Based on Proverbs 16 (New King James Version)
“The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits. Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established. The Lord has made all for Himself, yes, even the wicked for the day of doom. Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; though they join forces, none will go unpunished. In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil. When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Better is a little with righteousness, than vast revenues without justice. A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. Divination is on the lips of the king; his mouth must not transgress in judgment. Honest weights and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights in the bag are His work. It is an abomination for kings to commit wickedness, for a throne is established by righteousness. Righteous lips are the delight of kings, and they love him who speaks what is right. As messengers of death is the king’s wrath, but a wise man will appease it. In the light of the king’s face is life, and his favor is like a cloud of the latter rain. How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. The highway of the upright is to depart from evil; he who keeps his way preserves his soul. Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he. The wise in heart will be called prudent, and sweetness of the lips increases learning. Understanding is a wellspring of life to him who has it. But the correction of fools is folly. The heart of the wise teaches his mouth, and adds learning to his lips. Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. The person who labors, labors for himself, for his hungry mouth drives him on. An ungodly man digs up evil, and it is on his lips like a burning fire. A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates the best of friends. A violent man entices his neighbor, and leads him in a way that is not good. He winks his eye to devise perverse things; he purses his lips and brings about evil. The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness. He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.”
A little fear is healthy, especially if it is well-placed. Often times, people think they are invincible or that their will and abilities can bring about their desires or their interests into reality. Some people, those who profess to have faith in God, believe that we should not fear God at all. There are those that also believe that they are afraid of nothing. And of course, there are those that don’t worry about anything and just float by life on everyone else’s coattails, following their own thoughts as well. What do all of these examples have in common? They are all signs of pride. Pride is the number one fall of every being. That’s what brought about Satan’s fall. He thought he could be like God (and still thinks). A third of the angels (currently demons due to their fallen state) also thought they could defy God together with Satan; because they thought that if they united in their pride, that they could take on the Almighty Himself. As I have mentioned many times before, opinion is no match for reality. Satan and his followers had a higher opinion on their abilities than they should have had and fell destroyed down to the pit itself. And reality will continue to have its effect when God will send Satan, and all of those who follow his way, to eternal damnation, to the Lake of Fire. It is only a matter of time. Pride is what clouds sound judgment and does not allow for that healthy measure of fear to exist in every human being. It is pride that makes people think that they are invincible. It is pride that tells those that profess to believe in God not to fear Him. It is pride that makes certain people feel like they don’t fear anything. It is pride that brings some people to trust more on others, or to even take advantage of others, so they can achieve what they want and need. It is ultimately pride the very thing that makes people think that their opinion is stronger than reality.
Opinion is something that we can all have, and should have. But at the end of the day, that opinion “should” be based on some sort of immovable fact, something that is well-grounded and substantiated; especially if we want for our opinion to really mean something. The problem is that most people’s opinions are not well-founded. They think that because they believe something, that their belief makes it real. It’s like the person that says that they believe in God, and that God is the most important thing to them, but yet, does only those things that they want to do, and discards everything else because “in their opinion”, that is what is important. The Pharisees had that same problem. They were more worried about “respecting the Sabbath” than respecting the very Son of God that was right before them, performing incredible miracles and sharing the Truth about God. They were so blinded by their pride that they were telling God Himself (to His face) that He was not God and that He was wrong. Some may say, “Well, if I would have existed back then, I would have not done what the Pharisees did.” Well, if God tells you to do something that is important to Him because it is written in His Word, then why don’t you do it? Why don’t you obey Him? To many, it is not about God’s will be done; it’s about “my will” be done. That is pride!
Do you think my view may not be clear? How many people profess to be believe, and even say that they follow God, but do not do what He really wants? Why is there so much pain left unattended in the world? Why are people that have so much are more interested in enjoying what they have than looking to help those that don’t have anything? Why aren’t we easing people’s suffering without any expectation of getting anything in return? Where does all the crime come from? The evil that exists in the world is not carried out by just a handful of people. The pain that exists is not being remedied by the masses either. So, why are things the way they are? Because there is no fear of God. For it is written: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7. When you do not fear God (much more than a deep respect), you can never receive wisdom. When we fear God, wisdom begins to grow in our lives and we can begin to understand what is really important and that our opinion should be set on God and His principles. Why? Because there is no one mightier than God; and yes; we will “all” give an account for our actions. Here is a certain “reality”; for it is written:“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13-14. So, is pride keeping you away from the wisdom of God?