Obadiah 1:3-4 The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwelleth in the clefts of the rocks, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground? Though thou exaltest thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.
Beware, ye proud and haughty! That’s Obadiah’s warning to the people of Edom. They exalted themselves without consideration of the Most High, and He intensely dislikes those particular traits of pride and ‘self exaltation.’ He likes to be given His just due. Understand this people, we can do nothing without the Lord’s help. So if our star happens to shine rather brightly and we rise to abnormal heights, don’t pound your chest and figure it was all your doing. The Creator, most likely, had a hand in it. Hn! But have you ever noticed that the wealthy and pretentious just seem to gravitate to high places to build their luxurious abodes? It’s always something Hills, Heights, or Cliffs, but invariably the homes of the power brokers tend to be on higher ground than those of ordinary folk. And oftimes, how much you possess, dictates how high up you live. But have you also noticed the contradictory phenomenon, that at the foot of most of these posh mountainsides, resides a poor, ghetto-like enclave? You’ve got to pass through the run down section, to get to the wealthy heights. Friends, there’s nothing wrong with building a nice house in the high hills. The problem develops when you allow that to become a status symbol; believing that you’ve arrived, that it gives you bragging rights, makes you better than others, and you begin strutting like a peacock, forgetting your humble roots, being consumed by the powerful, but also destructive sin of pride. Sadly though, our society today is mired in the adulation of the so-called celebrity; the ego-maniacal system that overnight, creates stars and superstars out of fickle, feeble persons without any real inner strength or substance. Notice too, that these insubstantial stars crash and burn just as quickly. The latest being Heath Ledger; Star Extraordinary, Sex Symbol. It seems he had the world by the tail, but at age 28, he crashed and burned, alone, in a lonely hotel room, apparently of an overdose of something or other. Friends, this fast, high stepping, loose living, better than thou lifestyle that’s so prevalent today, is not conducive to the good, brotherly relationships the Most High wants us to cultivate. It only causes us to try to outdo each other, then primp and preen and boast about what we have and where we live. The acquisition of material wealth is quite acceptable, when used to help our brothers, not lord it over them. As the Crown Prince of Reggae, Dennis Brown, says in one of his songs, ‘Birds fly too fast, miss their nests, and if yuh run, run too fast, yuh bound to tumble down.’ Friends, please don’t let that happen to us. Selfish, high minded living is not what Jesus is about, and if we foolishly exalt ourselves as eagles, and build our nests on high, ‘thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.’ Much LOVE!…remember…pride goeth before a fall…always did… and always shall…
Beware, ye proud and haughty! That’s Obadiah’s warning to the people of Edom. They exalted themselves without consideration of the Most High, and He intensely dislikes those particular traits of pride and ‘self exaltation.’ He likes to be given His just due. Understand this people, we can do nothing without the Lord’s help. So if our star happens to shine rather brightly and we rise to abnormal heights, don’t pound your chest and figure it was all your doing. The Creator, most likely, had a hand in it. Hn! But have you ever noticed that the wealthy and pretentious just seem to gravitate to high places to build their luxurious abodes? It’s always something Hills, Heights, or Cliffs, but invariably the homes of the power brokers tend to be on higher ground than those of ordinary folk. And oftimes, how much you possess, dictates how high up you live. But have you also noticed the contradictory phenomenon, that at the foot of most of these posh mountainsides, resides a poor, ghetto-like enclave? You’ve got to pass through the run down section, to get to the wealthy heights. Friends, there’s nothing wrong with building a nice house in the high hills. The problem develops when you allow that to become a status symbol; believing that you’ve arrived, that it gives you bragging rights, makes you better than others, and you begin strutting like a peacock, forgetting your humble roots, being consumed by the powerful, but also destructive sin of pride. Sadly though, our society today is mired in the adulation of the so-called celebrity; the ego-maniacal system that overnight, creates stars and superstars out of fickle, feeble persons without any real inner strength or substance. Notice too, that these insubstantial stars crash and burn just as quickly. The latest being Heath Ledger; Star Extraordinary, Sex Symbol. It seems he had the world by the tail, but at age 28, he crashed and burned, alone, in a lonely hotel room, apparently of an overdose of something or other. Friends, this fast, high stepping, loose living, better than thou lifestyle that’s so prevalent today, is not conducive to the good, brotherly relationships the Most High wants us to cultivate. It only causes us to try to outdo each other, then primp and preen and boast about what we have and where we live. The acquisition of material wealth is quite acceptable, when used to help our brothers, not lord it over them. As the Crown Prince of Reggae, Dennis Brown, says in one of his songs, ‘Birds fly too fast, miss their nests, and if yuh run, run too fast, yuh bound to tumble down.’ Friends, please don’t let that happen to us. Selfish, high minded living is not what Jesus is about, and if we foolishly exalt ourselves as eagles, and build our nests on high, ‘thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.’ Much LOVE!…remember…pride goeth before a fall…always did… and always shall…
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