Walk Of Life – Day 21, November 2020 – Thoughts From The Book Of Proverbs
A haughty look, a proud heart, And the plowing of the wicked are sin. Proverbs 21:4 (NKJV)
Haughty eyes and a proud heart, The lamp of the wicked, is sin. Proverbs 21:4 (NASB)
In other words, The lamp of the wicked or the guiding light of the wicked is haughty eyes and a proud heart, which is sin.
Haughty eyes – In a number of cultures like ours, it is considered a good thing to keep your gaze lowered especially when standing before a superior. Therefore, to have haughty eyes, means that one is being very arrogant and disrespectful. That actually means that you consider everyone else lower than yourself. Such people always tend to compare themselves with others and always conclude that they are more superior than anyone else. A person with haughty eyes always thinks he is right and everyone else is wrong. It is impossible for him to accept his mistake and apologize. The word “SORRY” is not part of his vocabulary at all. Haughty in the root meaning means to think yourself as high and mighty and firmly believe that there is no greater authority than yourself.
The Lord’s eyes are seeking throughout all the earth for persons whose heart is fixed on Him. I jotted down a few differences about the proud and the humble:
The proud heart:
- Focuses on other’s failures
- Self-righteous, critical and finding fault
- Looks at their own life through a telescope and others’ lives through a microscope
- Looks down on those they think are not as spiritual and committed as they are
- Thinks everyone is privileged to have them involved
The humble and the contrite spirit:
- Realizes how far they have fallen and have an overwhelming sense of their need to grow
- Forgiving and compassionate
- Looks for the best in others
- Seeks to win people not arguments
- Realizes that only the Lord knows a person’s true motives
- Leaves the judgement of the heart in the Lord’s hands
- Think they do not deserve the opportunities God gives them
2 Chronicles 16:9 ESV:
For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.”
The Lord is looking for a perfect heart, not a proud heart. Our eyes need to be fixed on the Lord Jesus. The more you see Christ and imitate Christ in your life, the more you begin to see your own unworthiness. Pride cannot enter a heart filled with the love of the Lord Jesus. Many of us have spiritual pride. We think that we know the whole Bible inside out. We know about the Lord Jesus but we do not seem to know the Lord Jesus himself. The Lord only honors those of a broken and a contrite spirit. If there is pride in your heart, weigh your relationship with the Lord Jesus. The central letter of the word PRIDE is I. The cross of Christ has to work in our lives so that self has to die. Our gaze needs to fixed on Christ and not on ourselves. Haughty eyes thinks of self as higher than anyone else. Eyes fixed on Christ cry out like the Pharisee “Lord have mercy on me a sinner” The Lord loves humility. Pride is sin and God detests the proud but gives grace to the humble.
May our prayer be to have our Father’s eyes not haughty eyes. Love this song, am quoting a few lines
“But that’s all right, as long as I can have one wish I pray:
When people look inside my life, I want to hear them say,
She’s got her father’s eyes, Her father’s eyes;
Eyes that find the good in things, When good is not around;
Eyes that find the source of help, When help just can’t be found;
Eyes full of compassion, Seeing every pain;
Knowing what you’re going through, And feeling it the same.
Just like my father’s eyes, My father’s eyes, My father’s eyes,
Just like my father’s eyes.”
The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 11:29 – Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Let us examine our lives today do I have a proud heart or a humble heart today.
“Pride needs to die in us for anything of heaven to live in us” Andrew Murray
“It was pride that changed angels into devils, it is humility that makes men as angels” Saint Augustine
