“Humility is better than pride” (10 min.)
Has something ever happened to you that made you feel proud? Well, I think most of us have experienced that nice feeling at some point. There is nothing wrong with feeling a certain degree of pride. For example, you as parents find out from your child's good behavior grades and application in school.
Their faces are probably going to light up with satisfaction. Or within the congregation to have a beautiful privilege, a new privilege for you, exclusively for you. That gives satisfaction because it shows that they are observing our spiritual progress.
So pride can refer to the satisfaction you feel for something you do or own. But if we do not know how to control it, it can give the appearance of considering ourselves superior due to our capacity. So it can get out of hand. And if that happens, it can become one of the most detestable expressions of pride, haughtiness or haughtiness.
How different is the humble person? The humble person always recognizes that there is someone who surpasses him in some aspect and that he tries to maintain peace with others, not by giving the appearance of being a fool but rather by having a good friendship and tranquility with others. Precisely about this we are going to talk in Treasures of the Bible with the theme: "humility is better than pride."
Let's look at the benefits and for this let's use the example of Gideon. We have already seen in the past week how this man, at first fearful, then with the help of Jehovah, gained courage and had an impressive battle with only 300 men led supported by Jehovah.
But after this beautiful strategy and victory came problems for him, apparently instead of praising him for the good work, for being a judge led by Jehovah. However, problems come.
LET'S READ: Judges 8: 1-3.
Then the men of Ephraim asked Gideon, “What did you do to us? Why didn't you tell us when you went to fight Midian? And they violently reproached him. 2 But he replied, “And what did I do compared to what you have done? Is not what is left of the harvest of Ephraim better than all the harvest of Abí-Ezer? 3 God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the princes of Midian, into their hands. What have I done compared to you? When he spoke to them like this, they calmed down.
What well-chosen and reassuring words Gideon used with these from the tribe of Ephraim! Why did he do it? Because he wanted to avoid what could be a disastrous war between the tribes. Ephraim may have had a conceit and pride problem, but that didn't stop Gideon from going out of his way to make peace with them.
And it is that Gideon was a man who did not seek glory for himself, but always directed it towards Jehovah. Let us now look at the proposal that they make to Gideon after seeing that he was a person who followed a military strategy, although it was known that he was the backing of Jehovah.
LET'S READ: Judges 8: 22-23.
Later, the men of Israel said to Gideon: "Rule us, you, and also your son and your grandson, because you have rescued us from the hands of Midian." 23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. Jehovah is the one who will rule them.
The week before we were reviewing the book of Judges, we saw how Gideon was approached by an angel. I speak to him in a pleasant way that he could put on a very, very high pride. However, he acknowledged that he had a humble background and although he accepted Jehovah's assignment, he also made sure that he understood everything that was expected of him.
She was very brave, but she was also wise because she was asking Jehovah for some signs to do the right thing. After this, he did not take advantage of the assignment to highlight the proposal that they made here in Judges 8: 22,23 was to be a ruler, the head of the Government, who would come for years or who knows, centuries, because what they proposed to him was that all his descendants, such as Gideon was, would possibly be good rulers. But the words he said to them is "Jehovah is the one who will rule them." All honor was given to God.
When we also play a beautiful role within the congregation, how do we act? How do we respond? For example, if you gave a good speech, a good presentation, you have students who are progressing and you are praised for that. Say to him: "Brother, what a good speech, you are the best speaker in the congregation." What do we do? Are we proud? It is not bad because we have done a good job.
But why not say, "With Jehovah's help we can all do something well done in the congregation." Let us always try to direct praise to Jehovah. He is the one who prepares us. We can't be good speakers, or good preachers, or anything like that. If it had not been for Jehovah's help and the training that the congregation has received.
How different we are proud. For example, the Biblical account of Judges 9 speaks of Abimelech. He didn't just hurt others. He also hurt himself. It seems his ancestry and it made him proud.
LET'S READ: Judges 9: 1,2.
In time, Abimelech son of Jerubaal went to Shechem, to his mother's brothers, and began to speak to them and the entire family of his mother's father's house, saying: 2 “Please speak in the ears of all the landowners of Shechem: 'What is better for you, that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubaal, rule over you, or that one man rule over you? And you have to remember that I am your bone and your flesh. '
What a proud way to speak! He was definitely hurting himself. The biblical record indicates that later he killed the 70 sons of Jerubaal, that is, his half-brothers to rule. And he did it for 3 years. However, he later died a very painful death.
When we speak in a mellow way, in a way as to try to get certain responsibilities, be it at work, in the family or in the congregation, we are hurting ourselves. Sooner or later we will fail to be proud. It is not bad to feel pride in certain things or activities that we achieve.
But when it is, it is compensated with humility and not only in appearance, but real humility. That person is appreciated. Jehovah uses humble people. We love being with the humble. We are happy to be able to attract others if we are humble and above all things we come to have the friendship of Jehovah, that although it may not seem like it, he is also humble.
Since King David once said "Your humility makes me great." Jehovah is also a person who appreciates those who know how to recognize our position and is not used at a convenient time within his organization.
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