But, What about me?

James 4:1-10 (MSG)

1-2) “Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves. You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it.

2-3) You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you? And why not? Because you know you’d be asking for what you have no right to. You’re spoiled children, each wanting your own way.

4-6) You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that “he’s a fiercely jealous lover.” And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.”

7-10) So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.”

Pride is dangerous.

Isn’t it powerful when it changes to humble yourself?

The main Hebrew root is gh [h'aG]; the most common term is gaon [/a"G], which occurs a total of twenty-three times. Included are the ideas of arrogance, cynical insensitivity to the needs of others, and presumption. Pride is both a disposition/attitude and a type of conduct.

A synonym gaba [H;b"G] means "to be high." While used in a variety of senses, the normal meaning is pride or arrogance, in particular "an inner attitude of pride," often linked with parts of the human body ( Isaiah 2:11Isaiah 2:17 ). There is pride of the eyes ( Psalm 101:5 ; Isa 5:15 ); of the heart ( Ezekiel 28:2 Ezekiel 28:5Ezekiel 28:17 ); of the spirit ( Prov 16:18 ; Eccl 7:8 ); and of one's mouth/speech ( 1 Sam 2:3 ). A classic text includes the words "pride," "conceit," "arrogance," and "haughtiness" ( Jer 48:29 ).

Fifteen Old Testament texts (NIV) contain the word "arrogance, " nearly half of them (7) in the prophets ( Isa 2:17 ; 9:9 ; 13:11 ; Jer 13:15 ; 48:29 ; Ezek 7:10 ; Hosea 5:5 ; 7:10 ). Five references are in poetical texts ( Job 35:12 ; Psalm 10:2 ; 17:10 ; 73:8 ; Prov 8:13 ), and three others are found in Deuteronomy 1:43; 1 Samuel 2:3; 15:23.

What constitutes a "proud" person? The negative sense points to a sinful individual who shifts ultimate confidence from God to self. In the Wisdom literature, "the proud" are distinct from "the righteous" and "the humble." Here the term is applied to non-Israelites, rather than to Israel. The Septuagint uses hyperephanos[uJperhvfano"], meaning one who is insolent, presumptuous, or arrogant, a scoffer or a mocker ( Psalms 119:21 Psalms 119:51 ; Prov 3:34 ). When the prophets accuse Israel of pride ( Jer 13:9 ; Ezekiel 7:10Ezekiel 7:20 ; 16:56 ; Hosea 5:5 ; 7:10 ; Amos 6:8 ; 8:7 ; Zeph 2:10 ), the word hybristes [uJbristhv"] connotes a wanton, insolent person. Thus, in the Old Testament books, the prideful are generally associated with the wicked, the arrogant, the presumptuous, and those who are insolent toward God.

There are certain things that can be traced to pride.

It’s not always arrogance and conceit.

There is a pride that’s not always obvious.

The most powerful pride has nothing to do with people being flashy or looks. IT’S IN YOUR DECISION MAKING!

Pride is idolatry. It’s stubbornness. The gift struggle with PRIDE.

The church is guilty for making stubbornness a personal character attribute, we missed the truth.

You cannot be a worshipper of our OWN and view GOD at the same time.

God doesn’t go away. The reason why you don’t feel, see or hear Him is because your Head is up your BUTT.

It’s not ok to admit that you’re stubborn and thinks it’s cute. We have made a mistake of calling our kids that and speaking it over their lives.

Stubborn: having or showing dogged determination not to change ones attitude or position on something, especially in spite of good arguments or reasons to do so.

You should not want to be this way! Here’s what id does to you:

It forces upon your life a dangerous and flexibility and it sends singles to God that you won’t make a turn even if he asks.

If you’re stubborn, you can’t be led by God.

You destiny is direction specific and if God can’t get you to heed and hear, He can’t lead you.

To have a God that loves you and can’t lead you?

He doesn’t lead by FORCE.

You can’t have israel and ishmael at the same time.

Your flesh will always MOCK your faith.

Fruit of Pride:

You cannot seek quarreling and fighting and not have pride.

Pride proves the point - doesn’t care about the person.

The bible says to prefer one another over yourself. Your opinion that lashes over the well-being of this relationship of this person is BAD.

Be angry and sin NOT. Until you can have an emotion that doesn’t control you, it’s a sign of pride.

You FAIL because your decision making in the emotion is HORRIBLE. The presence of the emotion is not justification of the action.

Feel and don’t do.

Desire can be rooted in pride

It’s important to be sober about why you want what you want.

Many people want achievement to retaliate at their childhood resentments. You’re trying to prove a point and always lose because it’s not rooted in obedience.

Achievement is a byproduct of what you obey. If it’s not, it’s PRIDE.

You can consider it Good all you want to — If GOD can’t see Himself in it, it’s not GOOD. Career, relationship, decision.... Here’s the truth: The things that are good for you doesn’t feel good for the moment - and that’s why you do what you want.

You can pray in pride

You can go before Him and ask for stuff from a place of pride.

Life, yourself....

Jesus taught: If you ask in Faith… this is given for purposeful humility.

The bible says He that cometh believe must believe HE is…not that you are.

Prayer must be I’m coming to you because You are what I’m NOT. I can’t manipulate GOD.

And then you get mad when your prayer isn’t answer. YOU ARE PRAYING TO YOURSELF!!!!!!! You can’t answer YOU.

The point of prayer was because you’re not good enough. SO I TALK TO SOMEONE WHO IS!!!!!!!!!!!!

How much around you is based on self-promotion? We should degrade others to get somewhere.

Your passions can be in pride

You want to spend on your passions...

Some of the things you’re passionate about is nothing but pride.

It is possible to have an uncircumcised passion.

Just because you are excited about it doesn’t mean that it came from God.

Open doors can be deceptive.

You’re excited for the door opening and you should be more worried about what’s being the door. It could be a trap!

Jesus said… i am the door. Satan just makes the door. BUT we don’t have the discern and bandwidth to determine if the door is God or not. Here’s how you can tell: IS IT GOING TO COST YOU SOMETHING?! Any invitation from God will invite you to lose something for the gain of HIM. Satan doors instantly GAIN you something (the world).

Satan loves to snare you by using the passions of your heart.

You can’t just want stuff OUT of God and never want HIM. THAT PRIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Your preferences (Passions) can be pride.

Adultery can be in pride

Talking to people that should have an allegiance to God and can’t because they have an allegiance to themselves.

Character can be in pride

He compares our character with the character of the world.

The only policy in the world is pride

There should be a difference between the world and us. LOVE SINNERS.... Don’t LIVE with them.

There’s no gospel that says get right or get life.

Jealousy can be in pride

Business strategy is rooted in personal evolution. If you’re bored with WHERE you are what you’re really saying is that you’re bored with WHO you are. EVOLVE. If the business isn’t productive, you aren’t either.

Everything isn’t worth your words. There is power in IGNORING.

Personal pride gets in the way of additional grace

He GIVES more GRACE...

You must make the daily decision to submit the thoughts, heart, choose words, phrases, appetite.. .your rights to your personality. The refusal ends you up broke.

God isn’t going to prosper the proud.

If you draw nigh to God, He’ll comes close

You think it’s speaking in tongues… praying for hours, laying out...

You do that by the act of humility

Humility brings you close. Pride brings you back.

HUMBLE yourself on your own without being told.

Humility is the key to destiny.

If you want to go further, HUMBLE yourself. Higher…

When God sees pride in you, He has to kill it. He will arrange things around you to show you there’s pride.

In a relationship: He’ll put His hand on one area of your life just to highlight your pride in another. Hand on money to deal about marriage. When people are broke they listen better. “I’ll do anything...”

Hardship may just be God trying to get your attention.

When you lift your hands and surrender, you make vows… God is taking notes in the moment when He has your heart - and then hell starts breaking some stuff up. Things show up… you said it in worship. Why you complaining? You made the convenant!

It will be unfair, intense, you want to fight, you must STAY low. LOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here’s where i wanted to get to.... With the sermon title. Pride can mess with insecurities

Many struggle, not with depression, the spirit of heaviness - and the reason is they focus too much on themselves.

You alway sit up thinking about what you got, what you don’t have, what they have, what they do - it’s called Self-Meditation........

It rooted in PRIDE.

I want to know how long you spend on yourself? Thinking about you… contemplating about you...

Your insecurities are always suggesting to you isolation. seclusion - a self moment.

You are SO stuck on you that you always miss HIM.

Pride can ruin your marriage, business, all relationships — Everyone didn’t always do something to you....................................................... Them, them them them.... YOU YOU YOU YOU...

IT’s created to ruin things… even you. You’ll get so far and then knocked back… SELF. You started to forget you (which is the point on the journey with God,) and went back for it.

Why: CYCLES ARE PRIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The forgetting of SELF and you want to go back to your former self!!!!!

Jesus say DENY YOURSELF.... pick up your cross.

Many of you think you’re carrying a cross but you’re really carrying a CORPSE!!!! The former… YOU.

SELF-Pleasure… PRIDE. Sex, with self or others, even in your mind… smoking weed… reading horoscopes, checking the aligning of stars, begging for prophetic words....... PRIDE.

I’m always the strong one… PRIDE.

I’m the one everyone comes to… PRIDE...

and the way these things show up is if no one does and you feel a certain way, that’s how you know its pride.

On Thursday, we’ll continue..... Leviathan.

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