One loosely connected synonym for pride might be glory. To say I have pride in someone or something, generally speaking, means I have elevated that person or action to a higher place in my heart and mind. We could make a case that glory, in this sense, is similar. From there, however, these two words pretty much part ways.
Although, we don’t use the word “glory” as much in today’s vernacular, it’s still a very important word, especially in light of Jesus and His wonderful Word, the Bible. Since God is the One who created all things perfectly in six short days, it is He who deserves all the glory and fame. Since it is Jesus who also chose to come to earth as a man, never stopped being God, and laid down His life as the perfect sacrifice for our sins against Him, it is He and He alone who deserves all the glory. In Revelation 4:11, the declaration is made, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for You have created all things, and for Your pleasure they are and were created.” And yet, as prideful humans, we have foolishly attempted to steal all the glory for ourselves.
Of course, true glory, unlike pride, doesn’t insecurely celebrate self. So it’s not accurate to say that God has pride. But we can most assuredly declare that God is glorious and deserves to be glorified, again, not because He’s insecure, in need of some sort of self-bolstering, but because He’s simply the greatest of all! Glory might also be likened to fame. But it’s so much more. God’s glory never depends on what others think of Him. His glory is rooted in His very character, and truly, He has and deserves it all. And His glory never fades!
Biblically speaking, pride is abhorrent to God and completely destructive to mankind. A simple Bible word search of pride makes that clear. The Bible has nothing good to say about pride. To say that we need to think more highly of ourselves is not only foolish in light of history, it’s clearly unbiblical and satanic, to say it mildly.
It is clear, no one has ever had more pride than Satan. His desire is to be like the Most High (Isaiah 14:12-14). He came to God’s perfect planet earth; to the Garden of Eden, plotting to plant his prideful lie in the mind of the woman. And sadly, both she and Adam fell for it. Literally and figuratively eating it up, they both allowed Satan’s self-satisfying lie into their hearts and minds, which then overrode all other desires. They were immediately separated from (dead to) God, and their eyes were opened to self, sin, and Satan. One might say, mankind had become asleep to God’s truth, and awoken to the lies of Lucifer. Truly, a whole new ungodly world was unveiled before their very eyes.
“You shall be like gods” became their new “enlightened” foundation, inspiration, and battlecry which has been tragically passed down to every generation. Even the smallest echo of this mantra causes a deep nostalgic embrace, resonating almost instinctively in the souls of mankind. It was at the entrance of Satan’s lie in which mankind was no longer focused on glorifying God. Seeking solace in self is now man’s prideful pursuit, growing ever more arrogant from generation to generation.
In 2 Timothy 3, the Lord led Paul to write, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves…
…covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away” 2 Timothy 3:1-5.
Yet mankind was not designed for this sort of self-exaltation. We were originally created to give glory to God and Him alone. The Lord, through the prophet Jeremiah, wrote, “Thus says the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: but let him that glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, says the LORD” Jeremiah 9:23-24.
Interestingly, one of the nicknames of the American Flag is “Old Glory”. Clearly, our country has never been perfect, but the foundations that were built on God’s Word brought a spiritual freedom like never before. Prior to even becoming a country, the American colonies went through a real awakening which is known as the first Great Awakening. The Lord inspired men from England to simply begin preaching God’s Word, which almost always led to their rejection by and ejection from the established “church”. This rejection only fueled the flames, allowing them to preach and reach even more hungry souls. This excitement and boldness for God’s Word and His glory were then taken to America. And although many institutional churches kicked these preachers out, they continued to preach from the Word, reaching both colonists and Indians alike for the Gospel. This Great Awakening first took place from the 1730s to the 1740s and may arguably be one of the main reasons America sought it’s independence from England.
The life and light of God’s Word that poured into early America certainly paved a road which ushered in a time of freedom to preach and teach from God’s Word like the world had never known before. So many amazing colleges, sciences, churches, and missionary organizations can be directly or indirectly linked to this time in our history, and yet, little of this is taught in our schools, let alone, our churches.
No, our country is not perfect, but God is, and He truly does deserve all the glory. We have allowed the wisdom of this world to cloud our thinking. The argument today isn’t really about “race’, gender equality, the American Flag, etc. When we shine the light of God’s Word into the fog, the foolishness fades, and the truth is all that remains. The battle today is the same as the battle of the ages. It is still the same battle mankind had with God in the Garden. We are still fighting for the crown. Mankind’s passionate pursuit to rob God of His crown, stealing His glory, is what the Bible simply and clearly calls pride. And yet, we soldier on, unwavering from the serpent’s original lie.
Praise God, there are some who realize the futility of this struggle. Once we acknowledge that God created all things, then we are left with the reality that it is He who deserves all the glory, not us. We are nothing more than thieves and robbers, doing the deeds of the Devil, our original spiritual father. Jesus declared, “You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” John 8:44.
Praise God, He didn’t leave us separated from Him eternally. Instead, because He is true, selfless love, God the Father sent Jesus, God the Son and the Son of God, to earth to pay the eternal punishment mankind deserves for stealing God’s glory. Jesus willingly became a man, yet He never stopped being God. He walked on this sin-soaked planet for 33 years, never rebelling, giving all the glory to God, not Himself. Jesus lived the life God intended for Adam and Eve in the Garden. Jesus willingly and lovingly obeyed the Heavenly Father perfectly, laying down His life upon the cross. He became the willing and perfect sacrifice. God was pleased with His love offering, pouring upon Him the wrath we all deserved. Jesus laid down the crown so mankind could finally be eternally freed to stop pursuing it. Jesus laid down His life, rising three days later, victorious over sin and death.
Praise God, He not only paid in full the price of mankind’s sin. He also invites all who are tired of chasing the crown to turn to Him. He invites us to confess our sinfulness against Him, to trust that Jesus is our perfect payment for sin, and to receive in our hearts and minds His full and free forgiveness found in Christ alone. We must lay down our pride, holding high the heavenly flag that glorifies the King of Glory, the Lamb of God, the Almighty God, Creator, Savior, and soon returning King.
The Bible promises those who have chosen to believe and receive God’s full and free forgiveness have, by God’s power, passed from death to life, being born again by the Spirit of God. They’ve been adopted into His family, no longer enemies of God, but now and forever His children. We, like the Pilgrims of old, are excited for a better country, one of freedom and life abundant.
Praise God, those who have received the forgiveness of God not only have the hope of Heaven one day, but also the liberty (freedom), beauty, and joy of Jesus now and forever. We happily lay down our fading and prideful crowns, casting them at the foot of the cross, knowing that Jesus alone deserves all the glory!
“Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:4
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sits upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever” Revelation 5:12-13.
“But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then comes the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign, till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For He has put all things under [Jesus’] feet… And when all things shall be subdued unto Him, then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him that put all things under Him, that God may be all in all” 1 Corinthians 15:20-28.
The Christmas season is an excellent time of year to examine our hearts. Too often, even for the born again believer, there is a drifting and stagnation that occurs within our souls. Maybe joy to the world has been replaced with an attempt to find “joy” from the world. For others, the trials of this sinful planet have shaken the earth beneath their feet, causing a loss of God’s true peace.
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