OBADIAH 1–4 – The vision of Obadiah. Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom: We have heard a report from the Lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations: “Rise up! Let us rise against her for battle!” 2 Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you shall be utterly despised. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, in your lofty dwelling, who say in your heart, “Who will bring me down to the ground?” Though you soar aloft like the eagle, though your nest is set among the stars, from there I will bring you down, declares the Lord.”
THEME OF THE DAY: THE LORD AND PRIDE. Pride. It is the ugliest thing in all the world. Pride. It is what made Satan, Satan, getting him kicked out of heaven. Pride. It is the cause of severe relational damage in any relationship. Pride. It is what the 17th century Puritan pastor George Swinnock said, “The first coat put on at birth and the last one taken off at death.” Pride. It is what takes people to hell. Pride. It is one of the seven things the Lord specifically hates – These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren (Proverbs 6:16-19). And pride is the number one area we must do battle against every day of our lives. But it is also the chief area the Lord does battle against in His world, and that in both unbelievers and believers.
In today’s scripture is the vision of the minor prophet Obadiah concerning the land of Edom. This vision is not for the faint of heart. It is hard-hitting and shows with much clarity and severity the Lord’s attitude toward pride and actions against pride. Now we must be careful in addressing the recipients of the Lord’s attitude and action against pride. The recipient is the people of Edom. Yes, Edom was a wicked and godless nation. Yes, it overflowed with sinful pride, but don’t point “out there” at the Edomites of the land. We need to point at ourselves because there is a little Edomite in each of us. No, not godlessness, but pride. What the Lord did to wicked Edom over pride, He does to His children who harbor pride. He disciplines them, not as punishment, but correction to remove pride and it will be painful.
I won’t go into the details of the Lord’s work in Edom to remove pride. Our purpose in today’s nugget is to simply get a better understanding of our Lord’s attitude and action toward the sin of pride. In doing so, may we be humble and realize afresh the ugliness of pride, the destructive nature of pride, and see how seriously committed the Lord is to remove it from His children. And one verse will help us go a long way in learning this better. It is found in the New Testament letter of James – But God gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6).
The word James uses to describe God’s action against pride is “opposes” and is not of light nature. It literally means, “to be hostile toward, to rage against, to meet in battle.” Get the picture? God will come against the prideful person as an adversary, an enemy, a combatant, and when God goes to war, He never loses. What about the Christian? God will never be our enemy. We are reconciled by the Lord Jesus forever, but if we insist on being full of pride and living proud lives, He will feel and appear like our enemy. And that hurts. Bad. We may avoid this “combat feeling” relationship with the Lord by submitting to His work of humbling us, and developing humility in us. Does it hurt? Yes, but the fruit of a closer relationship with Him is worth it, and it all begins with seeing the Lord’s attitude and action against pride.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me for my pride that manifests itself in many ways and none more glaring that being critical.”
QUOTE: “Pride is the ugliest thing in all the world, making Christians more like the devil than the Lord Jesus.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim