It’s easy to notice it in others…but hard to admit it lurks within us too.
The reason we notice it in others, is because inside our hearts WE want to be the popular one. WE want to be noticed by everyone. WE want to have all the answers.
Pride and arrogance lurks within each one of us.
And God hates it.
Pride and faith do not fit together. Pride relies on self. Faith relies on the Lord.
That’s why the Lord hates pride and arrogance. It captures our heart with trust of self instead of trust in him. He hates pride and arrogance because it leads to sinful actions and sinful thought…all of which break the relationship he so desires with each one of us.
Solomon realized that what mattered more than trusting himself and seeking the praise of people was trusting the Lord and doing what pleases him.
Proverbs 8:13 To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.
Pride loves to look at others and look down on them to make ourselves look better. We fear that if we are not a bit better, a bit smarter, a bit more accepted than those around us we lose our value, significance and worth.
We don’t need to find our significance, value and worth in others. It has been given to us. It is found in our relationship with the LORD. It is found in our trust in the Lord. It is found in our love for the Lord. These are the people the Lord loves.
Be one of them.
Apply: Start each morning with a reflection in your mirror. Ask the Lord to mold your heart to love the things he loves and hate the things he hates and humbly reflect that in your life today.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for coming down to serve us so that we might always be with you. Forgive us for our pride and arrogance. Replace it in our hearts with a true fear, love and trust in you! AMEN.