THE WARNINGS – Part 1
How seriously do we take the need for humility?
Verse of the Day
‘Human pride will be brought down, and human arrogance will be humbled. Only the Lord will be exalted on that day of judgment.’
Today’s Devotional
I am not a fan of hell-fire-brimstone teaching. Somehow it misses the magnitude of the grace God has extended us through Jesus. However, as I have read and re-read these verses about pride, I think it’s important to take note of the seriousness of this subject. Because God seems to use the strongest language on this subject. And pride seems to be one area of our hearts that we need to examine, to identify, and to surrender so that the Lord will remove it. We must partner with God in our desire for true humility.
A couple of days ago we looked at the story of how God warned King Nebuchadnezzar about his pride and the discipline that was coming if he did not honor God with his life. Today, we are going to look at the warnings God is giving us about pride.
This is going to be a rapid fire look at the warnings God has given us in Scripture.
- “Human pride will be brought down, and human arrogance will be humbled. Only the Lord will be exalted on that day of judgment.” (Isaiah 2:11) God is telling us that our pride and arrogance will be dealt with one way or another.
- “I will break your proud spirit by making the skies as unyielding as iron and the earth as hard as bronze. All your work will be for nothing, for your land will yield no crops, and your trees will bear no fruit.” (Leviticus 26:19-20) God WILL break our pride.
- “On that day you will no longer need to be ashamed, for you will no longer be rebels against me. I will remove all proud and arrogant people from among you. There will be no more haughtiness on my holy mountain.” (Zephaniah 3:11)
- “Love the Lord, all you godly ones! For the Lord protects those who are loyal to him, but he harshly punishes the arrogant.” (Psalms 31:23)
- “Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud.” (Psalms 138:6) Have you ever felt like God was distant?
- “All who fear the Lord will hate evil. Therefore, I hate pride and arrogance, corruption and perverse speech.” (Proverbs 8:13)
- “The Lord detests the proud; they will surely be punished.” (Proverbs 16:5)
- “There is more hope for fools than for people who think they are wise.” (Proverbs 26:12)
- “For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has a day of reckoning. He will punish the proud and mighty and bring down everything that is exalted.” (Isaiah 2:12)
- “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has done it to destroy your pride and bring low all earth’s nobility.” (Isaiah 23:9) The “it” in the verse refers to the destruction of the home port in the city of Tyre. From enduringword.com, “To the north of Israel, Tyre was the leading city of Phoenicia, the great maritime power of the ancient world. Because it was such an important harbor and center for shipping, Tyre was synonymous with commerce and materialism.” This was a city where success in business all that mattered, no matter the cost. God clearly did not approve.
My prayer is that I am willing to heed these warnings. All of them. My prayer is that God will show me the places in my heart and life where pride is a problem that I can’t currently see. My prayer is that I will be willing to examine my life and have my pride pointed out, no matter how uncomfortable that might be. I pray that Psalm 139:24 will be my anthem during this study: Father God, please “Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Can you think of a time when you did not heed a warning? How did that turn out?
How serious do you think God is about your pride?
How serious are you about cultivating humility?
If you are willing, ask God to show you the places where there is pride. Once He shows those to you, offer them back to God for Him to remove.