Holiness: The Heart God Purifies - Week #3 [Ch.5-6]

"Pride is more than the first of the seven deadly sins;
it is itself the essence of all sin." (John Stott)

As I read through Chapters 5 and 6,  I began to think about the one area of our lives that causes the most damage to our Christian walk - pride.  Pride prevents us from learning from God.  One must have a lifelong teachable spirit in order to grow spiritually.  Pride also engenders a critical spirit towards others, which leads us into a downward spiral of anger, bitterness and disunity in home and church.  Pride prevents us from truly loving others in the way God desires.  Pride is a universal, life-long battle for the believer.  Even writing about it makes me uncomfortable because I know how pitifully and how often I fail in this area.  But I am encouraged when I recognize God's hand slowly reforming my inner man, my heart.  

C.J. Mahaney writes, "Pride is when sinful human beings aspire to the status and position of God and refuse to acknowledge their dependence upon Him ... Pride takes innumerable forms but has only one end: self-glorification. That's the motive and ultimate purpose of pride - to rob God of legitimate glory and to pursue self-glorification, contending for supremacy with Him. The proud person seeks to glorify himself and not God, thereby attempting in effect to deprive God of something only He is worthy to receive.  No wonder God hates pride.  Let that truth sink into your thinking."  Pride is a funny thing ... it's so easy to see in others and so hard to see in ourselves.

The opposite of pride is humility.  If you're not constantly cultivating humility into your life, don't expect to ever find victory over besetting sin.  But how exactly do we go about doing that ... in a humble manner?  David Tripp writes, "My self-perception is as accurate as a carnival mirror.  If I am going to see myself clearly, I need you to hold the mirror of God's Word in front of me.  Hebrews 3:12-13 clearly teaches that personal insight is the product of community.  Since each of us still has sin remaining in us, we will have pockets of spiritual blindness ... The Bible says that we can be spiritually blind and yet think that we can see quite well."  (Proverbs 12:1)

What steps, then, can we take to build humility into our lives?  I propose five ways a believer can develop the mindset of humility:

First, acknowledge the battle.  Know God and know yourself from God's point of view.  If you're not consciously watching out for the sin of pride in your life, you are courting disaster. (1 Cor.10:12)  Having an accurate view of who we are before a holy and righteous God is the first step toward change.  Put off any critical spirit toward others.  It's a hindrance and does not glorify God.  Matthew 7:1 warns against judging to condemnation.  The reason we are so unqualified to condemn other believers is because, unlike God, we are neither omniscient nor omnipresent.  Too often we condemn on the basis of limited knowledge colored by much presupposition and vain imagination.  We put ourselves in God's place.  "Who are you to judge the servant of another?  To his own master he stands or falls..." (Romans 14:4)  That doesn't mean we don't help one another grow more Christ-like by shining the light of God's truth onto sin.  It means we do so in a manner that is edifying, that builds up, rather than in a manner that is critical and tears down.  It means that we do it by using God's truth as the authority and not ourselves.  It means we have the best interests of the individual in mind.  We don't gossip and slander, murmur and complain about their sin to others.

Second, approach God's Word with a humble attitude, ever seeking to understand what God is saying, the main point He is making.  Every time you approach the Bible, consciously put off all of your preconceived notions about what you WANT it to mean and pray that the Holy Spirit will illuminate your understanding of what it REALLY means within its context.  Seek the whole counsel of God, don't pick & choose verses out of context to back up you're beliefs.  Be willing to be wrong.  Be willing to be challenged.  Be willing to learn.  Have a "teachable spirit" no matter how old you are or how long you have been walking in Christ.  We all need to be both disciples and disciplers. 

Third, place yourself in the company of believers who will lovingly encourage you to godliness, rather than reinforce your sin.  Welcome correction from others.  It hurts.  It stings.  It's painful.  But it helps us grow. Self-defensive maneuvers only hinder our spiritual growth and joy in the Lord.  [If you're reading this and someone else pops into your mind ... go back to Point One.]

Fourth, confess your sin. (Ps.32:5)  Regularly examine yourself, be sensitive to your own sin and confess it to God.  If your sin impacts another, confess it to that person and seek their forgiveness.  Let awareness of your own sin become a natural response in your life.  When the jab of recognition is most painful, take it to God for forgiveness and press on.  (1 John 1:9)  [If you're reading this and someone else pops into your mind ... go back to Point One]

And finally, be patient - with yourself and with others.  Pride is the essence of our indwelling sin nature.  There is just so much pride and self-promoting tendency in our hearts.  God will reveal more and more of it to us as we obediently move forward in our Christian walk.  Let us encourage one another toward godliness. (1 Tim.4:8)  Let us hunger and thirst after righteousness. (Mt.5:6)  Let us be the light God wants us to be in this dark world. (Phil.2:14-15)  Constantly dealing with our own pride underlies any true service to the Lord.  "And God will exalt you in due time, if you humble yourselves under his mighty hand..." (1 Peter 5:6)

[Based upon the book Holiness: The Heart God Purifies, Nancy Leigh DeMoss
Week #1 here; Week #2 here; Week #4 here]