Breaking Dawn | Part 18 - Signs of Pride | Dr. Stephen G. Tan

Pride often shows up in very ordinary ways, like refusing to wear bold elephant print pants because of the need to look good. Humility may feel uncomfortable and even embarrassing, but it opens the way for the better path. God warns that pride causes pain and destruction, while humility places a person where God can bless and carry them.

Isaiah 46 sets the living God beside Babylon’s dead idols. Baal and Nebo must be carried on carts and burden the very animals beneath them, while God carries His people from birth to gray hairs. God asks, “To whom will you liken me?” because no idol, no person, and no power can stand on His level. The first sign of pride is comparing oneself to God, often revealed through prayerlessness, neglect of God’s Word, and refusal to submit to His authority.

Isaiah 47 exposes Babylon as a proud nation that trusted in its power, wisdom, achievements, and mystical practices. Babylon said in its heart, “I am, and there is no one else besides me,” but its wisdom and knowledge had warped it. Pride makes people feel indispensable, entitled, and beyond accountability, yet it cannot stop what God has planned. God brings Babylon down suddenly and shows that no astrologer, sorcery, talent, or human strength can save apart from Him.

Isaiah 48 turns the warning toward Israel. Israel had seen God’s faithfulness throughout its history, yet its neck was like iron and its brow like bronze. The third sign of pride is stubbornness, an unwillingness to change, apologize, admit wrong, or lay down the need to win. Stubbornness may sound like conviction, but its real question is whether it fights for God’s glory or merely for the pride of being right.

God repeatedly tells His people, “Listen to me,” because His commands are not meant to crush them but to lead them in the way they should go. God longs for their peace to be like a river and their righteousness like the waves of the sea. The fourth sign of pride is refusing godly advice, especially when defensiveness rises before honest self-reflection. Pride can make a fool of a person long before disaster makes it obvious. God calls His people to examine their hearts, trust Him alone, receive correction, and humble themselves before pride leads to downfall.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God carries what idols cannot carry. Baal and Nebo had to be hauled around by people and animals, but God carried Israel through every season of life. Whatever must be controlled, protected, or constantly sustained cannot function as a true savior. Humility begins when the heart stops leaning on burdens that cannot deliver and rests in the God who carries His people. [06:49]
• 2. Prayerlessness can reveal self-reliance. A person may never verbally claim equality with God, yet daily life can quietly make that claim. Neglecting prayer says, “I can do this by myself,” while neglecting Scripture says, “I can rule my own life.” Prayer and submission are not religious routines but humble acknowledgments that God alone has ultimate authority. [09:28]
• 3. Pride warps reality and blinds judgment. Babylon’s wisdom and knowledge did not secure its future because they had warped its view of itself. Gifts, accomplishments, influence, and intelligence become dangerous when they produce the illusion of being indispensable. Pride has no real power to stop God’s purposes, but it can keep a person from seeing reality until the fall comes. [20:28]
• 4. Stubbornness often protects the need to win. Israel’s iron neck and bronze forehead pictured a heart unwilling to bow, listen, or change. The need to prove oneself right can disguise itself as strength while quietly resisting God’s correction. Humility asks whether a conflict serves God’s glory and the good of others, or merely protects personal pride. [31:43]
• 5. Godly correction is meant for peace. God’s plea for Israel to listen came from His desire to lead them into peace like a river. Defensive hearts often reject counsel before considering whether the Holy Spirit may be using it. Wise discernment considers the source of advice, but humble hearts also take seriously the condition of the receiver.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:27] - The Humbling Elephant Pants Story
• [04:08] - Pride Brings Pain and Destruction
• [05:32] - God Carries His People
• [08:54] - Sign One: Comparing Yourself to God
• [15:12] - Babylon Brought Down in Pride
• [18:19] - Sign Two: Trusting in Yourself
• [20:28] - Wisdom and Knowledge That Warp
• [26:29] - Israel’s Iron Neck and Bronze Brow
• [30:23] - Sign Three: Unwilling to Change
• [36:08] - God’s Call to Listen
• [40:17] - Sign Four: Rejecting Godly Advice
• [43:41] - Pride Can Make a Fool of You
• [47:12] - Examine the Heart for Pride

1. In Isaiah 46:1–4, what contrast does the passage make between Bel and Nebo and the Lord? What do the idols require, and what does God promise to do for His people? [06:16]
2. According to Isaiah 47:10, what had Babylon trusted in, and what statements reveal its inflated view of itself?
3. What images does Isaiah 48:4 use to describe Israel’s stubbornness, and what do an iron neck and bronze brow suggest about their response to God? [29:56]
4. In Isaiah 48:18, what blessings does God connect with heeding His commandments? [38:07]

1. Why is something that must constantly be carried, protected, controlled, or sustained unable to function as a true savior? How does Isaiah 46 challenge the kinds of things people depend on for security? [06:41]
2. Isaiah 47:10 says that Babylon’s wisdom and knowledge “warped” it. How can good gifts such as intelligence, achievement, influence, or ability begin to distort a person’s view of God and of themselves? [20:28]
3. How can a person tell the difference between standing firmly for what honors God and stubbornly fighting simply to be right or to win? [31:34]
4. Why might a person become defensive when receiving loving, godly correction? What does Isaiah 48:18 show about God’s purpose in giving commands and guidance? [40:49]

1. What is one burden you may be trying to carry alone right now—an anxiety, decision, relationship, financial need, or responsibility? What would it look like this week to trust the God who carries His people rather than carrying it alone? [07:05]
2. Does your current pattern of prayer show dependence on God, or does it reveal that you often try to manage life by yourself? What specific time or situation could become a regular place for humble prayer? [09:19]
3. Is there an area where your abilities, experience, possessions, position, or accomplishments make you feel especially secure or indispensable? How can you thank God for that gift without treating it as your savior? [25:47]
4. Think about a recent conflict at home, work, school, church, or online. Were you mainly seeking God’s glory and the good of others, or protecting your need to be right? What might humility look like in that situation? [31:43]
5. Is there someone you need to apologize to, forgive, or approach with a willingness to change? What has made that step difficult, and what could a humble next step look like? [30:31]
6. When have you recently received advice or correction and felt immediate defensiveness? Is there a trusted, godly person whose counsel you need to revisit prayerfully and honestly? [41:04]