Be Humble

Opening Questions

How do you think pride affects you, God, and people around you?
How would you describe humility?

Pride – What does it look like?

For he flatters and deceives himself in his own eyes Thinking that his sinfulness will not be discovered and hated [by God]. 3 The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; He has ceased to be wise and to do good.
Psalm 36:2-3 (AMP)

Pride deceives us. It makes us think we are better than we really are. When we are proud we will hide sins from ourselves, God, and people.
We can’t do good for God or others when we’re proud.
How can you flatter yourself? How do you think that stops you from changing?

“Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.
Habakkuk 2:4 NLT

When we’re proud we trust in ourselves – our thoughts, our opinions, our way of doing things.
When we rely on ourselves, we will have crooked lives (out of place, not living in the right way).
When we are righteous, we let God teach and train us and change our thinking … we will be faithful to him and not ourselves.

How does God feel about pride?

In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
Psalm 10:4 NIV

Pride produces a disinterest in God. We can’t be close to him because we don’t think we need Him. And we think more highly of ourselves so don’t have room to think about him. This disinterest in God will be reflected in the quality of our personal time reading the Bible and praying.
God wants a close relationship with us, but our pride will push him away.
How does your pride stop you from seeking and thinking about God?

All who fear the Lord will hate evil. Therefore, I hate pride and arrogance, corruption and perverse speech.
Proverbs 8:13 NLT

God feels strongly about our pride! We can minimize how bad our pride is, but it’s just as bad as any other sin.
Do you take your pride seriously? Do you feel more about how it makes God feel or makes you feel?

How to overcome pride

21 So get rid of all uncleanness and all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted [actually rooted in your heart], which is able to save your souls. 22 But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth]. 23 For if anyone only listens to the word without obeying it, he is like a man who looks very carefully at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he immediately forgets what he looked like. 25 But he who looks carefully into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and faithfully abides by it, not having become a [careless] listener who forgets but an active doer [who obeys], he will be blessed and favored by God in what he does [in his life of obedience].
James 1:21-25 (AMP)

Humility means we read the Bible and see truth, and we obey the Scriptures. We don’t forget or choose to ignore who we really are.
What sins do you need to get rid of to experience the freedom the Bible can offer?