“Receive”

They were sons of the devil,

That was Jesus’ call,

When they disagreed with Him,

There is no doubt at all.

But they were chosen people,

And those who had God’s law,

But when God sent His Son to them,

That’s not who they saw.

They were jealous of His following,

And always would find fault,

Discredited His miracels,

And ne’er His wisdom sought.

And these folks knew the Scripture,

But blinded by their pride,

Set up themselves as those who judged,

And mercy they denied.

So remember when the hypocrite,

Rises up to say,

Someone isn’t worthy,

Or with God not okay.

it may be you’re mistaken,

The One who came to save,

Unrecognized by the very ones,

God so loved He gave.

“He came into the very world He created, but the world didn’t recognize Him…” (John 1:10, NLT)

Pride is dangerous because it had a blinding effect. People possessed by their own smug, self-satisfied arrogance are blinded to who they are and what they really need. They are self-deceived and cannot be taught because they always know more than the people who are trying to help them. The Pharisees who opposed Jesus missed recognizing the Son of God for this very reason. But before we criticize them too harshly, we need to remember how prone we are to do the same. God as promised to resist the proud and give grace to the humble. In a way, resisting our pride is a form of grace, otherwise He would simply let us go. But He resists our pride and offers to cure the blindness caused by it. Those who receive Jesus are reborn. There are no exceptions.

Lord, forgive our pride and heal or blindness, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mark Maggiori, markmaggiori.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Mark, and God bless you.