Humble Yourself

Proverbs 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

Pride separates us from God. That is all there is to it. It's no wonder Satan chose the word 'pride' for the movement that has ushered in and dissolved into all sorts of debauchery. He drove in the biggest wedge he could think of and keeps on driving it to the point that those participants take pride in their pride, and in that manner distance themselves even further from God. It is utterly tragic to watch for them. But, while they may literally and figuratively lead the parade, they are not alone.

Psalm 53:1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.

That verse, and others like it, are proof you don't have to be part of the sexual 'pride' group to still be separated from God by pride. Lots and lots of mainstream people; far too many, in modern society are puffed up with pride and unable to see the critical need for humility. 

I walked that lonely path myself. My way was wrong. The way of the world is wrong. It leads to a terrible end that itself has no ending.

Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

So many will say if asked, "I'm a good person, so I'll be going to Heaven". The Apostle Paul erases that self-deluding, false illusion in a single verse:

Romans 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

That's pretty sobering. He wasn't even excluding himself. He goes on to say, 

11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

So there it is. 

We are not our own gods. We are pathetic beings, destined from birth to end up nothing but dried out dust. We can lie to ourselves all we like, but that is the end of each of us. Every last one. Neither you nor I nor anyone else we have collectively ever known will be any exception to that rule. No matter how big and powerful a man, no matter how beautiful and lovely a woman, no matter how rich a financier, no matter how famous an actor, no matter how influential a politician. Any praise or prominence or power  we garner from and through this life will dry up and be blown away as chaff long before we ever turn to dust. We live; we die. The meek and poor know and accept this almost every moment of their lives. The big, powerful man, the beautiful, lovely woman, the rich financier, the famous actor, the influential politician give that harsh fact much less consideration in their pursuit of self. They live in their bubble-ized version of reality focused predominately upon themselves and give little thought to others and, ever so much more importantly: even less thought to their own end. 

Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

This is where it gets scary; I mean, really, really, REALLY scary:

Luke 16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

That passage; those verses, are absolutely horrific to me. They fill my soul with terror for the lost. They fill my soul with terror for where I would have went myself. 

Consider the formerly rich man's desperate, impassioned plea for a mere drop of water. One drop, for only one part of his body, in the eternity of torment he is living. How long would the relief of one drop of water on his tongue amount to in the timeline of eternity? And yet if he was able to get it he would remember and cherish the memory and crave the feeling of that one drop of water for all of eternity in the constant and unrelenting, unending torment he is living in. The image of that absolutely, positively terrifies me. It should terrify you as well if you have any humanity in you. Nothing should drive you to try to get others to come to repentance more than that parable to save them from that exact same fate. I wish the forever lost could simply be exterminated; annihilated; made not to exist any more, over that, but I have no say in the matter. That is the way it is and the way it will be for the prideful and unrepentant. 

Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

This was our terrible, horrific fate as well, but for our faith in the saving Blood of Christ Jesus to pay the otherwise unpayable price for our sins. It should drive us all to try to reach the lost. To have a heart for them. To appeal to our Father on their behalf for a softening of their hearts and an opening of their minds and ears. But it is ultimately up to them to decide if they want to continue in their hopeless but wide and sure path, or to turn onto the Way. 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

Those are my favorite verses. The ones that ease my spirit; the ones that soothe my terror. The ones that tell me I won't share the fate of the Rich Man by calling on the Lord in the testing of this life, while there was yet still time. 

I have always liked to say, "In your humility is found your greatness", and by that I mean at the point of your submission to God you become a Child of the King and an heir to the untold, unfathomable riches of His Kingdom. 

Luke 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Incredible words. Incredible hope. Incredible Love.

Try to talk to your lost loved ones. But mostly pray for them, that a way may be made for them, through you or anyone or anything else that can reach them. It may get ugly. God may have allow them to be broken entirely to have them finally call out to Him in despair. But it will be the best thing they ever did and the Living Waters they will then drink will last for eternity, unlike the Rich Man's one, single, sole, drop of water that he never got anyway, which would have been gone in an instant regardless.