How art thou fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
how art thou cut down to the ground,
which didst weaken the nations!
For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God:
I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. Isaiah 14:12–15
Man’s downfall is the same sin
that got Satan thrown out of his position in Heaven.
Pride.
It’s ugly.
It’s wretched.
He is lurking about, around every corner to fill our minds and hearts with it.
Not to mention, we have our own measure of pride.
It’s part of our flesh.
We are made in God’s image and yet,
we have to wrestle with this sin so much.
We have to submit our flesh to the Lord, to keep our pride in check.
Not sure if it’s possible to ever fully be free from pride while on this earth.
Pride can cloud every decision, every thought.
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing
that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God,
and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
2 Corinthians 10:5
Scripture says that Noah was the most humble man on earth.
We have seen humility in the characters in the Bible.
We have also seen some who have lifted their hearts in pride against the Lord and their fate did not end well.
That wicked Haman in the story of Esther.
He was angry because Mordecai refused to bow to him.
The man who wanted to hang Mordecai and kill all the Jews.
Haman ended up being hung instead.
So many people in the Bible were operating in pride.
Meaning, they were working without the Spirit of God,
not living for Him, but for themselves.
So many people in our own lives operate in pride.
Living prideful won’t get us very far in the Kingdom of God.
If we humble ourselves, God will lift us up.
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,
and he shall lift you up. James 4:10
But if we humble ourselves so God will lift us up, that is pride.
If we think of ourselves more highly than we ought, that is pride.
Pride will make you think upside down.
Pride can make people want to play God, want to be God,
think they’re smarter than God.
Pride has been and will be the sin that comes between God and man.
The humility one needs to accept Christ’s deity is not easy.
That is, if you accept Christ’s deity in every area of your life.
It’s one thing to let Him be God at church,
quite another to let Him lead your life.
For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity,
Whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place,
with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit,
to revive the spirit of the humble,
and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. Isaiah 57:15