17/03/2011 - Be careful with pride and your relatives!

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―We have heard of the pride of Moab — He is very proud — of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath; but his lies shall not be so.‖ (Isaiah 16: 6)
Pride signals an upcoming fall of men. Therefore, nobody should be proud of any of their qualities or assets they own; nobody should glorify themselves; the moment someone boasts about something they’ve done they’re heading for the pit.
When God was devastating Sodomma, the curious and rebellious wife of Loh became a statue of salt because she looked behind and that was against the instruction of the angel of the Lord (Genesis 19:26). So, thinking that Loh would never multiply his descendents since he was a widower, his two daughters architected a plan and put it into practice: they got him drunk with wine and the oldest lied with him. They got him drunk again the next day and the youngest lied with him as well. Each one gave birth to a child: Moab, the firstborn, who became the father of the Moabites and Ben-Ami, born to the youngest, who became the father of the Amonites (verses 30 to 38).
I reckon the Moabites weren’t expected to come to existence. Yet, the people of Moab were established due to that incest and that caused a lot of pain to the children of Israel and so much bothering to the Lord. The land they lived in was prosperous –but prosperity can become a dreadful snare to those who aren’t sensible. So they were carried away by pride, arrogance and wrath because they believed they were special. Now, we’ve got to have an eye wide open because History is always repeating itself everywhere. Many people usually forget their origin the moment they become prosperous and forget that they’ll be accounted for what they were given; so they begin wasting things, they indulge in luxury and they commit sins. In fact, prosperity might turn into something bad for many that don’t know how to deal with it. You’ve got to be born again not to be proud.
Never be driven by pride. Your assets, your job or any other physical, mental or spiritual qualities you were granted comes from the Lord and to Him must be the glory. There’s nothing you’ve got that hasn’t come from God. So, be wise! Recognize that fact and don’t discriminate against anyone, whoever they might be. If you allow pride to rise up into your heart you’ve got to know that you’re already falling.
Humbleness pleases the Most High. By the way, only those who are humble – those who follow the Truth found in the Word of the Lord; those who won’t bow down to any enemy’s lies – will see that it’s worth to be a man of God whatever the circumstances. On the other hand, pride makes you think that you can tell lies, get involved with robbery, commit adultery or take any other
wrong attitude without suffering its consequences. A proud person will end up being deceived by pride and becoming a sad person.
So, keep an eye wide open! If any feeling of pride begins crossing your mind you’ve got to reject it right away. The inner beauty or your physical beauty, the gifts the Lord gives you, the open doors, all the successful experiences you’ve been granted are the result of the work of God in your favour and He’s the only One to be glorified. So, talking about yourself and boasting about your achievements are attitudes that will cause you great harm. For instance, that’s what happened to Herods, who didn’t give glory to the Most High and ended up eaten by worms (Acts 12: 21 – 23).
My brother, chapter sixteen in the book of Isaiah was written as a moaning for the Moabites and a warning for us: God wants us to be humble so we’ll be able to receive greater blessings from Him and be used even more by Him.
In Christ, with love,
R. R. Soares