Daily Thought

Solomon reminds us that one of the things the Lord hates is ‘a proud look’, Prov. 6. 17. Indeed, He resists (sets Himself in battle array against) the proud, Jas. 4. 6. Pride therefore puts us into a position of open warfare with Him.

Pride can manifest itself in a variety of ways in our lives and it ruins our testimony. Sadly, it is at the heart of wars (fights - prolonged hostilities) and fights (quarrels - specific outbursts of hostility) among us, v. 1. Such behaviour ought not to be seen among the Lord’s people. It damages our prayer life, vv. 2, 3, and reflects our unfaithfulness to God and ‘friendship (regard and affection) of the world’, v. 4. A society that is alienated from God acts in this manner, but we must take care not to embrace its ways and thus put ourselves into the position of being at enmity with God. If we do, we have only ourselves to blame, because such unhealthy behaviour springs from the lusts within each one of us, v. 1.

The antidote for pride is clear, but challenging. It is via the pathway of submission to God, resisting the devil, drawing nigh to God, practical holiness, intense feelings of shame for our sins, and genuine humility before the Lord, vv. 7-9. The rewards will be worth it, because the Lord will give us grace, v. 6, draw near to us, v. 8, and lift us up, v. 10. The devil, who fell through pride and who loves to see the fights and quarrels among us, will flee in the face of those who have submitted to God and His word. The positive outcome for our brethren is that we will not speak evil of or judge them, recognizing that God alone is qualified to be their judge, v. 12.

Pride also raises its ugly head when we speak and act as if we are in total control of our future plans, even to the point of confidently predicting successful outcomes, v. 13. By so doing, we ignore God’s plans for us, our own ignorance of what tomorrow holds, and the brevity of life, v. 14. We know better than to do this; therefore, our failure to obey God’s word means we are guilty of sin. The precursor, not the postscript, to all our plans ought to be, ‘If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that’, v. 15.