Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to the month of September 2022. My prayer is that none of the beautiful things God has prepared for your enjoyment in the month will be hindered from being yours, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Now when we are talking about people experiencing hindrances in their lives, it is not every time that Satan is to be held responsible. Sometimes, God Himself is to be held responsible for it. But why will God, who loved humanity so much that He gave His only begotten Son for them, want to hinder any man or woman from advancing in life? Pride is the reason.
Both James and Peter in their epistles tell us that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6; 1Peter 5:5). So, if you are proud, you can surely expect God’s resistance to progress in certain or all of the areas of your life. And one way we often unconsciously manifest pride is in our unwillingness to submit to authority.
As we see in the bible, there are people God has already commanded us to submit ourselves to. For example, our parents, husbands, employers and bosses, community leaders and government leaders are among those He wants us to submit to. He does not want us to disrespect these people or to disobey them, where their instructions do not conflict with His word and principles for righteous living. And if we go against this and begin to disregard them, we are simply walking in pride and will certainly see Him in action against our progress. Only He knows, then, how many of us are being limited or hindered in life because of this. (Cf. Romans 13:1-5; Eph 5:22; Eph 6:1-3; 1Pet 2:13-14; 1Pet 3:1-2)
Furthermore, in the church, we are taught by the Lord to submit to our leaders out of reverence for Christ (Eph 2:21). That means the church of God is not a place where you flex your muscles and act as you like. There are people God has placed over you there to watch over your soul and care for you, so that you may become all that He wants you to become. It is important, therefore, that you yield yourself to these people and not make it difficult for them to lead you, as long as they are not leading you away from the truth of God’s word. Otherwise, as the bible points out, it will not be for your benefit at all. God will certainly deal with you according to your pride. (Cf. Heb 13:17)
Unfortunately, there are many in the church today that pride will not make them learn what will profit them or make them experience the fullness of the goodness of God that could have been theirs through their leaders. They are like the nobles among the men of Tekoa mentioned in the book of Nehemiah, who would not submit to their supervisors when the walls of Jerusalem were being rebuilt by all the people (Neh 3:5). Such people are unconsciously hindering the work of God among His people. So, He too will limit His works in their lives.
You can see, then, that rebellion to authority is not at all in your interest. So, deal with whatever form of pride you have in you that is causing you to act in rebellion towards those that God has appointed over you. And may be the Spirit of God lead and also strengthen you to do what is right about this matter, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Have a pleasant week.
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