Matthew 2:1-3 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the regin of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."
King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem.
Pride! Finally I understand pride! I have sort of got "pride" but somehow I would get so completely confused. We teach our children to be proud of their achievements. We learn to be proud of ourselves when we accomplish something. Yet we are not suppose to be prideful! I just somehow could not wrap my mind around this. It bothered me greatly, because I knew that I should not be prideful and I didn't want to be. But I also knew that pride in my accomplishments was a good thing, it helped me want to accomplish more and we are suppose to be fruitful.
As I read this my thought about King Herod being deeply disturbed by the birth of Jesus was because he was prideful! I almost jumped out of my seat because I finally "got it".... I finally understood pride. Herod thought he was best suited to be King, Herod thought he knew more than anybody what was best for Jerusalem. All the people that loved King Herod were disturbed too, because they liked what King Herod was doing for them, they liked having what they had and they didn't want to give it up. They didn't want change. They didn't want a new king because they had a king that suited what they wanted in life. They didn't want someone to tell them to do things differently. King Herod didn't want someone to be king over him. Pride is thinking that we know better. Pride is not listening to others. Pride is not accepting change because we are happy with what we have now. Pride is not falling under the will of God because we think we know better or because we like things they way they are even if things could be better. Pride is thinking we are better than the next person. Pride is being too proud of where we are in life to allow change. Pride is thinking we do things all on our own and not giving God the credit for all that we have. Pride is thinking that we deserve more than somebody else. Pride is forgetting that all that we have belongs to God.
I am so relieved to finally "get" the meaning of pride as it is talked about in the Bible. Knowledge is power... knowing what God means makes us more powerful Christians because it makes us more able to fall under the will of God. I pray that God gives me more and more understanding of His word so that I can be a better follower of His instruction.
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