Pride...No Way to Go, But Down

Human history repeatedly shows us how blinding pride can be. Hitler once claimed as he marched through the eastern countries, "Today Europe, tomorrow the world!" He was dead only a few years later, and Germany was in shambles. Maybe the most dangerous thing about pride is how it distorts reality. People often believe that the ends justifies the means.....this will never hold water before the God of Truth.

Pride??? Who......us??? We see time and again where the countries surrounding Israel (Judah) are marked as prideful. The Israelites are compared to their gentile neighbors when they have followed false gods and turned from the Lord. Does this mean that God considers these countries an enemy, for which there is no hope? Absolutely not! The passages we read today reveal God's concern for these nations. We read about Egypt and Babylon in prophecy denouncing the god, Amon. God explains that there is no other god before Him, and He will see these false gods driven from His lands. Even if the Egyptians didn't hear the word of the Lord in this time, the Israelites certainly did. And, some of Judah had surely adopted the gods of the pagan lands around them. They may have forgotten much of their history, but something tells me they knew what was coming. Jeremiah had been saying it for years.

Even in the midst of all of this chaos, God's promise remains. "I will save a remnant. Do not fear, Jacob." These people shall return, they shall have peace and rest. But, at this time, the Lord has spoken. These people have gone too far, and God is calling them back. The close of these chapters is the prophecy concerning the fall of the Philistines and God addresses Moab. The city, who like Egypt, had trusted in it's own ability, wealth, and powerful name during these years. The city who thought it was strong enough to overtake the world and sustain power. Pride does evil in the sight of God. Pride has not way to go but down.

I continue to be on this journey with you girls. These chapters are hard to reconcile. I will not claim to understand all of this, and hope I never think that I do. I can rest tonight knowing that God is still working on me. He speaks to me through His word. When I decrease, He increases. When He works through me, He works on me. I am humbled when He takes my meager offerings and uses them for His great glory. I pray He removes more of me, and makes room for more of Him......