Spurgeon's Evening

Reading this evenings devotional I just wanted to point out something that struck me.

It is better to be the least in the kingdom of heaven than the greatest out of it.

How many times do we just want to DO more? You know like... we want to be part of the praise team, or we want to be the one that works with the youth. The scripture used tonight was "A living dog is better than a dead lion." --Ecclesiastes 9:4. Which later Spurgeon says :

A living dog keeps better watch than a dead lion, and is of more service to his master; and so the poorest spiritual preacher is infinitely to be preferred to the exquisite orator who has no wisdom but that of words, no energy but that of sound. The like holds good of our prayers and other religious exercises; if we are quickened in them by the Holy Spirit, they are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ, though we may think them to be worthless things; while our grand performances in which our hearts were absent, like dead lions, are mere carrion in the sight of the living God.

Nothing else to add to that now is there?

Jonathan Edwards is my homeboy

It is a long read however well worth it. This article in Christianity Today talks about our dear friend John Piper and how he and several others have started a "trend" talking about a more doctrinally sound group of Christians and Calvanism at it's best. After reading this I believe I am more a Calvinist than an Armenian however I do not agree with everything Calvin had believed (go figure.. nothing can be that easy can it). Just reading this makes me on fire about God's word and makes me just pray that my church can delve into the word like these guys do. Reading this makes me truly see what "meat" is and why we should crave it more than milk. If you don't taste the "meat" my friends you will not know what you are missing! http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/009/42.32.html

Mark Cahill talks about Billy Graham

September 2006 Newsletter

"But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers
shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father
seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that
worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

John 4:23–24

Truth is something everyone is looking for. Why? In a world full of lies, people are looking for an anchor to hold onto. When we have been deceived by someone, it hurts. And while the truth can hurt at times, it still is the truth. We must be seekers of truth in the days to come, and at the same time we must know that Satan is going to deliver all the lies that he possibly can to pull people away from eternal truth.

Recently, there was an article in Newsweek magazine entitled “Pilgrim’s Progress” (the link is below). It was an article written about the twilight of Billy Graham’s career.

In the article, Billy said the following about the Bible, “I am not a literalist in the sense that every single jot and tittle is from the Lord. This is a difference in my thinking through the years.” Please count me as one of the people who does believe in every jot and tittle of Scripture. How does one decide which part is true and which part is not true? In Matthew 5:18, Jesus says,

"For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."

Jesus was in the business of fulfilling all of the jots and tittles of Scripture.

The article also states, “When asked whether he believes heaven will be closed to good Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, or secular people, though, Graham says: ‘Those are decisions only the Lord will make. It would be foolish for me to speculate on who will be there and who won’t...I don’t want to speculate about all that. I believe the love of God is absolute. He said He gave His son for the whole world, and I think He loves everybody regardless of what label they have.’” The good news is that because we have a Bible where every jot and tittle is correct, we don’t have to speculate on whether someone is going to go to heaven or hell. That is great news. The Bible already tells us:

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;”

1 Timothy 2:5

“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

John 3:36

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

John 14:6

“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

Acts 4:12

See, I don’t think the Lord wanted us to speculate about who was and wasn’t going to go to heaven. I think He wanted us to know (1 John 5:13)! If we don’t know what it takes to go to Heaven, how could we logically share the truth with others? We can’t share with someone if we don’t know ourselves. It would defeat the point of witnessing if there was more than one way to Heaven, or no definite way to Heaven. That is why the world is broken up into lost and saved. Those are the only two labels that we really need to worry about.

I was not thrilled with some of the statements that Billy made in this article. But when it really hit home for me was when my Catholic father handed me the Newsweek magazine and said, “Even Billy Graham believes there are many different ways to heaven—just like I do.” For all the years I have been telling my father that the only way to get to heaven is through Jesus, and now my dad thinks he has confirmation for what he believes.

So, I ended up calling Billy Graham’s ministry. I expressed my concerns to the lady on the phone. She told me that if you look at Billy Graham’s whole body of work, you will know what he believes. I told her that my dad will not read the whole body of work, but he does read Newsweek. Also, this is not the first time Billy has made statements about not being clear on Jesus as being the only way to heaven. He made similar comments on Larry King live recently.

The lady at the ministry then stated that if I would read his last book, then I would know what he believes. I said lost people read Newsweek and not Billy Graham’s autobiography. I stated that this is killing us on the streets when we are telling people Jesus is the only way to get to heaven, and one of the main public figures for Christianity is not clear about it.

The lady said that Billy is getting older and that he might mess up. I totally agree with that, and I think we need to give people the benefit of the doubt. After a recent speaking engagement, a man walked up to me and we chatted for a while. He used to work for Mr. Graham’s ministry for 8 years. I told him that I thought Billy is getting older and that he might just be messing up in some of his comments. The guy told me he disagreed. He told me he thinks Billy just doesn’t want to offend anyone. That was a sad statement to hear from someone that worked for the man’s ministry. The gospel is offensive. Truth offends. Period. I called Billy’s ministry a second time, and a guy told me that Billy has made friends with many people of different faiths and didn’t want to burn those bridges. What better friend can you be to someone than to tell them the truth about eternity? By the way, what kind of friend would you or I be if we had friends dying and going to hell, and we didn’t warn them about the eternal judgment that awaits them?

I ended up calling the ministry again to see if Billy was going to recant on the statements that were made. There is a letter to the editor of Newsweek that was sent in, but it doesn’t mention that he was misquoted. Why? Because I don’t think he was.

Numerous times in the Bible there is talk about deception in the end of days. Why? Because it is the Great Deceiver’s plan to make sure people do not have the truth. If Lucifer can get people to believe a lie, then they will not become born again by the blood of Jesus Christ. The thing I want to challenge you the most with in this newsletter is for you to be very careful of religious people in the days to come. Why? Because we automatically believe religious people. How could they be wrong? They are speaking for God so they must be right. Actually that is why we must be more careful of religious people. In Matthew 24, when Jesus tells us to watch out for false christs and false prophets, what are those? False religious people. It is hard to tell if someone is telling the truth when lies and truth are mixed together. We can’t discern which is true and which is a lie, and that is how we get deceived.

Every man of God that you listen to, DVD’s you watch, and books you read, be very careful. You don’t know if they are telling you an untruth unless you know the truth. Where do you find the truth? In a good translation of the Bible, and that is it. You must filter everything back through God’s word to see if people are speaking truth. I am at the point now, that I expect people to lie to me, but if I know God’s word, I will know when someone tells me something I cannot trust.

And here is the main point to this newsletter. In the days to come, be very careful of Mark Cahill. If Mark Cahill ever walks away from one of the essential doctrines of the Christian faith and preaches heresy, get as far away from me as you possibly can. At that point, you take my books, tapes, whatever you have, and throw them in a trash can. At that point I will have fallen under the sway of Satan to preach deception in the end of days. One of my prayers is, ‘Father please do not let me be deceived so that I will not deceive other people.’ I know I have a platform, and I don’t want to misuse that to send people towards a lie instead of towards the truth. Please pray for every Christian person that influences your life in any way that they will not be deceived in the coming days. Pray that these men and women of God will finish the race of life very strong. Read your Bible, study your Bible, and obey what you read. You will not be deceived by anyone in the coming days if you are a person who does just that.

Cahill Newsletter

elmo's song

I think this is absolutely hilarious. Sorry it has no meat to it however it is kind of fun don't you think?

are you ready?

I am really digging the whole short video's on the internet. They are so much fun to watch. I hope you like this one as well as I did.

Interview

I found this very interesting. I have heard this several times. If this won't light a fire under you I don't know what will!

door to door

Got my way of the master newsletter today and in it was a very useful piece of info. It is a pdf file that is a door to door survey. Here is my thoughts though on it. When I go out to walmart all I can think about is trying to witness to someone. However it just doesn't work out for some reason. Somedays I think it is because for years of being a Christian and wanting to share my faith in God but not sure where to go from "come to my church you will like it". And not knowing how to answer the question "I think I do pretty good why should I go and listen to someone tell me how I should live my life?". Now I know that I wasn't a Christian number one and number two that I had no clue the truth about the death of Christ and why I should repent and put my trust in Him alone. All of that to say that now I have a wall that I have built up that stops me from sharing the gospel with a stranger in a store. Now this pdf file comes into play.
Consider this for a moment (because I am). You get a clipboard and you go out to walmart and while your wife and kids are shopping you walk the parking lot taking this survey around to people walking to/from the store. This not only gives you a chance to share the gospel with a purpose but it will also keep you on track while talking with them. You have something to fall back on if you forget what you are talking about (which as you can tell I do often.. ooo shiny!!!! Ok I am back) So I beg you to grab this file from living waters ministries and print it out and share it with your church friends. Get out there and take some surveys! http://www.livingwaters.com/newsltr/a/survey.pdf

Oh and one more thing. If you keep these papers they would be an excellent thing to bring to your church leadership and say "Look these people need to hear from us not just on sunday and not just inviting them to church when the doors are open". And think about this for just a moment. What if 7 people out of your church did this one night a week. Then the good news would be heard to many more people than we can imagine!

Jonathan Goforth

Yesterday I heard several things about a certain missionary named Jonathan Goforth who as I read was a Canadian Missionary sent to China to do his missionary work. He started 30 some churches before he died. The two certain things I heard were these.

Seven Rules for Daily Living

1) Seek to give much, expect nothing.
2) Put the very best construction on the actions of others.
3) Never let a day pass without at least a quarter of an hour spent in the study of the Bible.
4) Never omit daily morning and evening private prayer and devotion.
5) In all things seek to know God’s Will and when known obey at any cost.
6) Seek to cultivate a quiet prayerful spirit.
7) Seek each day to do or say something to further Christianity among the heathen

Source

These are now written in my bible as well as Zechariah 4:6

"not by might nor by power, but by my spirit; says the LORD Almighty"

The second story I heard was about a woodpecker.

While the Goforths were attending a summer conference, south of Chicago, it was announced that a "brilliant speaker" was to come on a certain day for just one address. A very large expectant audience awaited him. The chairman introduced the speaker with such fulsome praise there seemed no room for the glory of God in what was to follow. The stranger had been sitting with bowed head and face hidden. As he stepped forward he stood a moment as if in prayer, then said:

"Friends, when I listen to such words as we have just been hearing I have to remind myself of the woodpecker story: A certain woodpecker flew up to the top of a high pine tree and gave three hard pecks on the side of the tree as woodpeckers are wont to do. At that instant a bolt of lightening struck the tree leaving it on the ground, a heep of splinters. The woodpecker had flown to a tree near by where it clung in terror and amazement at what had taken place. There it hung expecting more to follow, but as all remained quiet it began to chuckle to itself saying, 'Well, well, well! who would have imagined that just three pecks of my beak could have such power as that!'"

When the laughter this story caused ceased, the speaker went on, "Yes, friends, I too laughed when I first heard this story. But remember, if you or I take glory to ourselves which belongs only to Almighty God, we are not only as foolish as this woodpecker, but we commit a very grievious sin for the LORD hath said, 'My glory will I not give to another.'"

Many times Jonathan Goforth on returning from a meeting would greet his wife with, "Well, I've had to remind myself of the woodpecker tonight," or, "I've needed half a dozen woodpeckers to keep me in place." Early in life he chose for his motto, "Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit, saith the LORD" (Zech. 4:6).

Source

I guess what this all does to me is makes me more and more aware of Gods power in things and that I am nothing. No matter if I witness to a hundred people today it is not in my power nor in my strength yet through the LORD Almighty that everything happens. It is time that I am reminded daily of the woodpecker story.

flaws of the altar call?

All my life I have known alter calls. They have always felt funny to me but yet we still have them. The question comes to my mind.. why? Scripture says:

8" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.'[d]"

When Jesus was talking to the Pharisees rebuking them with scripture when his disciples didn't wash their hands.

Why are we so stuck on our traditions.. read here what my favorite reformed evangelist has to say:

21 Flaws of the “Altar Call”
by Pastor David Wooten

The invitation system is a modern evangelism innovation…

1. …without scriptural warrant.
2. …that is faulty and dangerous.
3. …that has created a new, unbiblical vocabulary (i.e., “repentance and faith” have been replaced with “decide for Christ,” “ask Jesus into your heart,” “Give your heart to Jesus,” “first-time decisions,” etc.)
4. …not practiced by the church until about 150 years ago.
• It was begun by Charles Finney who believed conversion was a psychological event and used this “anxious seat” to replace the purpose of baptism.
• It was popularized by Dwight L. Moody.
• It was standardized by Billy Graham.
5. …that has contributed to filling our churches with unregenerate church members.
6. …leading easily to abuse and manipulation of the method, especially towards children and teenagers.
7. …established upon psychological premises.
8. …mistakenly equated often with the new birth and/or conversion.
9. …involving a high rate of apostatizing (90+% according to the Billy Graham Evangelisitic Association).
10. …that is unnecessary for the Holy Spirit to do His regenerating, saving work.
11. …that is used to attempt to quantify soul-winning results.
12. …that is not the biblical mark of whether a church is committed to evangelism or not.
13. …where often the appeal to “come forward” supercedes or replaces any explanation of sin, repentance, or faith.
14. …that implies (or sometimes states explicitly) that those sinners who do not “come forward” are disobeying a divine command.
15. …climaxing with the recitation of a sinner’s prayer that is equated with conversion.
16. …that some respond to in their attempt through human effort to earn their standing before God.
17. …calling for the sinner’s instant performance rather than his careful contemplation of his sinfulness and the One whom he has offended.
18. …that adds a condition for salvation (”come forward”) that Christ never gave.
19. …that confuses the unregenerate man as to the specific obligations of his duty.
20. …that morphs the task of the evangelist to the duty of “drawing the net” by coaxing people to come down the aisle.
21. …seeking to give men relief from God’s conviction before He has made them fully humble and miserable over their sin.

I believe that the altar call has become the modern evangelical equivalent of Roman Catholicism’s pennance. Ask a Catholic how he knows he is right with God, and he will tell you that he did his pennance (x number of Hail Mary’s, etc.). Ask someone in a modern evangelical church how they know they are right with God, and he will likely tell you that he “came forward” during a public altar call. Both are woefully inadequate and unbiblical evidences of the new birth. (Source)

Killing your Pride softly

This is something again I heard first about on wotmr, and now have sat down and read the whole thing on the Reformed Evangelist Blog. I pray that God would allow this long article to work on you the way it has me. You will find that alot of this stuff you never even thought about being pride. It is amazing how sin blinds your life, how easily we conform to this world. After reading this I now see a little more clearer how pride affects my life in the little things. I pray that God would work these over in my life so that my life can be a sweet aroma to Him.

With humility in mind, we can all benefit to examine ourselves to see if we neet to uproot any Fruits of Pride:

Five Things to Know About Pride & Humility

1. Pride Is the Root of All Evil (Genesis 3:5; 1 Timothy 3:6; 1 John 2:15-17). If we do not consider ourselves vulnerable to pride we don’t understand the essence of sin. The “boastful pride of life” is a key category of worldliness.
2. God Hates Pride (Proverbs 8:13; 16:5; Isaiah 23:9; Daniel 4:29-37; James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5). He takes pride very seriously. We must learn to HATE our pride. God detests all the proud of heart. He is not out to hurt our pride He is out to kill our pride.
3. God Loves Humility (Proverbs 11:2, 15:33, 18:12, 29:23; Isaiah 57:15, 66:2; Micah 6:8; Luke 14:11; 1 Peter 5:6). God dwells with those who have a contrite and lowly spirit.
4. What Is Not Pride:
• Acknowledging and appreciating the gifts and abilities God has given you.
• The presence of godly desire, ambition and purposeful direction in your life (1 Timothy 3:1)
• Acknowledging the work of God within you.
• The pursuit of excellence.
• Defending and proclaiming the truth of Scripture.
5. Pride Is Deceptive (John 8:31-36; Jeremiah 49:16; Proverbs 16:2, 21:2)

The Fifty Fruits of Pride

1. Want to be Well Known or Important (Isaiah 14:13-15; James 3:13-16; Romans 12:6). “I am selfishly ambitious. I really want to get ahead and make a name for myself. I want to be someone important in life. I like having a position or title. I far prefer leading to following.”
2. Sinfully Competitive. “I am overly competitive. I always want to win or come out on top and it bothers me when I don’t.”
3. Want to Impress People (Luke 10:38-42). “I want people to be impressed with me. I like to make my accomplishments known.”
• Clothes or jewelry you wear.
• Vehicle you drive.
• Furniture you own.
• House you live in.
• Place you live.
• Company you work for.
• Amount of money you earn.
• Food you eat.
• How spiritual you are.
• What you look like (physical appearance).
• What you have accomplished.
• What you know.
• Where you went to School.
• Who you know.
• What your background is.
4. Draw Attention to Myself (Proverbs 27:2). “I like to be the center of attention and will say or do things to draw attention to myself.”
5. Like to Talk About Myself. “I like to talk, especially about myself or persons or things I am involved with. I want people to know what I am doing or thinking. I would rather speak than listen. I have a hard time being succinct.”
6. Deceitful and Pretentious (Psalm 24:3-4, 26:2-4; Jeremiah 48:10; Proverbs 26:20-26). “I tend to be deceptive about myself. I find myself lying to preserve my reputation. I find myself hiding the truth about myself, especially about sins, weaknesses, etc. I don’t want people to know who I really am.”
7. Desire Recognition and Praise (John 5:41-44; Matthew 6:1, 23:5-7). “I desire to receive recognition and credit for what I do. I like people to see what I do and let me know that they noticed. I feel hurt or offended when they don’t. I am overly concerned about my reputation and hate being misunderstood.”
8. Not Fulfilled Serving Others (John 3:30). “I am not very excited about seeing or making others successful. I tend to feel envious, jealous or critical towards those who are doing well or being honored.”
9. Self Sufficient (Matthew 4:4; John 15:5; Acts 17:25; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10). “I tend to be self sufficient in the way I live my life. I don’t live with a constant awareness that my every breath is dependent upon the will of God. I tend to think I have enough strength, ability and wisdom to live and manage my life. My practice of the spiritual disciplines is inconsistent and superficial. I don’t like to ask others for help.”
10. Anxious (Psalm 4:8; Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Peter 5:6-7). “I am often anxious about my life and the future. I tend not to trust God and rarely experience his abiding and transcendent peace in my soul. I have a hard time sleeping at night because of fearful thoughts and burdens I carry.”
11. Self Focused (Exodus 4:11; Job 10:8-11; Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 53:2; Jeremiah 1:5). “I am overly self-conscious. I tend to replay in my mind how I did, what I said, and how I came across to others. I am very concerned about my appearance and what people think of me. I think about these things constantly.”
12. Fear Man (Proverbs 29:25). “I fear man more than God. I am afraid of others and make decisions about what I will say or do based upon this fear. I am afraid to take a stand for things that are right. I am concerned with how people will react to me or perceive my actions or words. I don’t often think about God’s opinion in a matter and rarely think there could be consequences for disobeying him. I primarily seek the approval of man and not of God.”
13. Insecure. “I often feel insecure. I don’t want to try new things or step out into uncomfortable situations because I’m afraid I’ll fail or look foolish. I am easily embarrassed.”
14. Compare Myself. “I regularly compare myself to others. I am “performance oriented.” I feel that I have greater worth if I do well.”
15. Perfectionist. “I am self-critical. I tend to be a perfectionist. I can’t stand for little things to be wrong because they reflect poorly on me. I have a hard time putting my mistakes behind me.”
16. Self Serving (Philippians 2:19-22). “I am self-serving. When asked to do something, I find myself asking, ‘How will doing this help me?’ or ‘Will I be inconvenienced?’ I am not focused on the needs and interests of others.”
17. Feel Better or Superior. “I feel special or superior because of what I have or do.”
18. Think Highly of Myself (Romans 12:3, 16; James 2:1-4). “I think highly of myself. In relation to others I typically see myself as more mature and more gifted. In most situations, I have more to offer than others even though I may not say so. I don’t consider myself average or ordinary.”
19. Credit Myself (1 Corinthians 4:6-7; 15:10). “I tend to give myself credit for who I am and what I accomplish. I only occasionally think about or recognize that all that I am or have comes from God. I don’t’ consciously transfer all glory to God for any good I have or any good I do.”
20. Self Righteous (Luke 18:9-14). “I tend to be self-righteous. I can think that I really have something to offer God. I would never say so, but I think God did well to save me. I seldom think about or recognize my total depravity and helplessness apart from God. I regularly focus on the sins of others. I don’t credit God for any degree of holiness in my life.”
21. Feel Deserving. “I feel deserving. I think I deserve what I have. In fact, I think I ought to have more considering how well I have lived or in light of all I have done.”
22. Ungrateful (Luke 17:11-19; Ephesians 5:19-20; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; Colossians 3:15-17; Philippians 2:14). “I often feel ungrateful. I tend to grumble about what I have or my lot in life. I am not amazed by grace on a regular basis.”
23. Captive to Self Pity. “I find myself wallowing in self-pity. I am consumed with how I am treated by God and others. I tend to feel mistreated and hate being misunderstood. I seldom recognize or sympathize with what’s going on with others around me because I feel that I have it worse than they do.”
24. Jealous and Envious (James 3:13-16). “I can be jealous or envious of others abilities, possessions, positions, accomplishments or friends. I want to be what others are or want to have what others have. I think I deserve or should have the good things other people do. I find it hard to rejoice when others are blessed by God.”
25. Unkind and Harsh (Ezekiel 16:49; Psalm 17:10; Proverbs 24:17-18; Luke 10:25-37). “I am pretty insensitive to others. I feel some people just aren’t worth caring about. I have a hard time showing compassion or extending mercy to others. Some people aren’t worth my time and attention.”
26. Love to Reveal My Mind (Proverbs 18:2). “I like to reveal my own mind. I have an answer for practically every situation and an opinion on every subject. I feel compelled to balance everyone else out and let them know my thoughts.”
27. Know It All (1 Corinthians 8:1). “I have a know-it-all attitude. I am impressed by my own knowledge and understanding of things. I feel like there isn’t much I can learn from other people, especially those less mature than me.”
28. Like People to Know I Know. “I feel compelled to stop people when they start to share something with me I already know.”
29. Hard to Admit I Don’t Know. “I find it hard to admit it when I don’t know something. When someone asks me something I don’t know, I will make up an answer rather than admit I don’t know.”
30. Don’t Listen to Ordinary People. “I have a hard time listening to ordinary people. I listen better to those I respect or people I am wanting to leave with a good impression. I don’t honestly listen when someone else is speaking because I am usually planning what I am going to say next.”
31. Interruptive. “I interrupt people regularly. I don’t let people finish what they are saying.”
32. Don’t Get Much Out of Teaching. “I don’t get much out of the teaching. I tend to evaluate the speaker rather than my own life. I grumble about hearing something a second time.”
33. Thinking of Others During Teaching. “I listen to teaching with other people in mind. I constantly think of those folks who need to hear and apply this teaching and wish they were here.”
34. Not Teachable (Proverbs 12:1). “I’m not very open to input. I don’t pursue correction for my life. I tend to be unteachable and slow to repent when corrected. I don’t really see correction as a positive thing. I am offended when people probe the motivations of my heart or seek to adjust me.”
35. Don’t Admit Wrong Doing (Proverbs 28:13; James 5:16). “I have a hard time admitting that I am wrong. I find myself covering up or excusing my sins. It is hard for me to confess my sins to others or to ask for forgiveness.”
36. Do Not Welcome Correction (Proverbs 15:12). “I view correction as an intrusion into my privacy rather than an instrument of God for my welfare. I can’t identify anyone who would feel welcome to correct me.”
37. Resent People Who Correct Me (Proverbs 9:7-9). “I resent people who attempt to correct me. I don’t respond with gratefulness and sincere appreciation for their input. Instead I am tempted to accuse them and dwell on their faults. I get bitter and withdraw.”
38. Contentious and Argumentative (James 1:19-20). “When corrected, I become contentious and argumentative. I don’t take people’s observations seriously. I minimize and make excuses or give explanations.”
39. Get Angry or Offended With Others (1 Corinthians 6:7). “I am easily angered and offended. I don’t like being crossed or disagreed with. I find myself thinking, “I can’t believe they did that to me.” I often feel wronged. I hate to be misunderstood by others especially those I respect and desire to think highly of me.”
40. Constantly in Conflicts (Proverbs 13:10). “I have “personality conflicts” with others. I have a hard time getting along with certain kinds of people. People regularly tell me they struggle with me.”
41. Have Little Esteem or Respect for Others (Numbers 16:1-3). “I lack respect for other people. I don’t think very highly of most people. I have a hard time encouraging and honoring others unless they really do something great.”
42. Do Violence with My Mouth (Psalm 101:5; Romans 3:13-14; 3 John 1:9-10). “I am a slanderer. I find myself either giving or receiving evil reports about others. I am not concerned about the effect of slander on me because of my maturity level. I think I can handle it. I only share with others the things I think they really need to know. I don’t tell all. Anyway, the things I say or hear about people are usually true.”
43. Sow Discord (Proverbs 28:25). “I am divisive. My actions and attitudes separate people rather than unite people. My words frequently undermined the confidence and trust people have in one another. I also tend to resist or resent authority. I don’t like other people to give me orders or directions.”
44. Demean or Belittle Others. “With a motivation to put people in their place or look good myself, I like to demean or put others down. They need my adjustment. This includes leaders. Other people need to be humble and have a “sober” assessment of themselves.”
45. Critical. “I tend to be critical of others. I find myself feeling or talking negatively about people. I subtly feel better about myself when I see how bad someone else is. I find it far easier to evaluate than to encourage someone else.”
46. Self Willed and Stubborn. “I am self-willed and stubborn. I have a hard time cooperating with others. I really prefer my own way and often insist on getting it.”
47. Independent (Proverbs 18:1; Luke 1:51-52). “I am independent and uncommitted. I don’t really see why I need other people. I can easily separate myself from others. I don’t get much out of the small group meetings.”
48. Unaccountable (Acts 2:42; Hebrews 10:25). “I am unaccountable. I don’t ask others to hold me responsible to follow through on my commitments. I don’t really need accountability for my words and actions.”
49. Unsubmissive (Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:5). “I am unsubmissive. I don’t like being under the authority of another person. I don’t see submission as a good and necessary provision from God for my life. I have a hard time supporting and serving those over me. I don’t “look up” to people and I like to be in charge. Other people may need leaders but I don’t. It is important that my voice is always heard.”
50. Feel Mature. “I really appreciate somebody taking the time to put this paper together. It will really be a big help to my friends and family. However, I don’t really need this because I think I’m pretty humble already.”

How to Deal with Pride in Your Life

• Ask God to illuminate your heart so you can begin to see the fruits of pride in your life. Ask friends to point out the fruits of pride in your life realizing your heart is exceedingly deceitful. Be self-suspicious.
• Ask God to convict you point by point (Psalm 139:23-24) and trust that he will. You don’t want or need general condemnation, only specific, godly conviction.
• Confess your pride to God point by point and ask for his forgiveness. Just as importantly, ask him to cleanse you of all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
• Don’t ask God to humble you – the Scripture says to humble yourself (1 Peter 5:6). Humility isn’t an emotion; it’s a decision of the will to think and act differently.
• Confess your sins of pride to those you have affected and to your friends. They can help to hold you accountable and bring the on-going encouragement and correction you will need.
• Ask God to give you a holy hatred for pride and its fruits in your life. Be continually on the alert. Don’t allow pride to grow in your heart.
• Ask God to give you a love for anonymity. Encourage and serve others each and every day. Associate with the lowly.
• Think much about God and little about yourself. Regularly study the goodness and greatness of God.
• Live to promote the reputation of God and not your own. Be impressed with God - don’t be impressed with yourself. Find your satisfaction in him and not in your vain accomplishments.
• Remember your war against pride is life-long. It is not a battle won in a day. But as you faithfully put pride to death and put on humility, you will experience greater freedom and more importantly greater conformity to image and likeness of Christ. In so doing, God will be glorified in your life!