When pride compliment covetousness
For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the LORD abhorreth. The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts. (Psa 10:3-4)
This verse is clear in describing the proud as being wicked. To be wicked also means being evil or having morals that are bad in principle or practice. Truly wickedness is conceived inside and out of that rottenness comes forth boasting and covetousness, eventually to the point of denying God. To deny God is to say that God doesn’t exist and self has been proclaimed as god. Psalms 14:1 describes the god-less fool as corrupt and does nothing good. Mathematically this makes sense because evil inside equals to evil practices. If self have taken the place of God, then the direction of worship or worth-ship is on self and not to the Almighty Creator of Heaven and earth. High estimation of self becomes pride. God will resist such a person (James 4:6), conversely gives grace to the humble.
And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. (Luke 12:18-19)
Jesus warns us about covetousness and it appears that the covetous thinks highly of self for it’s all about ‘my’. Humble people put others into their consideration. Building up self is the main concern and God is out of the picture totally. The same situation as in Psalms 14:1 when God declares such one as fool. What a terrible judgment, losing not just dreams on earth but eternally loosing everything.
We can be quick to put a wealthy person into this mold. Consider that a 'rich' person can be abounding in natural resources or gifting or even experiences (one that claim to have eaten more salt than others have eaten rice). We have heard of the wealthy despising the poor (James 2:6) similarly people who are consider themselves more ‘superior’ than others in talent and gifts who don’t have things in Godly perspective tend to despise others too.
If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: (Jas 2:8)
God looks for obedience, Samuel told Saul that all the sacrifices is not what God is looking for (1 Sam 15:22, 23), for disobedience is viewed as rebellion and it is as the sin of witchcraft. The penalty for witchcraft is death. Paul reminds that that there is such a thing as obedience unto righteousness (Rom 6:16 – here is one for the antinomians from Paul, the preacher of grace). Therefore the righteous subjects of the Kingdom of God have a very important law to obey. As far back as Lev 19:18, the Lord said that we shall love our neighbor as ourselves. The command ends with ‘I am the LORD’, meaning we better take heed to this commandment because He is LORD. Love is the more excellent way (1 Cor 12:31), Paul said that even if we do anything or sacrifice everything, without love we are nothing. Obeying the royal law is then what we should do.
The opposite of pride is meekness and the blessing for meekness is inheriting the earth (not the world). Probably the most powerful prophet who would have a lot to boast about including his close communion with God (even speaking face to face, Duet 34:10)) was the meekest man on the earth (Num 12:3). Living in that stature of meekness, there isn’t any reason for covetousness in a righteous child of God.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Friday, September 05, 2008
What seest thou?, Jer 1:11
The true test of a prophet is whether they see what God is showing them. Rightly so because prophets are also called seers as recorded for us in 1 Sam 9 on Saul’s servant suggesting to look for the prophet Samuel on some lost asses. Seeing correctly is important to God as we have to view things, situations, circumstances from His perspective and will. Even in prayer, I was told that we should pray with our spiritual eyes open.
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
(Rev 1:17)
Not just seeing from God’s perspective but also seeing Him correctly for Who He truly is. Not some figment of our imagination of a god we want to see. The apostle whom Jesus loved, the same guy who leaned on His bosom during the last supper, saw the exalted Christ and fell as though dead.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
(Exo 20:4)
Many have this picture of gentle Jesus, sweet and mild. I wonder where this imagery came from. Once we have our own perception of Jesus it would be considered have graven an image of Christ in our minds. If so then it is called idolatry, idols don’t have to be physical. Idols are worshiped and exalted by those who form them according to their imagination.
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;
(2Co 10:5)
Paul warns us about imaginations that conflicts with the true knowledge of God. These imaginations are human concepts of a god according to their own reasoning and wisdom. The exaltation of such knowledge is idolatry because it is a poor portrayal of the Almighty. God is Holy, so in our relationship with Him there has to be boundary which cannot be frivolously overstepped.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
(Mat 5:8)
Jesus stated very clearly who can see God for Who He truly is. A simple test of the purity of our hearts is found in our speech.
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
(Mat 12:34)
How pure our speech is, it is how pure our heart is. James warns us that our tongue is small yet difficult to control; it defiles the whole body and has fire set on fire of hell. We have to check our speech if it’s nature is hell like. I have heard a preacher say that we lie in our worship because we can bless and curse with the same tongue. Our worship can be overwhelmed with emotion but God’s Presence isn’t there because it takes clean hands and a pure heart to enter His Holy place.
The true test of a prophet is whether they see what God is showing them. Rightly so because prophets are also called seers as recorded for us in 1 Sam 9 on Saul’s servant suggesting to look for the prophet Samuel on some lost asses. Seeing correctly is important to God as we have to view things, situations, circumstances from His perspective and will. Even in prayer, I was told that we should pray with our spiritual eyes open.
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
(Rev 1:17)
Not just seeing from God’s perspective but also seeing Him correctly for Who He truly is. Not some figment of our imagination of a god we want to see. The apostle whom Jesus loved, the same guy who leaned on His bosom during the last supper, saw the exalted Christ and fell as though dead.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
(Exo 20:4)
Many have this picture of gentle Jesus, sweet and mild. I wonder where this imagery came from. Once we have our own perception of Jesus it would be considered have graven an image of Christ in our minds. If so then it is called idolatry, idols don’t have to be physical. Idols are worshiped and exalted by those who form them according to their imagination.
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;
(2Co 10:5)
Paul warns us about imaginations that conflicts with the true knowledge of God. These imaginations are human concepts of a god according to their own reasoning and wisdom. The exaltation of such knowledge is idolatry because it is a poor portrayal of the Almighty. God is Holy, so in our relationship with Him there has to be boundary which cannot be frivolously overstepped.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
(Mat 5:8)
Jesus stated very clearly who can see God for Who He truly is. A simple test of the purity of our hearts is found in our speech.
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
(Mat 12:34)
How pure our speech is, it is how pure our heart is. James warns us that our tongue is small yet difficult to control; it defiles the whole body and has fire set on fire of hell. We have to check our speech if it’s nature is hell like. I have heard a preacher say that we lie in our worship because we can bless and curse with the same tongue. Our worship can be overwhelmed with emotion but God’s Presence isn’t there because it takes clean hands and a pure heart to enter His Holy place.
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