THINK TOGETHER.
Are you haughty or are you humble?
READ TOGETHER
Proverbs 18:12. Before destruction a man's heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.
Haughty means proud. Full of yourself. Always looking out for yourself. Self-promoting.
Humble means you don't think about yourself first. You look out for others, not only yourself. The humble person doesn't think less of themselves, they think about themselves less.
Solomon is saying something here that he has said many times already in this book. It is what God says all throughout the Bible. David said it. Isaiah said it. Jesus said it. Paul said it. Peter said it. James said it.
Here it is: God hates pride. God destroys pride. God opposes the proud. But God honors the humble. He lifts them up. He gives them glory and grace.
So now we have what's called a paradox (can you say paradox?). A paradox is something true even though it seems to make no sense or contradict itself. Here it is: If you try to get honor and praise, if you are doing something just to be praised or patted on the back, you won't get it from God. Yes, people might honor you. Yes, you might get honor for an achievement in school, music, or sports even though you are a proud and selfish person. But not from God. In fact, God takes no joy in our accomplishments if they are full of pride.
And the opposite is true too. The person who never wins, never scores high enough, never gets the ribbon, trophy, or certificate but stays humble, kind, and trusting in God, that person is who God honors. That person pleases God.
Jesus is the ultimate example of this. He only cared about others and lost everything at the cross. So what did God do? He honored him and made him king over everything. Humility came before honor with Jesus and it will with us too.
Because of Jesus we know God honors humility.
With Jesus we can be humble.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Make James 4:10 a family memory verse.
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, you were humble enough to die for me. Keep me humble like you. Amen.
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