(1Co 13:4 AMP) Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily.
*** There is no greater expectation of us from God than that of walking in His love. As we are learning these characteristics of love, we are actually learning how God expects us to live.
We have covered 4 of the 20, here is #5: Love is not Boastful or Vainglorious
Boastful: to speak of one’s self with excessive pride; having an excessively high opinion of oneself.
Vainglory: unwarranted pride in one’s accomplishments or qualities. In today’s vernacular, this is basically being “full of yourself.”
* There is a thin line between confidence and arrogance and even the best of us cross that line from time to time. That’s why we must
Pride is the silent killer in the church.
- You can sing a great song, and people get touched by God, but if you sang it in pride, you’ll miss out on your blessing.
- You can preach a great sermon and people, and people get touched by God, but if you did it in pride, you’ll miss out on your blessing.
- You can fool others, but you can’t fool God. He sees your heart and He knows your pride!
Pride is a characteristic of satan. It’s one of his BIG 3 (1 Jn 2:16):
1) the lust of the flesh
2) the lust of the eyes
3) the pride of life
- Solomon said, “Pride goes before destruction… ” (Proverbs 16:18).
- This is what happened to satan. Pride got him kicked out of heaven.
- Satan said, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13,14).
So remember:
1. While it’s not God’s will for you to have a low self-esteem, arrogance is not His will either.
2. You are not a self-made man/woman. You are who you are by the grace of God.
3. When the glory comes, deflect it back to God. You get the benefits, He gets the glory!
