Tag: rebellion

The Power of Short Prayers and 7 Prayers We Must Stop Praying

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“He said to her, “Conjure up for me, please, and bring up [from the dead] for me [the spirit] whom I shall name to you.” But the woman said to him, “See here, you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off (eliminated) those who are mediums and spiritists from the land.” – “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” – “No wonder! For even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” ~ 1 Samuel 28:7-10; Matthew 24:24; 2 Corinthians 11:13.

Praying to the dead is strictly forbidden in the Bible. Deuteronomy 18:11 tells us that anyone who “consults with the dead” is “detestable to the Lord.” The story of Saul consulting a medium to bring up the spirit of the dead Samuel resulted in his death “because he was unfaithful to the LORD; he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance” (1 Samuel 28:1-25; 1 Chronicles 10:13-14). Clearly, God has declared that such things are not to be done.

Consider the characteristics of God. God is omnipresent—everywhere at once—and is capable of hearing every prayer in the world (Psalm 139:7-12). A human being, on the other hand, does not possess this attribute. Also, God is the only one with the power to answer prayer. God is omnipotent—all powerful (Revelation 19:6). Certainly, this is an attribute a human being—dead or alive—does not possess. Finally, God is omniscient—He knows everything (Psalm 147:4-5). Even before we pray, God knows our genuine needs and knows them better than we do. Not only does He know our needs, but He answers our prayers according to His perfect will.

So, in order for a dead person to receive prayers, the dead individual has to hear the prayer, possess the power to answer it, and know how to answer it in a way that is best for the individual praying. Only God hears and answers prayer because of His perfect essence and because of what some theologians call His “immanence.” Immanence is the quality of God that causes Him to be directly involved with the affairs of mankind (1 Timothy 6:14-15); this includes answering prayer.

Even after a person dies, God is still involved with that person and his destination. Hebrews 9:27 says so: “…Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” If a person dies in Christ, he goes to heaven to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:1-9, especially verse 8); if a person dies in his sin, he goes to hell, and eventually everyone in hell will be thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15).

God has provided His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the mediator between man and God (1 Timothy 2:5). With Jesus Christ as our mediator, we can go through Jesus to God. Why would you want to risk the wrath of God?

7 Prayers You Must Stop Praying 

Not all prayers are the same. In fact, some prayers are not only unpleasing to God, but they can even border on witchcraft. Praying the wrong type of prayer can introduce problems in life rather than blessings. Here are the seven prayers that you should stop saying today.

1. Praying to Saints or Angels

The first type of prayer to stop is praying to saints or angels. The Bible clearly instructs Christians to pray directly to God through Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit (1 Timothy 2:5). Nowhere in Scripture are we told to pray through saints, angels, or Mary. These figures did not die for us, nor do they intercede for us at God’s right hand. We must use the direct access we have to God through Jesus.

2. Using Repetitive, Formulaic Prayers

Next, stop using repetitive, formulaic prayers. Jesus warned against babbling like pagans who think they will be heard because of their many words (Matthew 6:7). Genuine prayer must come from the heart, not from mindless repetition. It’s about the sincerity of your heart, not the repetition of your words.

3. Praying for Harm or Curses on Others

Another prayer to avoid is praying for harm or curses on others. Romans 12:14 tells us to bless those who persecute us, not curse them. Using prayer to curse others is a form of witchcraft and is not aligned with Christian principles. Even when Jesus was on the cross, He did not curse His enemies. Instead, He prayed for them.

4. Praying with Manipulative Intentions

Another important reminder is to stop praying with manipulative intentions. James 4:3 warns us that prayers asked with wrong motives will not be answered. Prayer should not be used to manipulate situations or people for selfish gains. Instead, align your desires with God’s will, testing them through your delight in Him.

5. Invoking Spirit Guides or Using Occult Practices

Another prayer to avoid is prayers invoking spirit guides or engaging in occult practices. Deuteronomy 18:10-12 strictly prohibits practices like divination, sorcery, and interpreting omens. Mixing occult practices with prayer is dangerous and unbiblical.

6. Seeking Signs Instead of Trusting God’s Word

Another mistake is seeking signs or omens instead of trusting God’s Word. Jesus warned that a wicked generation seeks after signs (Matthew 12:39). While God can confirm signs through His Word, our faith should be based on His promises, not on supernatural signs.

7. Using Objects as Sources of Power

Avoid using objects as sources of power in prayer. Using things like crystals, rosaries, or any other form of objects to help you connect with God or pray is not biblical and should be avoided. However, the Bible does tell us one thing that helps us to strengthen our prayer. That is fasting (Acts 19:19). 

8. Praying for Material Wealth Without Seeking God’s Kingdom

Finally, stop praying for material wealth without seeking God’s Kingdom first. Matthew 6:33 reminds us to seek God’s Kingdom and righteousness before anything else. Prioritizing wealth or fame over spiritual growth leads to misguided prayers. In the Kingdom, the King cares for His citizens. He will provide for us when we prioritize Him first. 

Five Short Prayers to Pray

In the Bible, we see that Jesus often prayed all night, Daniel prayed for three weeks, and Nehemiah and the Israelites prayed a lengthy confession and repentance prayer in Nehemiah chapter 9. Longer prayers are needed in our walk with the Lord and provide a lengthy set of benefits. They help us focus, deepen our relationship with God, allow us to pour out our hearts, develop persistence, and promote spiritual growth.

While I often encourage people to go further in their prayer time and to push to know the Lord more, I do want to acknowledge the power that a short and sincere prayer can have on your life.

Matthew 6:7 says, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” The heart of prayer lies in revelation, not repetition. While it’s not wrong to repeat the same prayer multiple times, because Jesus prayed the same prayer three times and so did Paul, the heart of prayer is not in repetition; it’s in revelation. In other words, a prayer’s impact lies in its heartfelt connection with God, not its length. A prayer’s value doesn’t depend on how long it is.

Here are 5 prayers that are powerful if you pray them with the sincerity of your heart 

1. Lord, Help Me (Matthew 15:25)

This prayer is for the deliverance of others. A mother worshiped Jesus and then she prayed a sincere, humble, but very short prayer, “Lord, help me!” That prayer was so powerful that Jesus delivered her daughter.

2. Have Mercy on Me (Mark 10:47)

“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” This is a prayer for a miracle. In God’s mercy, you will find your miracle. We must understand that when God extends His mercy, the miracle is on its way.

3. Lord, Save Me (Matthew 14:30)

This prayer is a plea for intervention and rescue. When you’re overwhelmed by fear or when your life feels like it’s spinning out of control, cry out to the Lord and He will intervene.

4. Show Me Your Ways, Lord (Psalm 25:4)

This prayer is for guidance. When we don’t know which way to go, this short, sincere prayer can help us lean on God’s understanding rather than our own. Prayers that align with God’s will and His purpose recognize and receive His power.

5. Not My Will Be Done But Yours (Luke 22:42)

“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” This is a prayer of surrender, aligning your will with God’s will. The ultimate success of prayer is to surrender to God’s will, His plan, and His timing.

What Makes Short Prayers Powerful?

1. Faith
Short prayers require faith. It’s not the shortness of the prayer that guarantees the answer, but the faith in that short prayer. The Bible emphasizes that prayers made in faith will be heard and answered by God.

2. Humility
Short prayers require humility. They express the true condition of the heart without pretense. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

3. Urgency
Short prayers often arise in moments of great need or urgency, reflecting a deep dependence on God.

4. According to God’s Will
Powerful prayers align with God’s will and purpose, recognizing His sovereignty.

Remember that short prayers can be as dynamic and powerful as long ones because the heart of prayer is in its revelation, not in its repetition.

Final Thoughts

We need to be mindful of the prayers we offer to God. I encourage you to avoid prayers that are unbiblical, manipulative, or focused on material gain without spiritual growth. Instead, focus on prayers that align with God’s will, seek His Kingdom, and come from a sincere heart. 

God blesses things that are in line with God’s Word.

————

***By Got Questions + Vladimir Savchuk at HungryGen / Photo by Faizi Ali at Pexels

7 Ways Pride Grows in Our Hearts

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In his excellent book, Humility, Andrew Murray states that “pride is the beginning of every sin.” The puritan Thomas Watson said of pride, “It is a spiritual drunkenness; it flies up like wine into the brain and intoxicates it. It is idolatry; a proud man is a self-worshiper.” The Bible states, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). Pray that God will place the mi

Pride is universal—something we all deal with, ancient as Adam and relevant as the morning news. Yet we don’t always see it, for it grows like weeds around our lives.

Oh, we see it in the obvious ways, but we can be blind to its deceptive, subversive presence in our hearts. We know the disease, but we don’t recognize the symptoms. And that’s why we need the insight of our Great Physician to reveal its symptoms and release us from its grip.

Here are seven symptoms of pride I’ve been seeing in God’s Word as the Spirit works in my own life.

1. Fear

Pride is at the root of fear and anxiety when we refuse to humbly rest in God’s sovereign care. Fear simultaneously reveals our lack of trust and our poisonous self-reliance. We fear because we don’t have faith in the Lord, are enormously preoccupied with ourselves, and lack self-control.

When Peter stepped out on the stormy sea to come to Jesus, he was walking in humble faith. But when his gaze shifted to his circumstances and to self-preservation, he trusted in himself, became afraid, and began to sink. Jesus saved him while admonishing him: “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matt. 14:31).

2. Entitlement

Self-sacrifice stems from a humble heart. Entitlement is rooted in a prideful heart.

The core of the gospel is that we are not entitled to anything except just punishment for our sins (Rom. 3:23; 6:23). Yet we deceive ourselves into thinking we’re better than we are, and deserve better than we have. We think we deserve God’s mercy. We think we deserve people’s praise. We think we deserve love, success, comfort, accolades. We certainly don’t think we deserve suffering, heartbreak, or discipline.

But when we experience these things, we grow bitter, frustrated, and disturbed because we believe we’re entitled to more. We forget that apart from Jesus we are rebels who deserve only condemnation.

The disciples regularly wrestled with entitlement. On one occasion, they were arguing about who was the greatest. Jesus’s response was a rebuke: “Let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves” (Luke 22:26).

3. Ingratitude

Our proud hearts say that we’re good, that we should get what we want, and if we don’t, that we’re justified in our ingratitude. If we’re somehow uncomfortable or inconvenienced, we can complain. It’s our right. Humility, meanwhile, recognizes that God is good and gives us what we need, so we have no reason to be ungrateful. We lack nothing (Deut. 2:7; Ps. 34:9).

The Israelites grumbled in the wilderness, though God fed, clothed, and led them through it (Ex. 16:2; Deut. 8:2). Their stubborn hearts rejected God’s daily mercies out of self-idolization. But God’s Word rebukes our whining: “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent” (Phil. 2:14–15).

4. People-Pleasing

Pride is self-worship and self-preservation at all costs—and people-pleasing is the direct result. Some think people-pleasing is a positive trait because they’re so clearly concerned with serving others. But that’s nothing more than a sneaky sheepskin we put over a wolfish habit. People-pleasing is all about self-satisfaction—fearing man more than God—and seeking the fleeting happiness that comes from man’s approval.

The apostle Paul knew human approval was a pointless and prideful pursuit. Thus he could say, “Am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10).

5. Prayerlessness

Pride deceives us into thinking we can “do life” on our own—we’re capable, independent, unstoppable, self-reliant. We think that we don’t need God every hour, that we don’t need his help, grace, mercy, courage, and hope. So, surely, we don’t need to pray.

But a humble heart submits itself to God in prayer because it knows it can do nothing without him.

When God called Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah’s response was not to go to God in prayer. Instead, he fled, his heart furiously and arrogantly silent (Jonah 1:3). Only when God humbled him in the fish’s belly did Jonah finally cry out in prayer (2:1).

6. Hypocrisy

When you’re proud, you elevate your status, forgetting the mercy God has shown you. You think you’re better than everyone else, so you easily find fault with others. Pride produces a hypocritical spirit.

The Pharisees’ hypocritical pride blinded them both to their sin and to God’s mercy—which made them cold-hearted and cruel toward others. Jesus had harsh words for them:

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. (Matt. 23:27)

7. Rebellion

Rebellion against God manifests itself in resistance to God’s Word and God-ordained spiritual leaders. It’s the reflex of a prideful heart. It also shows itself in a lack of submission—wives to husbands, children to parents, employees to bosses, citizens to government. Rebellion says, I know better than you, God, when I don’t.

Even though Adam and Eve had all they needed for life and joy, they pridefully rebelled against God’s good decree, thinking they knew better than him. And this ancient rebellion brought untold pain, suffering, and death—for them and us.

Humbled for Us

Yet there is hope for the proud heart in the incarnation of humility, Jesus Christ. Immanuel—God with us—condescended to live among us, die for us, and raise us to new life. He never had a shred of sinful pride—no fear, no entitlement, no ingratitude, no people-pleasing, no prayerlessness, no hypocrisy, no rebellion (Phil. 2:4–6).

The God-man emptied himself of all he deserved to save us from all we deserve. He who was entitled to the highest honor forfeited it for our eternal good.

Because of his humility, we can be forgiven of our pride. That’s both the sting and the joy of the gospel. It deals with our pride by destroying it, reminding us that life is not about us, and that we deserve only the wrath of God. Jesus also deals with our pride by taking the just punishment for it on himself, that we might be renewed in the image of our Creator (Col. 3:10) and made humble like our Savior.

Being humbled is not smooth or painless, but it’s the daily rescue we need. Hallelujah to the Redeemer we have.

——————

*** By Jaquelle Crowe at The Gospel Coalition + Missionary Rob Jackson / Photo at Pexels

8 Reasons Why Obedience to God Is Important

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8 Reasons Why Obedience to God Is Important

1. Jesus Calls Us to Obedience: If you love me, you will keep my commandments. (John 14:15, ESV)

2. Obedience Is an Act of Worship: And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. (Romans 12:1, NLT)

3. God Rewards Obedience: Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.” (Luke 11:28, NLT) But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. (James 1:22–25, NLT)

4. Obedience to God Proves Our Love: By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. (1 John 5:2–3, ESV) Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. (2 John 6, NLT)

5. Obedience to God Demonstrates Our Faith: And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. (1 John 2:3–6, NLT)

6. Obedience Is Better Than Sacrifice: But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams. Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshipping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the LORD, he has rejected you as king.” (1 Samuel 15:22–23, NLT)

7. Disobedience Leads to Sin and Death: For as by the one man’s [Adam’s] disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s [Christ’s] obedience the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:19, ESV) For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22, ESV)

8. Through Obedience, We Experience the Blessings of Holy Living: Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the LORD. Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts. They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in his paths. You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully. Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees! Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands. As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should! I will obey your decrees. Please don’t give up on me! (Psalm 119:1–8, NLT) This is what the LORD says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sands along the seashore—too many to count! There would have been no need for your destruction, or for cutting off your family name.” (Isaiah 48:17–19, NLT)

Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God. (2 Corinthians 7:1, NLT)

**By Fairchild, Mary. “Why Is Obedience to God Important?” Learn Religions, Aug. 28, 2020, learnreligions.com/obedience-to-god-701962.

The A-Z of Pride

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“PRIDE GOES BEFORE DESTRUCTION, AND A HAUGHTY SPIRIT BEFORE A FALL.” – PROVERBS 16:18

A – Pride loves ATTENTION and honour from men. It loves compliments and flattery. The humble fear this since they recognise the temptation to steal God’s glory. The humble follow the principle to “Serve God then run away”, such as Jesus did when people tried to make Him king (John 6:15). We may not be able to run away from these moments physically, but in our heart we should be running away from all temptations to indulge in proud thoughts and steal the glory of God. Pride does many good works while secretly hoping someone noticed, being happy at the thought that someone apart from God may be thinking well of us. 

B – Pride is a spirit of BLAME. When something goes wrong, it assumes some other person or situation is at fault (Matthew 7:3).  The proud make excuses when it is their fault, and can easily find reason why their mistake is actually the fault of another. 

C – Pride is COMPARISON. It’s one piece of dust saying to another piece of dust “look at how great I am, because I’m a bit bigger than you.” (Psalm 103:14, 2 Corinthians 10:12) 

D – Pride is DISOBEDIENCE to God. The main characteristic of humility was shown in Jesus’ obedience even to the point of death (Philippians 2:8).  Pride is plain and simple disobedience to the Lord in anything. 

E – Pride is ENTITLEMENT, it’s feeling that we deserve something from anyone, because of who we are or what we’ve done. For example: it is unwilling to be frugal in money because it feels entitled to buy what it likes. Or it can be an unwillingness to eat simple food, or take a simple vacation rather than a more luxurious one. Humility is never entitled, but keeps an attitude of unworthiness / undeservedness (Luke 17:10, Luke 5:8). Humility recognises that all we have comes from God (1 Corinthians 4:7). 

F – Pride loves to FIGHT (it is contentious, very quick to argue).  It sets itself to quarrel as long as it takes, until it wins the argument. Humility is letting the other person win the argument, and then changing the conversation to something else you can agree on without fighting, like sports or the weather. 

G – Pride GLORIES in past good works it has done. Pride is revisiting the good works we’ve done in our mind and patting ourselves on the back, taking satisfaction in what we’ve done “with our own hands” instead of giving God the glory (Daniel 4:30-37).

 H – Pride is very HARSH with other people in words or actions, it’s lacking in a critical fruit of the Spirit: gentleness (Galatians 5:23). Humility is gentleness (careful not to harm another even in little ways, such as a careless hurtful word or joke about someone). But pride leads to uncontrolled anger that ends up lashing out in harsh ways at others.

 I – Pride is IMPATIENT. For example, a proud person gets quickly frustrated with a coworker who is slow to respond, with a slow driver on the road, or with a crying child because he feels he deserves much quiet time to himself. 

J – Pride JUSTIFIES itself (Luke 16:15), and JUDGES others, looking down on others in the heart (Matt 7:1). It often joins hands with the accuser (Revelation 12:10), focusing on the sins of others, and excusing its own sins. 

K – Pride often gets puffed up with KNOWLEDGE (1 Corinthians 8:1). Pride is assuming that we see and understand things more clearly than others. 

L – Pride is having LOFTY thoughts of yourself (Romans 12:3). Pride assumes we are indispensable in the kingdom of God or at our occupation, for example. Both will get along fine without us after we are gone! I once heard a saying, “The graveyards are filled with indispensable people.” So many millions of “important” people in the past have lived and died, but the world kept on going. (1 Peter 1:24-25) 

M – Pride is MISERLY.  Not only with its money, but with its time.  It can often get offended when someone asks a favour of us, as if they have no right to. This is because it considers my plans and obligations as more important than somebody else’s; so it is unwilling to be inconvenienced. For example, pride is fixing lunch for myself if I’m hungry but leaving my kids without food until they get cranky and start asking. Or it’s consistently leaving messes for my wife to clean up, without considering her work. Jesus cleaned up even a small linen cloth after He was resurrected (John 20:7). Humility is very considerate of others (Philippians 2:4). Pride is being consistently too busy to help my spouse or child with little things. It’s is an unwillingness to be interrupted. 

N – Pride is being NOSY. It’s being a busybody in other people’s matters (2 Thessalonians 3:11) – pride assumes that we deserve to know what’s going on in another person’s life or that our opinion about it matters. 

O – Pride is very OPINIONATED about many matters outside of the things of God. Jesus was not very opinionated outside of the things of God. We should hold tightly to God’s word, but outside of that it’s possible to be very strongly opinionated as well, expressing our strong feelings about such and such matter which has nothing to do with us. Paul said, “I will not boast in anything except for in the cross of Christ” (Galatians 6:14). I heard a saying once which blessed me; “The more we grow in Christ the less eager we are to share our own opinions.” 

P – Pride is PRESUMPTION: it’s the assumption that I know what’s going to happen in the future, or holding tightly to my own plans which I for sure will carry out (James 4:14-16) – we should only say “If the Lord wills it.”  Pride depends on self (and is quite confident in it!), rather than God. 

Q – Pride is QUICK to speak, and slow to listen, rather than the other way around (James 1:19). A proud person loves talking about himself a lot – pride assumes that my life is more interesting than that of another.  A proud person often dominates a conversation. The proud don’t listen very carefully to sermons or when reading Scripture since they feel they are pretty good people already, they may listen or read for knowledge which they can boast about later, but the humble have a keen eye and ear specifically for personal application they can take for themselves since they recognise their need and want to improve in the areas of their need/sin. The ear of need is what Jesus referred to as “ears to hear” (Matthew 11:15). Pride is being very eager to share with others what the Lord has showed us (because we feel clever and want to impress people), but not valuing the other truths that our brothers and sisters have to share. It’s being very interested to speak, but having little interest to listen. 

R – Pride is the ROOT of every sin. Grace is God’s power to keep me from sin (Romans 6:14, 2 Corinthians 12:9), and God gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5). That means: if I sinned, I didn’t get grace because there was pride in me somewhere.  At the root of every sin is pride. 

S – Pride refuses SERVING in ‘Low’ tasks (which we consider ‘below’ us), either in the home (like washing dishes or doing laundry), or in the workplace, such as some menial task which we consider someone else’s job. Humility is quietly willing to take the low, dirty responsibilities which nobody else wants (John 13:14). 

T – The proud are THANKLESS and ungrateful, since they feel they are quite deserving of the good that comes to them. The proud may sing praise songs on Sundays but know nothing of thanking the Lord from the depths of their heart in secret, praising Him with a hymn of thanks in their heart when no one else sees, because they do not really believe they are that sinful and needed the Lord’s mercy all that much (Luke 7:47). 

U – Pride is UNFORGIVING and UNAPOLOGETIC.  Pride stays cold against someone even after they’ve apologised for wrongs against us.  And it refuses to acknowledge or apologise for a wrong it has committed. Pride gets offended when rebuked or corrected (Proverbs 15:5).  In that case, pride defends itself or worse – criticises the one giving the rebuke. 

V – Pride is VENGEFUL. In subtle ways pride will hold a grudge, such as keeping a cold shoulder against someone for some time, even if on the outside they say with their mouth “I forgive you.” (Romans 12:19) 

W – Pride is WITHOUT SYMPATHY for the suffering of others, and it’s full of jealousy for the success of others. Since it is so self-centered, pride can easily rejoice in its own ease and comfort, even while a brother is deeply mourning. Its attitude is “I’m glad that didn’t happen to me.” Alternately, it is easily jealous and so it doesn’t rejoice when a brother or sister is rejoicing. (Romans 12:15) 

X – Pride is placing EXpectations on others. We are not God that we should command people what they should do and expect so many things from them. But pride gets angry at others when they don’t do what we want – even toward the Lord Himself. Pride makes demands from God for selfish reasons that aren’t promised in His Word (James 4:2-3). 

Y – Pride is very unYIELDING and stubborn. It will not consider or yield to the opinion or desire of another, it will not back down until it gets its way. Jesus granted the request of even a demon when it asked to be cast into pigs! (Mark 5:12-13) But the motto of pride is “MY will be done.” 

Z – Pride is ZEALOUS for one’s own honour (Matthew 23:6), and self preservation. Pride is thinking only about myself and my family, and unconcern for others outside of that circle. It is void of genuine love and concern for others. 

**By Bobby McDonald © Copyright – Bobby McDonald. No changes whatsoever are to be made to the content of the article without written permission from the author at NCCF Church