|
Daniel 4:37
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
1 Peter 5:5-6
5 Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
1. Critical
Numbers 16:1-3,8-11
1 Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites--Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth--became insolent
2 and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council.
3 They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, "You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord's assembly?"
Korah was critical towards leadership. Pride is also fault finding.
Jude 1:16
These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.
Instead of learning from others, you try to find fault in others. Try to learn from others.
2. Relies on self
Deuteronomy 8:10-18
10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.
11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,
13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied,
14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
15 He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock.
16 He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
17 You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me."
18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
Don't forget who gave you the victory ultimately. Praying less is relying on self. Don't be satisfied with your spirituality.
3. Uses excuses always
1 Samuel 15:1-3, 7-23
1 Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD.
2 This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt.
3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.'"
Obey to the last instruction. Do you blame it on others? Do you blame it on your disciples or do you say "I messed up?" Do you find it hard to apologize and say "I am sorry"?
4. Super-sensitive
1 Kings 19:1-6
1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, "May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them."
3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there,
4 while he himself went a day's journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors."
5 Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, "Get up and eat."
6 He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
Elijah is insecure. When you get a small challenge, do you put a big face? You got to take challenges in a good way.
5. Happy about others problems
2 Kings 20:16-19
16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, "Hear the word of the LORD:
17 The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD.
18 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood, that will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon."
19 "The word of the LORD you have spoken is good," Hezekiah replied. For he thought, "Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?"
Obadiah 1:11-13
11 On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them.
12 You should not look down on your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble.
13 You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor look down on them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster.
Don't look down on your brother when he is having problems. Don't think, "Oh God is punishing him, good!". You need to pray for others problem in their life and in their ministry.
6. Obviously independent
2 Chronicles 26:16-21
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.
17 Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the LORD followed him in.
18 They confronted him and said, "It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the LORD God."
19 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 broke out on his forehead.
20 When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the LORD had afflicted him.
21 King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house --leprous, and excluded from the temple of the LORD. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land.
Do you take advice? Do you say, "I need help"? Do you keep in touch? Do you say, "I don't know brother, please tell me"? Do you make your discipler always come in search of you?
7. Unwilling to listen
Proverbs 18:2,13
2 A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights in airing his own opinions.
13 He who answers before listening-- that is his folly and his shame.
Do you listen to people when they talk to you? Do you listen when you given advice? Do you listen to your discipler? Do you listen to your disciples?
8. Responds without brokeness
Psalm 36:2
For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin.
Are you more indignant about others sins than your own sins? Easy to challenge others but you change first.
Jeremiah 8:6
I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, "What have I done?" Each pursues his own course like a horse charging into battle.
Repentant attitude.
9. Pours out opinions
Proverbs 18:2
A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights in airing his own opinions.
Are you always pouring out your own opinions? Do you always feel you have a better way or a better idea?
10. Rarely open
Daniel 9:4-11
4 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands,
5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws.
6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
7 "Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame--the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you.
8 O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.
9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him;
10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.
11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. "Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you.
Daniel was open about his sins and his people's sins.
Daniel 10:12
Then he continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.
From the first day of humbling yourself, God will answer your prayers.
11. Ignorant
Obadiah 1:3-4
3 The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, 'Who can bring me down to the ground?'
4 Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.
Sometimes you cannot see yourself, always check yourself. Ask others to tell you what you need to change in.
12. Doesn't change
Matthew 21:28-30
28 "What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work today in the vineyard.'
29 "'I will not,' he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
30 "Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, 'I will, sir,' but he did not go.
Are you repeatedly being challenged on a certain point? You have to make a decision to change.
13. Elite attitude
Romans 12:16
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Do you relate to all types of people or only selected people?
|
