2 Chronicles 26:16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.
With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings. Ezra Taft Benson
Pride is to esteem ourselves above others and humility is to esteem others above ourselves. Pride is like cancer. It spreads fast if not arrested. The spiritual self-examination to spot pride in us would be to check how quickly we judge others. Those who are opinionated and judgmental have pride hidden in them. Prejudice and pride go together. Pride separates us from God. “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6). All of us at some stage in life might find ourselves in the snare of pride. The moment we realize that we are enmeshed by conceit, we must get ourselves out of the ditch. If not, destruction will come quickly. It is better for us to humble ourselves quickly, if not God would humble us.
King Uzziah has an astounding biography. The 10th descendant of David rose to the throne at the age of 16. Under the mentorship of Prophet Zachariah he feared the Lord and was extremely successful. He fortified the Judean territory. He captured the areas of commerce and trade along the Mediterranean and Arabian Sea which brought a great deal of prosperity to the nation. He built irrigation systems and towers in the wilderness. He had over 300,000 fully armed and trained soldiers. Yet, when he grew powerful he became prideful. Pride struck him down.
Pride and emotional instability:
1. Fame: Fame can become the greatest enemy to the soul if it turns into pride. Fame is like the fat of the lamb in the offering. The priests were instructed to burn the fat on the altar. Likewise, the fat of fame must be burned on the altar of prayer before it turns into cholesterol and chokes the heart. The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful (vs 8). All accolades and appreciation must be placed on the altar of prayer as sweet incense to the Lord.
2. Frenzy: Frenzy and anger when reprimanded is a clear indication of hidden pride. Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy[c] broke out on his forehead (vs 19). Uzziah knew that he was wrong but was furious as the priest confronted him. Unrighteous anger, short temperedness and fury have underlying hidden pride.
3. Fat: Our strongest strength can become our weakness if we are not vigilant. Overconfidence will defeat our purpose so will pride and arrogance. Burn the fat of our titles, recognition and honour on the altar of prayer.
Emotional stability and humility go together.
Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
Prayer: Father God, may pride never sneak subtly into my heart. Help me to be sensitive to the serpent of overconfidence and pride. Amen
Leave a Reply