Thursday, May 18, 2017

8 reasons we fail to follow God's way: Pride

Worship: Your Words by Third Day
"Your Words"

Let me hear Your words
Above all other voices
Above all the distractions in this world

For Your words bring life
And Your voice speaks promises
Lord, Your love offers more
Than anything else in this world

Your words give us life that’s never ending
Your words bring us love that never fails
Everything else will fade away
But what will remain
Are Your words

Let us speak Your words
More than ours, more than ever
Let us share Your love with all the world

The grass will wither and the flowers will fall
But the word of our God will last forever


Lyrics:

Witness:
This has been a short day for me. I feel sometimes that I fritter my time away. The days when my 7-9 pm hours were sacred and uninterrupted. I experienced God’s presence. Worship songs seemed to come easily as God ministered to my spirit as I sang songs of worship from my heart. God satisfied and refreshed my soul with His best gift, Himself. That all changed when I came home from my time living at my mom’s house. I suddenly entered the real world and interruptions, TV, and the mundane routine of laundry and dishes took up more of my time.  Now it’s 9:00 pm and almost time to get ready for work. I heard a song on the way in to have my quiet time. It was perfect for what I was feeling at the moment. The words of the first stanza arrested my attention:
Let me hear Your words
Above all other voices
Above all the distractions in this world
Lord, that is my prayer. So much distracts me from my time with You in your word.

As I searched for the lyrics I stumbled onto a web-site that was one of those lyric police sights where some Christians feel they have to expound on the weakness of some of today’s Christian music. I have written on this subject before. I agree some lyrics are just not theologically sound but this is true of songs from any age. However, I take exception when critics require more precision or clarity in a song. Worship songs are for believers. Some truths are assumed and some truths are understood without having to spell it out. Such is true of the song, Your Words by Third Day. This critic sucked the life out of my worship with this song for just a moment. His criticism that it is not clear whether the song refers to Scripture or prophetic utterances given to us personally. Really? I think the last words in the song tie it to scripture. It is a quote from Isaiah 40:8. It does not spell out sharing the gospel. It does say we are to share His love to the world. Is not that the message of the gospel (John 3:16)? These are understood by the one worshiping because they know the One whom they are worshipping. Sometimes we require more of a song than is necessary. You might object that this lack of precision will keep an unbeliever in the dark, however, worship is for believers and if it raises a wondering and causes a hunger in the heart of the non-believer then it serves as pre-evangelism preparing the lost to hear the message preached in sermon and our personal witness to them.
 
Ps 25:8-10
 Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9 He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them his way.
10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful
for those who keep the demands of his covenant. NIV (1984)
Ps 25:8-10
8 The LORD is good and does what is right;
he shows the proper path to those who go astray.
9 He leads the humble in doing right,
teaching them his way.
10 The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness
all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
Ps 25:8-10
8 Good and upright is the LORD therefore will he teach sinners in the way.

9 The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.

10 All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.
KJV
Ps 25:8-10

8 Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. ESV
Question: Why would we fail to follow the way that God points out to us?
8 reasons:
1. fear
2. Pride
3. doubt (towards God)
4. ignoring
5. rebellion
6. distractions
7. presumption (of His forgiveness)
8. doubtfulness (in yourself)
Prov 16:18
8 Pride goes before destruction,
a haughty spirit before a fall.
NIV

So says the Lord through Solomon. These words are familiar words even to the unbeliever. They are usually misquoted to say “Pride goes before a fall”. This was probably done originally to summarize the truth in the passage since it is clear that Solomon was using parallelism to emphasize this truth. It is interesting that this verse is surrounded in passages that deal with instruction. Let me illustrate.

Prov 16:16-23

16 How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver!
17 The highway of the upright avoids evil; he who guards his way guards his life.
18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.
20 Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord.
21 The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction.
22 Understanding is a fountain of life to those who have it, but folly brings punishment to fools.
23 A wise man's heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction.
NIV

The path is now seen as a highway. On that highway, the righteous are to avoid evil. How? Here is the progression of thought as I see it. They are to avoid evil and guard their life by gaining wisdom and understanding. How? By avoiding pride and listening to godly instruction. Having received and putting into practice this godly instruction, they may pass this on to others.

Pride keeps one from hearing this instruction from the Lord. The proud think they have control of things. That they know better. Their motto is “I’ve got this” as George Lopez use to say. Usually, it meant he didn’t.

Pride is something I wrestle with. As I have said in the past, this is due to a lack of confidence in myself so I seek confirmation from others rather than God. Instead, I need to seek a humble spirit that realizes that any good thing I have to say is due to the Lord and not myself. Such pride leads to anxiety and wasted time. It means I spend more time looking for likes than I do learning from the Lord. It means when I write a poem I say “that’s good” rather than saying “thank you, God!”

Pride keeps us from hearing God’s answer. Pride is a finger in each spiritual ear keeping us from hearing God’s instruction. I remember sitting in a class on the Cults taught by Dr. James Bjornstad when I was in Bible College. I asked a question but didn’t hear the answer. Why? I believe it was because I wanted an answer but feared (pride and fear go together sometimes) that I looked foolish to my fellow classmates, therefore I sat back in my chair and made like I really knew the answer. I even made some sort of sound that drowned out the Professor’s answer. That is how pride leads to destruction. It’s like an athlete experiencing defeat because they failed to listen to the coach’s instruction. They thought they knew better than the coach.

The ultimate example of pride leading to destruction is Satan himself. Many believe that when Isaiah spoke of the destruction of the Babylonian ruler he incorporated language that refers to the fall of Satan himself. Hear what Isaiah declares:

How you have fallen from heaven,
O morning star, son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
you who once laid low the nations!

You said in your heart,
"I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.
Isa 14:12-13 NIV

It is clear from the context that Isaiah is talking about the fate of the Babylonian king but in the midst of the prophecy he incorporates this poetic description of the attitude of this ruler. Is he using hyperbolic language? Is this the borrowing of pagan mythology to describe the attitude of the king as some say? I don’t believe so. If you read Isaiah long enough you will realize that Isaiah’s prophecies often have a double reference as in the messianic section found in chapter 7. I believe we have here a reference to the fall of the one who is behind the pride of this ruler. That is, Satan himself. It is interesting that a popular name for Satan comes from verse 12. The phrase “O morning star” is translated as a proper name in the Latin Vulgate (an ancient translation of the Bible). That name is Lucifer.

Warren Wiersbe says:

Isaiah 14:1-23

The picture in Isa 14:1-23 is that of a mighty monarch whose pride has brought him to destruction. This is what happened to Belshazzar when Darius the Mede captured Babylon in 539 B.C. (Dan 5). Isaiah described the king's arrival in sheol, the world of the dead, where the king's wealth, glory, and power vanished. The dead kings already in sheol stood in tribute to him (Isa 14:9), but it was all a mockery. Death is the great leveler; there are no kings in the world of the dead. "Lucifer" (v. 12) is Latin for "morning star" and suggests that this king's glory did not last very long. The morning star shines but is soon swallowed up by the light of the sun.

The prophet saw in this event something far deeper than the defeat of an empire. In the fall of the king of Babylon, he saw the defeat of Satan, the "prince of this world," who seeks to energize and motivate the leaders of nations (John 12:31; Eph 2:1-3). Dan 10:20 indicates that Satan has assigned "princes" (fallen angels) to the various nations so that he can influence leaders to act contrary to the will of God.

This highest of God's angels tried to usurp the throne of God and capture for himself the worship that belongs only to God (Matt 4:8-10). The name "Lucifer" ("morning star") indicates that Satan tries to imitate Jesus Christ, who is "the bright and morning star" (Rev 22:16). "I will be like the Most High" reveals his basic strategy, for he is an imitator (Isa 14:14; 2 Cor 11:13-15). Like the king of Babylon, Satan will one day be humiliated and defeated. He will be cast out of heaven (Rev 12) and finally cast into hell (20:10). Whether God is dealing with kings or angels, Prov 16:18 is still true: "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall" (NKJV).
(from The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament © 2001-2004 by Warren W. Wiersbe. All rights reserved.)

Therefore, when pride creeps in and seeks to puff you up, remember this warning from Proverbs and the example of Satan. The way up is down in Scripture. The way to hear and follow God’s path is through humble listening and submissive obedience and joyful satisfaction in God our Savior and Lord.



Though the Lord is on high, he looks upon the lowly,
but the proud he knows from afar.
Ps 138:6 NIV

He mocks proud mockers
but gives grace to the humble.
James 4:6 NIV

You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely?  But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

"God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble."

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
James 4:4-10 NIV

Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because,

"God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble."

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
1 Peter 5:5-6 NIV

For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Matt 23:12 NIV
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