PRIDE

How does God feel about Pride? God can not stomach pride. God says in Proverbs 8:13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogance, and the evil way, and the forward mouth, do I hate. Why is so much pride behind the pulpits and in the churches today, when there should be humility? Proverbs 16:5 says every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. You would think believers today, would not let pride rule his or her life, but it does. We all struggle with pride that I do not doubt.

But a Pastor is to be the example, we follow. He is the example to his flock and when he acts out in pride, well his flock follows and it becomes a church of pride not humility.When a Pastor or any of us do not follow the example the bible lays out for us, the problem always leads to PRIDE. A Pastor has a big responsibility to his flock.

Titus 1 5-95 ¶ For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee: 6 ¶ If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly. 7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not self-willed, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; 8 lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; 9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

We all as believers need to follow the path of Jesus Christ and Jesus was full of humility not pride. Nothing He did was to bring gain to Himself, He served others. He got down and washed the feet of the Apostles.He made himself nothing, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:7 says "We are to imitate Christ" and Philippians 2:5, says "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus".

Christ's whole life was one of humiliation, poverty, and disgrace. He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief as Isaiah 53 tells us. He did not come to earth with anything . The point in his life that was the lowest was when He died on the cross. When we think of the manner of His death it is even more amazing. It was a shameful, cursed, and painful death. Full of pain the body nailed through at sensitive parts and hanging with all its weight upon a cross. It was the death of a slave, and He exposed as a public spectacle. He was totally humiliated on the cross, and yet went willingly, knowing that is what would happen. He laid down His life for the love of His people. Now this is the example we are to follow, willing to lay down our life for our fellow believers. We are to love one another, help one another, not to be afraid to rebuke one another in love and not to be so proud to say I am wrong and repent. We are to restore a brother and sister when they have sinned and repented, why isn't this happening a lot in Christendom today, well I can answer that---PRIDE.
"The glory of the incarnation is that it presents to our adoring gaze not a humanized God or a deified man, but a true God-man---One who is all that God is and at the same time all that man is: One on whose almighty arm we can rest, and to whose human sympathy we can appeal." Benjamin B. Warfield"
Better is the sin which humbles me, than that duty which makes me proud." Thomas Watson
I would ask if you read this, that you please pray for God's leading as we and other church members venture out to find a new church and please pray, as we are, for our Pastor and the remaining church family .

Thank you
Cristina