Spiritual Pride
This is a problem that certainly seems to be rampant in the IC. The Lord has been speaking loudly to me about this all week, since I had an experience during worship last Sunday. I hope I haven't waited too long to air it, because I think the Lord wanted me to write about it right away.
Matthew 20:20-28
Luke 6:37-38
John 13:34-35
Matthew 18:1-4,19
Last Sunday I was in one of the churches I visit, worshipping with great delight, and the Lord gave me a word of encouragement for a dear friend of mine, a worship leader returning to that role in the church after a long absence. As I was later making a few notes so I could remember all the Lord wanted me to share with her, I felt the Spirit saying to me, "Think and pray about spiritual pride as a breaker of relationships."
I heard the Spirit of God saying to me, "My dear child, repent of your spiritual pride. Repent of the times you have ignored the friendships of those you thought were less advanced in their faith than you. Repent of the times you have failed to answer an e-mail, failed to acknowledge a prayer or a thought, failed to share time with someone you thought was lesser than you on the religious food chain. My daughter, I detest spiritual pride. I have called, and am calling again, my beloved sons and daughters to become as little children, before Me and before each other. I love each of you and I have gifted each of you to be an honor and a prize to me, and to each other. There is no one greater in the Kingdom than any other. No one is called to any exalted position but the King of Kings Himself, Who secured His position by sacrificing all He had for those who could never be close to worthy of Him!
"My child, the mark of My followers is your love for each other. When you love your own "wisdom", your own "anointing", your own "position", your own "spiritual knowledge" more than any other one of My children, it erodes the relationship you have with Me Myself. And it breaks relationship within My body. As you reject each other, you lose something important of Me. Only by drawing closer to each other can you experience that which I have put in each of you. In reverencing each other's uniqueness you reverence the One Who created each one of you. Your own anointing is tarnished and dulled as you question or ignore the anointing of another. Most especially, it is not your place to question or critique the worship of any other of My children! This is the deepest kinds of injury, and in inflicting it you hurt yourself.
"My son was despised and rejected of men. No true follower of His would knowingly reject another part of Him. Rejection is now, sadly, an epidemic disease in My body. I am calling you to reach out and heal it. Do not judge others' expressions of love for Me or faith in Me. Do not put yourself in the position of policing the Kingdom. The judgment for judgment is judgment! But instead, reach out and love and respect and cherish and look for the light of Messiah in each other, and as you repent of false judgment, you will find healing for the pain you too have experienced.
"Beloved daughter, I encourage you as you encourage this sister of yours who has been devalued and wounded by those very ones to whom she is a gift, and who should have been blessed by her anointing. That anointing and her own humility are so needed as My Kingdom comes to fruition. And she is not the only one who bears Me in her spirit and has a word from Me, and has been rejected and ignored by those to whom I sent them. This day I call upon you to seek Me for greater spiritual sight, to see Yeshua in each one, to see the precious gifts in each one, that the Body may grow together and that deep healing and spiritual growth which are so greatly needed in this hour may begin."
Father, we do repent of spiritual pride, which has widened the gap between us as a people. Worse yet, it has put a gulf between us and you, Lord. Lord, for myself many, many times I have been guilty of this sin, Lord. Forgive me and cover me with the Blood of your Son, that I can start over to rebuild broken relationships. I know, Lord, that this is a time when you are calling many of us to account and when you are pointing out serious issues we must deal with NOW. Lord, I thank You that Your body has so many members, Lord, so many precious ones who are wonderfully different, wonderfully gifted. Your Son saw deep into each heart and blessed them all. Thank you in advance for giving me clearer spiritual sight and for building in me spiritual humility, that I may NEVER forget the value of others or the great Otherness of You. Draw us together, Lord, and restore us, to the glory of Your Holy Name!
Amen and Amen!
Matthew 20:20-28
Luke 6:37-38
John 13:34-35
Matthew 18:1-4,19
Last Sunday I was in one of the churches I visit, worshipping with great delight, and the Lord gave me a word of encouragement for a dear friend of mine, a worship leader returning to that role in the church after a long absence. As I was later making a few notes so I could remember all the Lord wanted me to share with her, I felt the Spirit saying to me, "Think and pray about spiritual pride as a breaker of relationships."
I heard the Spirit of God saying to me, "My dear child, repent of your spiritual pride. Repent of the times you have ignored the friendships of those you thought were less advanced in their faith than you. Repent of the times you have failed to answer an e-mail, failed to acknowledge a prayer or a thought, failed to share time with someone you thought was lesser than you on the religious food chain. My daughter, I detest spiritual pride. I have called, and am calling again, my beloved sons and daughters to become as little children, before Me and before each other. I love each of you and I have gifted each of you to be an honor and a prize to me, and to each other. There is no one greater in the Kingdom than any other. No one is called to any exalted position but the King of Kings Himself, Who secured His position by sacrificing all He had for those who could never be close to worthy of Him!
"My child, the mark of My followers is your love for each other. When you love your own "wisdom", your own "anointing", your own "position", your own "spiritual knowledge" more than any other one of My children, it erodes the relationship you have with Me Myself. And it breaks relationship within My body. As you reject each other, you lose something important of Me. Only by drawing closer to each other can you experience that which I have put in each of you. In reverencing each other's uniqueness you reverence the One Who created each one of you. Your own anointing is tarnished and dulled as you question or ignore the anointing of another. Most especially, it is not your place to question or critique the worship of any other of My children! This is the deepest kinds of injury, and in inflicting it you hurt yourself.
"My son was despised and rejected of men. No true follower of His would knowingly reject another part of Him. Rejection is now, sadly, an epidemic disease in My body. I am calling you to reach out and heal it. Do not judge others' expressions of love for Me or faith in Me. Do not put yourself in the position of policing the Kingdom. The judgment for judgment is judgment! But instead, reach out and love and respect and cherish and look for the light of Messiah in each other, and as you repent of false judgment, you will find healing for the pain you too have experienced.
"Beloved daughter, I encourage you as you encourage this sister of yours who has been devalued and wounded by those very ones to whom she is a gift, and who should have been blessed by her anointing. That anointing and her own humility are so needed as My Kingdom comes to fruition. And she is not the only one who bears Me in her spirit and has a word from Me, and has been rejected and ignored by those to whom I sent them. This day I call upon you to seek Me for greater spiritual sight, to see Yeshua in each one, to see the precious gifts in each one, that the Body may grow together and that deep healing and spiritual growth which are so greatly needed in this hour may begin."
Father, we do repent of spiritual pride, which has widened the gap between us as a people. Worse yet, it has put a gulf between us and you, Lord. Lord, for myself many, many times I have been guilty of this sin, Lord. Forgive me and cover me with the Blood of your Son, that I can start over to rebuild broken relationships. I know, Lord, that this is a time when you are calling many of us to account and when you are pointing out serious issues we must deal with NOW. Lord, I thank You that Your body has so many members, Lord, so many precious ones who are wonderfully different, wonderfully gifted. Your Son saw deep into each heart and blessed them all. Thank you in advance for giving me clearer spiritual sight and for building in me spiritual humility, that I may NEVER forget the value of others or the great Otherness of You. Draw us together, Lord, and restore us, to the glory of Your Holy Name!
Amen and Amen!
Views: 14
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on -
Anne .... thank you, I needed this today.
I'm soaking in the beauty of your heart here ... which is overflowing with His love and acceptance of all, as it splashes onto me...
There's a word that comes to mind, a word I long rejcected as "too new age" ... but He recently had me look at the word through fresh eyes, as He reminded me that He's "snuck" His truth into all the earth, all the peoples ... that word is "Namaste" -- and it means "the divine in me (Jesus) recognizes and responds to the divine in you (Jesus)."
And so, I say to you Anne, Namaste...!
Shalom, Dena
"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the
unquestioned answers."
"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking only to
learn that it is God shaking them." - Charles West
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Permalink Reply by Marion Clark Ingram on
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Anne, this is a sure and a timely word from the Lord because pride still "comes before a fall," and the Father "still resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Many in the "Body" still view humbleness as an undesirable trait as the world views kindness as weakness. I have been in fulltime ministry almost thirty years now, and the Father is still telling me that the way up is down. So often over the years, the Father would encourage me to ask forgiveness of those who seemed to have "aught" against me. I would do just that ,but no one ever responded. They probably felt that I was always at fault. Well, I have always enjoyed a peaceful life regardless of circumstances or situations. Many that I have discipled don't understand why I esteem others highly regardless to their "status" in the Kingdom (because the Bible says to do so). We must continue to send the message that in the Kingdom of God there are no big I's and little you's.
The Father keeps me on track by repeating a simple phrase to my spirit quite often..."The mind of Christ, and the heart of God." This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments with this simple reminder. I love the ways of the Lord because they are absolutely excellent, and they produce godly results.
I am a blogger here on SimpleChurch.com also. Isn't it great ?!
Thank you for sharing this powerful word.
Marion Clark Ingram/author
"HIS DAUGHTERS DO PROPHESY"
(With A Word For You)
BarnesandNoble.com
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Permalink Reply by Dena Brehm on
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Hello, Marion ...
I agree -- it's an upside-down Kingdom we're in...!
You wrote: This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments
Care to share...?
I love hearing how He works outside the box!
Shalom, Dena
"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the
unquestioned answers."
"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking only to
learn that it is God shaking them." - Charles West
Marion Clark Ingram said:Anne, this is a sure and a timely word from the Lord because pride still "comes before a fall," and the Father "still resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Many in the "Body" still view humbleness as an undesirable trait as the world views kindness as weakness. I have been in fulltime ministry almost thirty years now, and the Father is still telling me that the way up is down. So often over the years, the Father would encourage me to ask forgiveness of those who seemed to have "aught" against me. I would do just that ,but no one ever responded. They probably felt that I was always at fault. Well, I have always enjoyed a peaceful life regardless of circumstances or situations. Many that I have discipled don't understand why I esteem others highly regardless to their "status" in the Kingdom (because the Bible says to do so). We must continue to send the message that in the Kingdom of God there are no big I's and little you's.
The Father keeps me on track by repeating a simple phrase to my spirit quite often..."The mind of Christ, and the heart of God." This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments with this simple reminder. I love the ways of the Lord because they are absolutely excellent, and they produce godly results.
I am a blogger here on SimpleChurch.com also. Isn't it great ?!
Thank you for sharing this powerful word.
Marion Clark Ingram/author
"HIS DAUGHTERS DO PROPHESY"
(With A Word For You)
BarnesandNoble.com
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Permalink Reply by Anne Chick on -
Wow!! That is lovely, and I needed the kindness and Jesus-heart of your response!!
Thank you, Dena!
Dena Brehm said:Anne .... thank you, I needed this today.
I'm soaking in the beauty of your heart here ... which is overflowing with His love and acceptance of all, as it splashes onto me...
There's a word that comes to mind, a word I long rejcected as "too new age" ... but He recently had me look at the word through fresh eyes, as He reminded me that He's "snuck" His truth into all the earth, all the peoples ... that word is "Namaste" -- and it means "the divine in me (Jesus) recognizes and responds to the divine in you (Jesus)."
And so, I say to you Anne, Namaste...!
Shalom, Dena
"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the
unquestioned answers."
"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking only to
learn that it is God shaking them." - Charles West
-
Permalink Reply by Anne Chick on
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Marion, I am very touched by your reply -- truly from the heart of a wise and seasoned woman of God. I am so blessed by this wonderful opportunity to come into community with some godly and wise and caring people. Thank you again for sharing your thoughts on this ...which has burdened me for my whole walk with the Lord!
Love in Messiah,
Anne
Marion Clark Ingram said:Anne, this is a sure and a timely word from the Lord because pride still "comes before a fall," and the Father "still resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Many in the "Body" still view humbleness as an undesirable trait as the world views kindness as weakness. I have been in fulltime ministry almost thirty years now, and the Father is still telling me that the way up is down. So often over the years, the Father would encourage me to ask forgiveness of those who seemed to have "aught" against me. I would do just that ,but no one ever responded. They probably felt that I was always at fault. Well, I have always enjoyed a peaceful life regardless of circumstances or situations. Many that I have discipled don't understand why I esteem others highly regardless to their "status" in the Kingdom (because the Bible says to do so). We must continue to send the message that in the Kingdom of God there are no big I's and little you's.
The Father keeps me on track by repeating a simple phrase to my spirit quite often..."The mind of Christ, and the heart of God." This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments with this simple reminder. I love the ways of the Lord because they are absolutely excellent, and they produce godly results.
I am a blogger here on SimpleChurch.com also. Isn't it great ?!
Thank you for sharing this powerful word.
Marion Clark Ingram/author
"HIS DAUGHTERS DO PROPHESY"
(With A Word For You)
BarnesandNoble.com
-
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Hello Dena,
Well, my whole ministry, or rather, my "work" as the Father refers to it has been unorthodox. I am sixty-one now , and I accepted my call twenty-eight years ago by the laying on of hands by the Bishop of the organization that I was a part of at that time. I was three years late in responding because I had other plans for my life. My first "official" assignment was to close down a cult on the east coast that was trying to take root. The Lord accomplished this through me and several others in four years after my arrival there. This was "boot camp" training for the work that would be assigned to me over the years. God gave the victory! He hates bondage because He sent Jesus to set the captives free.
Because so much of my work has been with leadership I have to move with much integrity and honor. Therefore, I will have to reserve sharing my recent assignments until a more appropriate time. But I will soon complete my memoirs of the past twenty-eight years of a labor of love. Years ago the Father told me that I would write a book entitled "WITHOUT APOLOGY." I had no clue when He spoke it, but as time went on I began to see clearly what He meant. He brought me out of the pulpits of traditional church settings (unless assigned to go) and sent me to see about His people wherever He led me. Thus, my new book is entitled "WITHOUT APOLOGY: On Call For God." I have been sent to address powers of darkness in many arenas. I have been sent to stand in the gap ( for a year) until every member of a family (5) was healed from various afflictions.
I have been away from my home sometimes for weeks, months or years. I have been assigned to corporate organizations, churches, families and even communities. It was not the work that I would have chosen, but I do not apologize because the Father has never apologized to me for my call.
I honor and thank Him for what He entrusted to my hands because I love God and His people...ALL of them.
Dena, possibly I will be allowed to share more specifically in the near future. In the "secret place," God taught me that He is worthy to be obeyed as well as praised.
I am so blessed by the thoughts and teachings that all of you share here because there is such a wealth of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding in the mist of God's people. God led me to facilitate a Bookreading and Poetry Night once a month in my home so that "church" people along with others could have the freedom to express their feelings...doubts,questions, hopes,musings,fears;etc. unreligiously. From this endeavor, I see many getting in touch with truth without "fronting." That's why I am so drawn to this site.
May the Father Continue to Bless Us All,
Marion
Dena Brehm said:Hello, Marion ...
I agree -- it's an upside-down Kingdom we're in...!
You wrote: This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments
Care to share...?
I love hearing how He works outside the box!
Shalom, Dena
"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the
unquestioned answers."
"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking only to
learn that it is God shaking them." - Charles West
Marion Clark Ingram said:Anne, this is a sure and a timely word from the Lord because pride still "comes before a fall," and the Father "still resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Many in the "Body" still view humbleness as an undesirable trait as the world views kindness as weakness. I have been in fulltime ministry almost thirty years now, and the Father is still telling me that the way up is down. So often over the years, the Father would encourage me to ask forgiveness of those who seemed to have "aught" against me. I would do just that ,but no one ever responded. They probably felt that I was always at fault. Well, I have always enjoyed a peaceful life regardless of circumstances or situations. Many that I have discipled don't understand why I esteem others highly regardless to their "status" in the Kingdom (because the Bible says to do so). We must continue to send the message that in the Kingdom of God there are no big I's and little you's.
The Father keeps me on track by repeating a simple phrase to my spirit quite often..."The mind of Christ, and the heart of God." This year He has sent me some very unorthodox assignments with this simple reminder. I love the ways of the Lord because they are absolutely excellent, and they produce godly results.
I am a blogger here on SimpleChurch.com also. Isn't it great ?!
Thank you for sharing this powerful word.
Marion Clark Ingram/author
"HIS DAUGHTERS DO PROPHESY"
(With A Word For You)
BarnesandNoble.com
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Permalink Reply by Anne Chick on
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Wonderful!!! Right on!!! Thank you for this expression of godly wisdom!!!
Al Silvestri said:Amen!!! Anne, I've been asking the Lord to give me eyes to see people as He sees them. I get irritated with people because often I'm looking at the outward actions (manifestations of the attitude of the heart that I am also susceptible to). The sword of the Spirit is given to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. To war in the Spirit for the people we come into contact with and for ourselves to keep watch over the thoughts and intents of our own hearts (it can certainly be deceiving). It's a fight, but He is faithful, and will bring His work to completion, to His glory, through us. Amen!
In Him,
Al
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Permalink Reply by Dana Cashwell on -
It is completely apparent to me that Anne, you are a prophet. Your writing reminds me of Isaiah. Revelation of wrong, God's word on the subject and then a prayer for all of us. I stand amazed.
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Permalink Reply by Larry Montes on -
Humily seems to be scarce now a days, pride seems to eat a lot of people even Christians. The division that besets the church today is the product of spiritual pride, we can't seem to accept that God in all His wisdom created us unique from each other and purposed us to work on different parts of the single boat that we are in. I my self have been inflicted and found out that when it is allowed to enter it will do everything to stay. Let us all pray that we could guard our hearts and see the onset of the cancer that eats our spirits, let us always be watching for our enemy is like a roaring lion waiting to devour.
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