- Spiritual pride makes you more aware of others faults than you are of your own…but spiritual humility disposes you to be far more aware of your own faults than those of others.
- Pride leads you to speak often about others faults…but humility means that whenever you do speak of others faults, you only do so with a spirit of grief and mercy.
- Pride causes you to withdraw from those you criticize, or who criticize you. But humility means you stay with people even through difficult relationships. You never give up.
- A proud person is dogmatic, and sure of every point of belief. Proud people cannot distinguish between major and minor points of belief, because everything, the proud person believes, is major.
- A proud person loves to confront, loves to win…a humble person doesn’t avoid appropriate confrontation, and does what needs to be done reluctantly, respectfully, and only when necessary.
- Proud people are often unhappy and filled with self-pity (self absorption)…while humble people live with a quiet confidence.
Feeling at all convicted? I am. It's not about me. How desperately I need to remember this.
"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." James 4:10
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4 comments:
this was one of the best sermons of the entire year - amazing. thank you.
Pastor Greg,
I enjoyed your discussion today on the book of James. I found a lot of truth from today’s talk and I thought I would offer some of my own thoughts:
Your first three points on pride and humility make a lot of sense. Spiritual closeness with God, is about submission. By giving over ones prideful nature we can become filled with a greater strength that transcends day to day living, and all of the ‘ hundred interactions a day ‘ that tempt petty jealousies and envy. The idea of submission in modern day terms has a connotation of weakness to it. However, by becoming as you put it, spiritually humble, we submit our selves to a greater strength and are thereby strengthened by Him. That strength can help us overcome our day’s ‘ darker moments ‘.
I found your comment about proud people being dogmatic interesting. I see the truth in it, as I have experienced people in my own life who have such polarizing, uncompromising and ultimately un Christian viewpoints in life. Pride stands between one of the overarching points in your talk this afternoon which is the greater spiritual community. Our collective belief and worship of God, as well as our love for one another is a key element of our own separate spiritual fulfillment. Without a genuine love for one another as human beings we cannot be a part of what God has planned for us.
I have enjoyed the series of worship discussions on the Book of James. I have found it to be a practical, hands on guide to providing my spiritual engine an oil change.
~S
J- I loved the sermon and although this is ultimately one of the most ongoing, and difficult negative attributes in ourselves to deal with and address, I loved that you gave us lots of positive reasons why we want to deal with our pride. For the sake of ourselves and the community. It truly is the vice that leads to so many other sins that grieve the Spirit and drives so many other non-believers from the church. As C.S. Lewis puts it it really is the anti-God state of mind as its either God who is the weightiest in the scale or us- you can't have both. Great, great sermon God inspired for you pastor Greg. Glad you were listening and obeyed:0).-J
Great thoughts. Thanks for posting them Greg!
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