Continuing on with our look into the spiritual pride of self-exaltation with that of spiritual worldly ambitions by way of a few Bible examples of them before we look at spiritual self-deception.
Worldly Ambition,
Men after the Flood,
Genesis 11:4 of 1-9 "Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen (tar) for mortar. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth." And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And the LORD said, 'Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let US go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech.' So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth. And from there the LORD dispersed them over the face of all the earth."
Absalom,
2Samuel 15:1-4 of 1-6 "After this Absalom got himself a chariot and horses, and fifty men to run before him. And Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way of the gate. And when any man had a dispute to come before the king for judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, "From what city are you?" And when he said, "Your servant is of such and such a tribe in Israel," Absalom would say to him, "See, your claims are good and right, but there is no man designated by the king to hear you." Then Absalom would say, "Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice." And whenever a man came near to pay homage to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him. Thus Absalom did to all of Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel."
Adonijah,
1Kings 1:5 of 5-10; 2Kings 14:10, Psalm 49:11, Isaiah 14:13, 22:16, Habakkuk 2:5 "Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, "I will be king." And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, "Why have you done thus and so?" He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom. He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they followed Adonijah and helped him. But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David's mighty men were not with Adonijah. Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent's Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother."
2Kings 14:10 of 8-10; Psalm 49:11, Isaiah 14:13, 22:16, Habakkuk 2:5 "Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, "Come, let us look one another in the face." And Jehoash king of Israel sent word to Amaziah king of Judah, "A thistle on Lebanon sent to a cedar on Lebanon, saying, 'Give your daughter to my son for a wife,' and a wild beast of Lebanon passed by and trampled down the thistle. You have indeed struck down Edom, and your heart has lifted you up. Be content with your glory, and stay at home, for why should you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with you?"
Psalm 49:11 of 10-12; Isaiah 14:13, 22:16, Habakkuk 2:5 "For HE sees that even the wise die; the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others. Their graves are their homes forever, their dwelling places to all generations, though they called lands by their own names. Man in his pomp will not remain; he is like the beasts that perish."
Isaiah 14:13-14 of 3-27; 22:16, Habakkuk 2:5 "When the LORD has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: "How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased! The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of rulers, that struck the peoples in wrath with unceasing blows, that ruled the nations in anger with unrelenting persecution. The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. The cypresses rejoice at you, the cedars of Lebanon, saying, 'Since you were laid low, no woodcutter comes up against us.' Sheol beneath is stirred up to meet you when you come; it rouses the shades to greet you, all who were leaders of the earth; it raises from their thrones all who were kings of the nations. All of them will answer and say to you: 'You too have become as weak as we! You have become like us!' Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, the sound of your harps; maggots are laid as a bed beneath you, and worms are your covers. "How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit. Those who see you will stare at you and ponder over you: 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world like a desert and overthrew its cities, who did not let his prisoners go home?' All the kings of the nations lie in glory, each in his own tomb; but you are cast out, away from your grave, like a loathed branch, clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a dead body trampled underfoot. You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land, you have slain your people. "May the offspring of evildoers nevermore be named! Prepare slaughter for his sons because of the guilt of their fathers, lest they rise and possess the earth, and fill the face of the world with cities." 'I will rise up against them,' declares the LORD of hosts, 'and will cut off from Babylon name and remnant, descendants and posterity,' declares the LORD. 'And I will make it a possession of the hedgehog, and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,' declares the LORD of hosts.' The LORD of hosts has sworn: 'As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand, that I will break the Assyrian in My land, and on My mountains trample him underfoot; and his yoke shall depart from them, and his burden from their shoulder. This is the purpose that is purposed concerning the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations. For the LORD of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?'"
Isaiah 22:16 of 15-25; Habakkuk 2:5 "Thus says the LORD God of hosts, 'Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: What have you to do here, and whom have you here, that you have cut out here a tomb for yourself, you who cut out a tomb on the height and carve a dwelling for yourself in the rock? Behold, the LORD will hurl you away violently, O you strong man. He will seize firm hold on you and whirl you around and around, and throw you like a ball into a wide land. There you shall die, and there shall be your glorious chariots, you shame of your master's house. I will thrust you from your office, and you will be pulled down from your station. In that day I will call My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe Him with your robe, and will bind your sash on Him, and will commit your authority to His hand. And He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on His shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and He shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten Him like a peg in a secure place, and He will become a throne of honor to His Father's house. And they will hang on Him the whole honor of His Father's house, the offspring and issue, every small vessel, from the cups to all the flagons. In that day, declares the LORD of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a secure place will give way, and it will be cut down and fall, and the load that was on it will be cut off, for the LORD has spoken.'"
Habakkuk 2:5 of 4-5 "Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith. "Moreover, wine is a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest. His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death he has never enough. He gathers for himself all nations and collects as his own all peoples."
The Mother of James and John,
Matthew 20:21 of 20-23; Luke 11:43 "Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to Jesus with her sons, and kneeling before Him she asked Him for something. And Jesus said to her, 'What do you want?' She said to Him, "Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at Your right hand and one at Your left, in Your kingdom." Jesus answered, 'You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?' They said to Him, "We are able." He said to them, 'You will drink My cup, but to sit at My right hand and at My left is not Mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.'"
Luke 11:43 of 42-44 (Jesus is speaking to a Pharisee) "'But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.'"
The Disciples,
Luke 22:24 of 24-27 "A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And Jesus said to them, 'The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.'"
The Jews,
John 5:44 of 30, 31-47; 2Thessalonians 2:4 (Jesus is speaking) "'I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge, and My judgment is just, because I seek not My own will but the will of Him Who sent Me. (Deuteronomy 18:15-18 of 15-22; 2Corinthians 6:11-7:1; Revelation 18:4-8)
If I alone bear witness about Myself, My testimony is not true. There is another Who bears witness about Me, and I know that the testimony that HE bears about Me is true. You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be (G4982, delivered healed protected) saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given Me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about Me that the Father has sent Me. And the Father Who sent Me has Himself borne witness about Me. His voice you have never heard, His form you have never (perceived) seen, and you do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom HE has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about (the anointing in) Me, yet you refuse to come to Me that you may have life. I do not receive glory from people. But I know that you do not have the love (anointing) of GOD within you. I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?'"
2Thessalonians 2:4 of 1-12 "Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to Him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the LORD has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the (2Corinthians 6:19 of 11-7:1) temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he (they of the anointing) who now restrains it will do so until he (they) is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of His mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of His (hidden) presence. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore GOD sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the Truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
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