11/9/09

The Eyes of Pride

We have been talking for a couple of weeks about pride and how it is the counterfeit helmet. Today, we want to look at a specific body part - the eyes and how pride displays itself in the eyes of individuals. Scripture has a name for this type of pride - haughtiness. Haughtiness is pride at its maximum potential. The dictionary defines it as "disdainfully proud and scornfully arrogant". Those are strong words and they illicit a strong response from a holy God. In Proverbs 6, we are given a list of things that God hates. Do you know what tops the list? Haughty Eyes. The King James Version calls it a proud look. We have already said that pride is the root of all sin; it is the ultimate anti-God state of mind. Pride shows itself through our actions but also through our eyes. Haughty eyes look down on others. Haughty eyes rejoice in others failures. Haughty eyes laugh at other's weakness. Haughty eyes don't see their own faults, but zero in on the faults of others. Haughty eyes consider themselves above certain sins. They are spiritually blind, and yet they seek to be spiritually superior. Our eyes are intricate, complex organs. The pupil of the eye can actually reflect your like or dislike for something or someone. The pupil will enlarge when you see something desirable. On the other hand, it will shrink when you see something that disgusts you. Our responses and reactions can often be seen in our eyes. Matthew 6 says that the eye is the lamp of the body. If the eye is full of light then the whole body is also full of light. However, if the eye is dark, then the whole body is full of darkness. Whenever we choose to cooperate with darkness our eyes reflect that darkness, BUT, praise God that when we choose to cooperate with the LIGHT (Jesus) our eyes reflect that light. There is an old saying that says the eyes are the mirror of the soul. There is much truth in that quote. What are your eyes reflecting? Can others see Jesus when they look into your eyes or do they see skepticism, judgment, and blame? Every time that we choose our will above God's will we are reflecting the kingdom of darkness and we are putting on the counterfeit helmet of pride. The eyes of pride focus on self while the eyes of humility focus on Christ. It really does all come down to where we fix our focus. When we fix our focus on Christ, we are choosing to put on a helmet of salvation and we are free to fight the good fight of faith without hindrance. When we fix our focus on ourselves, we are blind to what God wants to do in and through our lives. If you need some help fixing your focus, then read & meditate on the following Scriptures: 2 Corinthians 4:18, Hebrews 3:1, Hebrews 12:2. The cure for haughty eyes can be found in God's Holy Word.

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