Isaiah 14:13-14
“But you said in your heart, `I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. `I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”
In Isaiah 14:13-14, we get a glimpse of pride in Satan, as well as the potential of how pride can show itself in us. Pride brings us into contention with God. Pride will exalt us into breaking one or more of His commandments and change the course of life. Pride can exalt us to deny what a scripture clearly says to defend a privately held belief.
Pride will exalt us against brothers in the church fellowship so we do not really love them. Pride can lead to discord among the brethren, through gossiping about them, accusing, cutting them down and removing ourselves from fellowshipping with them. It will make us contend with our brothers over scriptures that have little or nothing to do with salvation, but “winning” an argument will become very important to us so we will not lose face.
It is no wonder Proverbs 28:25 says, “He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the LORD will be prospered.” God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Whenever we witness contention that disrupts unity, where confusion and frustration are being produced, we can be sure that Satan’s dominant attitude is infecting the group. We need to examine ourselves to see where we may need to repent.
