God's Wisdom versus Human Pride
"I say... to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly...." Romans 12:1-3
"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud." Proverbs 16:18-19
"Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself." Philippians 2:3
"...be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.' Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." 1 Peter 5:5-8
"For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?
"You are already full! You are already rich! You have reigned as kings without us.... I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last, as men condemned to death; for we have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored! To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we treat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the off-scouring of all things until now. I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you." 1 Corinthians 4:7-14
"God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. ...
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up." James 4:6-10
"And what does the Lord require of you --
But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" Micah 6:8
"...learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up on behalf of one against the other. For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?...
"You have reigned as kings without us ... We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored! ...And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we entreat. ...I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children, I warn you." 1 Corinthians 4:6-14
"When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you. Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments... lest—when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them... your heart is lifted up ....then you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’...
"...you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth....Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroys before you, so you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God." Deuteronomy 8:10-20
"For all that is in the world -- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life -- is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever." 1 John 2:16-17
"Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate." Genesis 3:4-6 [See Three kinds of temptation]
"The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down,
And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." Isaiah 2:11
"Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud..." Psalm 40:4
"The Lord has made all for Himself, yes, even the wicked for the day of doom.
Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord." Proverb 16:4-5
"God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence." 1 Corinthians 1:27-30
"'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10