"Fear God, Love God, Serve God": "Humility and Pride"

"For I say, through the grace given unto me, to

every man that is among you, not to think of himself

more highly than he ought to think; but to think

soberly, according as God hath dealt to every

man the measure of faith."

(Romans 12:3)

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the essence of Humility, washing the disciples' feet. He IS the Creator, Almighty God, yet He was kneeling and humbling Himself before His creation. "They" are the two things in life that will make us or break us as Christians, as people in society, as mortals, and as vessels of God, depending on which one rules our lives. One was the downfall of satan and one exalts a bowed heart ... they war against each other in the corridors of the Saint's soul ... "Humility and Pride."

"Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise--

why destroy yourself?"

(Ecclesiastes 7:16)

The reason satan was cast out of heaven was "Pride." He became lifted up, proclaiming himself to be God, and his pride cast him out of Glory ... Pride will cast us out of Glory if we don't replace it with its opposite, Humility. Pride, in the sense of setting ourselves up as a god, will take everyone down ... eventually. Just about the time people begin to tell others that they, themselves, are "humble;" they've lost it; it has become pride. It is especially hard for those before cameras, those on stage, those who are lauded and applauded on a regular basis. Don't shout too soon ... it would be for us, if we were in the limelight, too. It's not easy to be in the spotlight before the world and remain humble. It requires a lot of bowed knees, before that "public," and the result of those prostrate knees is not primarily for them; it's for the one with the artificial wide glow pointed at his/her face.

One can have a sense of that thing that finally ended up in the casting out and destruction of satan from his high position in heaven, that unhealthy or inordinate puffed up pride even if he/she is not before crowds continually. It's a matter of the heart. It's a difficult thing to have "pride" in one's work ethic, one's stance for the right cause, one's devotion to the One true Holy God, or one's achievements through hard work and dedication; yet, remain humble in the process. It's a fine balance, when the scale should be leaning strongly toward humility. You say, "Well, I don't know why I can't hold my head up high for the things I've done and what I am doing in this life." You're right; you should hold your head up and be the best you can be, using the natural gifts of Romans 12 to bless others, and be used of God for ministry. However, the key is remembering that We are but "dust," and it is the grace of God, the power of God, the love of God, the creative works of God that have made us into "anything" in this life.

"Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud,

but be willing to associate with people of low position.

Do not be conceited."

(Romans 12:16)

We're on the wheel. Huh? The Lord is the potter, and we are the clay; He is ever molding us into vessels of honor unto Him. You ask, "Why do we go through trials, troubles, problems with one another, persecution, and injustice ... We're Christians?" Uh huh, but we're on the wheel; sometimes the clay has to be smashed, pounded, reformed ... we're on the wheel ... How long will we be on the wheel? How long will you be living in earth? How long will you have breath? How long will you be climbing to higher realms through the bowing stance to reach them? How long? The answer is: Serving Jesus Christ is eternal ... we will bow here, and we will bow up there; we will bow in obeisance here, and we will bow in worship there; we will bow in humility here, and we will bow in pride there ... What? When we get there, the pride will be pure and holy, and never again directed at ourselves ...

"Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in

life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.

This is the rule I lay down in all the churches."

(I Corinthians 7:17)

We should be the best we can be with the "natural gifts" God gave each of us from birth. (Romans Chapter 12) However, we must do it in humility, in the knowledge that all we are and all we have was given to us by God. It all belongs to Him; He can show us that in one split second of time. So, we live with thankful hearts, thankful for life, breath, and we wear the "cloak" on our knees.

We are in a race of endurance, a race of war for the blessings God has promised us, a race to keep ourselves holy and bring in the harvest, a race to climb higher while bowing lower, a race against time and prophecy, and for us, as Christians; it is the greatest race of all to "keep" our souls ... the continual race of righteousness and deception, the race between those two that determine our destiny ... "Humility and Pride."