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Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Is it wrong to feel good about yourself? Proverbs 16:18 famously tells us that "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." In context, the word "pride" can be better translated "arrogance." When the Apostle John describes "the sinful pride of life" (1 John 2:16), he's warning against the seductive notion that you don't need God—that you can get along very well on your own, and can, in fact, become a god in your own right. This is the kind of pride that lies at the root of all human sin.
The devil is the model of this principle. It was out of arrogance that he chose to exalt himself in defiance of the Almighty, violating his relationship with God. Mankind made the same bad choice. We don't sin because the devil forces us to. Instead, we freely choose, under the influence of temptation, to follow the devil's example.
Conversely, biblical humility isn't about self-hatred or self-debasement; rather, it's a kind of self-forgetfulness. It's a matter of putting other people's interests ahead of your own and embracing your role in the bigger scheme of things. It's the security of knowing your place—and identity—as a beloved child of the King of Heaven.
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