but he gives more grace. therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” [james 4:6]
why dos God oppose the proud?
that is a very strong statement. God opposes the proud. the word oppose means: to be against, resist, to battle against. when you and i are living in pride, God is battling against us. why?
for believers, pride is when we ignore the Spirit’s warning to our conscience that we are living in our own strength, for our own purpose, and for our own glory. pride is when we ignore the Spirit’s warning to our conscience that we are essentially being god.
the very first commandment is: you shall have no other gods before me. [exodus 20:3] God knew if we broke this command we would break the rest. following after another god, brings death to us, hurts others, and defames the name of holy God – even if that god is us.
so – “God opposes the proud.”
but “gives grace to the humble.”
today, as yesterday and tomorrow, the promise of the LORD is that he will bring his presence, his unmerited, kind, and good presence to bear on our lives when … we are humbled.
we become believers, as we humble ourselves to our sin and confess not only that we are completely sinful but we completely need a savior who alone can make us right with God and cause us to leave a life of sin.in humility we confess this savior is JESUS!
as Christ followers, we join God in killing pride and renewing our conscience as we walk in humility. again, this means to see ourselves as truly sinFULL but so also FULL of the Spirit who alone gives us life and renewed life in Jesus.
right now – ask for eyes to see your sinfullness and your holiness in Jesus. be specific. ask to see your pride and be grieved. and be specific. ask to believe that in Christ, you are holy. then ask for God to give you a conscience alive to his Spirit so you can join him in killing your pride today.
~ john ryan