Queen Victoria wanted to employ a new driver for her horse driven carriage. Three men were invited for an interview. The first man declared his driving ability of being able to drive a carriage within a yard of the edge of a mountainous track safely. The second man boasted he could skilfully and safely drive the carriage within one foot of the edge of a perilous track. The third man stepped forward, looked the queen in the eye and said these words: “Ma’am, I cannot profess to be able to drive skilfully near the edge of mountainous terrain as these two gentlemen, but I can guarantee I would keep as far away from any danger as possible.” The third man got the job.
Why have I shared this story? Every Believer in Jesus Christ begins their spiritual, earthly journey after receiving Him into their heart at salvation. From here, He is our constant companion, sharing our joys and sorrows along the road as we learn to trust Him and allow the Holy Spirit to be our Guide. Along this journey truth is revealed to us and we learn to recognise the danger of pride in all its many forms, and how abhorrent it is to our Heavenly Father. The driver Queen Victoria employed was the one who professed to keep away from danger. A wise man steers clear of recognised danger.
This week a man had a dream. In the dream Arthur was in a meeting expounding on the glory of God. He declared that the enemy of God’s glory is man’s glory, his pride. A heckler stood up at the back of the room and exclaimed, “I don’t believe that!” Arthur sat down. The truth of God is the glory of God and does not need propping up. If truth is declared, God props Himself up without man’s help. In the dream, the dreamer stood and tried to defend what Arthur had declared, saying, “If I do not believe this then God will permit me to prove it in my life.”
The glory of God is found in the face of Jesus Christ, (2 Corinthians 4:6). Man’s glory seeks recognition/self importance/credit. The natural man seeks to be number 1. On the other hand, if glory cannot be obtained for being the best, it seeks credibility in being the worst. This is just pride in another form. Pride rears its head in me when I rise up and demand my rights. I seek to be a god, instead of having a God. I am refusing Christ’s reign in my heart. I need to recognise the danger signs when my heart is OUT OF ORDER! I am driving near the cliff edge! Self rule leads to destruction. The Holy Spirit has an affinity to humility for it is the nature of God’s Son, but God will resist me when I operate in pride.
God will not allow His glory to be given to another. It belongs to God alone. Jesus, our Pattern Man, demonstrated this truth by declaring that all the mighty works performed by Him, all the miracles, all the healings were done by the power of Another, His Father working through Him. He gave His Father all the glory and
took no credit for Himself. He declared that of Himself, He could do nothing. He proclaimed, “It is the Father in me, He does the works.” If God does the work, then the glory/credit is all His.
2 Corinthians 4:5-7 “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us.”
1 Peter 5:5 “…God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.” God will only exalt me if I can be trusted with His glory as Jesus was. He gave all the credit back to His Father and took none for Himself. He chose His Father’s will before His own. The consequences of surrendering my will to Father’s are all the benefits of the joy and peace of His presence.
God is working in every circumstance of my life. Pride is blind. I need the Holy Spirit to show me where it is in me, and when He does, my response is to “humble myself under His mighty hand” to avoid the danger of falling over the cliff edge. Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.” As I learn to realise what a dangerous place pride has in my life, the Holy Spirit will help me to recognise it. My responsibility is to see it through God’s eyes and avoid it, walking humbly with Him and giving Him all the glory for every good thing in me. Humility is always key. I must empty of self and come to zero, that I will be conformed, by His mighty workings, to the image of God’s wonderful Son in me. As I bow, only the aroma of Christ comes forth, I am hidden in Him, and only the glory of God is seen, and found, in the face of Jesus Christ. To God be the glory, forever, Amen!
