“Pride is concerned with who is right. Humility is concerned with what is right.” (Ezra Taft Benson)
Luke
18:9-14, Easy-to-Read Version
9 There were some people who thought
they were very good and looked down on everyone else. Jesus used this story to
teach them: 10 “One time there was a Pharisee and a tax
collector. One day they both went to the Temple to pray. 11 The
Pharisee stood alone, away from the tax collector. When the Pharisee prayed, he
said, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not as bad as other people. I am not like
men who steal, cheat, or commit adultery. I thank you that I am better than
this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week, and I give a
tenth of everything I get!’
13 “The tax collector stood alone too.
But when he prayed, he would not even look up to heaven. He felt very humble
before God. He said, ‘O God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.’ 14 I
tell you, when this man finished his prayer and went home, he was right with
God. But the Pharisee, who felt that he was better than others, was not right
with God. People who make themselves important will be made humble. But those
who make themselves humble will be made important.”
Spiritual pride…
1.
Makes you judgmental of others (See Luke 18:9 above)
God treats the arrogant as they treat others,
mocking the mockers, scorning the scornful, but He pours out
His grace on the humble. (Proverbs 3:34, the Voice)
“Don’t
judge others because they sin differently than you.” (Anonymous)
2.
Gives you a false sense of security (See Luke 18:10-12 above)
Your
boast becomes a prophecy of a future failure. The higher you lift yourself up
in pride. The harder you’ll fall in disgrace. (Proverbs
16:18, the Passion Translation)
“Pride creates a noise within us, which makes the quiet voice of the
[Holy] Spirit hard to hear.” (Henry B. Eyring)
3.
Makes you miss out on God’s grace (See Luke 18:13-14 above)
The wicked people are too proud. They do not look
for God. There is no room for God in their thoughts. (Psalm 10:4,
International Children’s Bible)
“Pride must die in you or nothing of Heaven can live in you. (Andrew Murray)
The more prideful you become; the weaker
spiritually you are. When you compare yourself to someone and come up superior,
you become overly confident in your own goodness.
If you evaluate yourself according to Jesus
(and His standards), you come up short. Spiritual pride causes disrespect and
conflict with other people. You have the option (before God0 of being full of
yourself, or empty of yourself. Which will you choose?
Whether you like to admit this or not, you
are emotionally, mentally, and spiritually lost without Jesus. When you empty
yourself of your pride, you make room for all the good things He has waiting
for you.
Pride lead to the fall of both Adam and Eve (Genesis
3) and Satan (Isaiah 14:12-15), and why the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9) happened.
What do you need to do to avoid the same trap as they did?
“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
(Mother Teresa)[i]
[i] Inspired by the sermon
“Spiritual Pride: What Would Jesus Undo” (installment four, final) Sunday
October 24, 2021, Pastor Dave Jansen (CPG). In-person services are
available at all three U.S. CenterPoint locations. CenterPoint also has an
online Sunday morning service (10am) that can be viewed at
centerpointchurches.online.church or centerpointchurches.com/live.
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| Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector |
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