Pride Defeated, God Exalted - Isaiah 2&3

Over the past several decades, those of us who have been around that long and have been paying attention to Evangelical trends, have seen something rather amazing take place.  There was a time when there was no such thing as a strictly Christian radio station or a Christian TV channel.  In one sense, those were the good old days.

 Christian publishing in the 60s and 70s was a rather small enterprise, limited mostly to scholarly books intended for seminary students and clergy, and a lot of un-scholarly books for the rest of us.  Christian fiction was practically unheard of except for C.S. Lewis and maybe Tolkien with The Lord of the Rings.  Then Frank Peretti wrote a very entertaining, and very theologically questionable book in 1986, This Present Darkness.  His phenomenal success with that book (2.5 million copies) opened the floodgates for other aspiring Christian fiction writers, to the point where the Christian fiction section at your local Christian bookstore today FAR outweighs the theology section.  It’s just more entertaining than theology and therefore it sells.

 When the 70s came along, probably as a reaction to the sensual, drugged-up 60s, Evangelicals began to pursue with great fervor the establishment of the Christian media.  One of the biggest movers and shakers within Christian radio and publishing since the 70s is Dr. James Dobson.  Through his books and his daily radio program, Focus on the Family, he has had a profound effect upon the Christian community.  One of the most obvious evidences of his power of persuasion both within Evangelicalism and in the secular world is found in one single word.  

 When I say the word, “esteem,” what comes to mind?  For most of us, that word is most often heard as the second part of the hyphenated word, “self-esteem.”  In fact, we’re not even sure what the word “esteem” refers to apart from the word “self”.  What Dr. Dobson has accomplished through 40 years of so-called Christian psychological analysis of human behavior, is the near destruction of the biblical doctrine of humility.  In one of his early books, Dobson wrote this:

 “The matter of personal worth is not only the concern of those who lack it.  In a real sense, the health of an entire society depends on the ease with which its individual members can gain personal acceptance.  Thus, whenever the keys to self-esteem are seemingly out of reach for a large percentage of the people, as in twentieth-century America, then widespread 'mental illness', neuroticism, hatred, alcoholism, drug abuse, violence, and social disorder will certainly occur.  Personal worth is not something humans are free to take or leave.  We must have it, and when it is unattainable, everybody suffers.” 

 If I understand this correctly, what Dr. Dobson is saying is that people act badly, very badly, because they think poorly of themselves.  They do not have a sense of personal worth or personal acceptance.  This results in such things as hatred, violence, and social disorder.  Therefore, all people must attain a sense of self-worth, both for their own sakes, and for the sake of society as a whole.

 That is exactly how America thinks today.  This idea has become a fundamental doctrine within our culture.  You see it everywhere.  You see it played out most prominently amongst young parents who cannot bring themselves to say a negative word to the rapscallions they have for children, for fear of damaging their self-esteem or lowering their self-worth.  The brave parent who would actually dare to discipline is in serious danger of being reported and arrested for child abuse, and their children are in danger of being taken from them by the state.  

 This doctrine of self-esteem permeates every corner of our culture today.  It has also infected much of the church, and in my opinion, Dr. Dobson is to blame for most of it.  Once again, bad living is the result of bad theology.  It has been said that American school children have the highest degree of self-esteem, while simultaneously having some of the lowest grade averages of any students in the developed world.  In other words, American school-aged children feel really good about their own exceptional ignorance.  Such is the effect of this doctrine of self-esteem.

 The second chapter of Isaiah has something to say about self-value, self-worth, and self-esteem.  

1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, 
3 and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.”  For out of Zion shall go the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 
4 He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
5 O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.

6 For you have rejected your people, the house of Jacob, because they are full of things from the east and of fortune-tellers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners. 
7 Their land is filled with silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures; their land is filled with horses, and there is no end to their chariots. 
8 Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made. 
9 So man is humbled, and each one is brought low—do not forgive them! 
10 Enter into the rock and hide in the dust from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty. 
11 The haughty looks of man shall be brought low, and the lofty pride of men shall be humbled, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
12 For the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low;
13 against all the cedars of Lebanon,lofty and lifted up; and against all the oaks of Bashan;
14 against all the lofty mountains, and against all the uplifted hills; 
15 against every high tower, and against every fortified wall; 
16 against all the ships of Tarshish, and against all the beautiful craft. 
17 And the haughtiness of man shall be humbled, and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. 
18 And the idols shall utterly pass away. 
19 And people shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground, from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth.
20 In that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made for themselves to worship, to the moles and to the bats, 
21 to enter the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs, from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth. 
22 Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?

 The New American Standard Bible translates verse 22, Stop regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils; For why should he be esteemed?

 In Romans 8, the apostle Paul asks the rhetorical question, “If God is for us, who can be against us?“  But here in Isaiah, the question should be, If God is against us, what does it matter who is for us?  The power of sin has ruined mankind.  In the Garden of Eden, Adam set up the human race as god, against God.  He esteemed himself and his own wisdom and his own desires above his Creator.  Adam plunged all of us into this curse of self-love, self-determination, self-reliance, and self-sufficiency.  

 Adam did such a good job of alienating us from humble dependence upon God that we soon came to the conclusion that we could actually create gods and worship them.  We became creators of god, rather than worshipers of the God who created us.  Fallen mankind’s love for everything but God, and primarily his unrepentant love of himself, causes God to say through Isaiah to His people in Judah, and by extension to us, “Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?” (Isaiah 2:22)  Why should he be esteemed?  Or as another translation puts it, “Put no more trust in man, who has only the breath in his nostrils.  What is he really worth?” (HCSB)

 This is God speaking!  What is man really worth?  Is this human race worth the trouble?  What is man worth if he has great self-esteem, but no regard, no esteem for God?  He is less than worthless.  Animals have more intrinsic value than the human race does.  Why would I ever say such a thing?  Why would I think mankind is so unimportant, so un-exalted?  Because animals do, and have always done what they are supposed to do, what God created them and designed them to do.  The animal kingdom, by their God-given instincts, always do what they were made to do.  

 Man does not.  The Westminster Shorter Catechism tells us that the chief end of man, the primary reason for his existence, is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.  That is why we were put on Planet Earth.  But because of the sin of Adam, not only did he bring a curse upon all humanity, he also brought sin, death and decay upon the entire universe.  Adam caused us to believe we have no need for God, and the entire universe has been suffering ever since:

 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. (Romans 8:19-22)

The sin of Adam did not have a neutral effect upon the physical universe, but an infinitely negative effect upon all creation.  The essence of Adam’s sin was pride, the exaltation of himself over God.  Man is a rebel who thinks he is all-important to the neglect of the worship of the true God.  God sees men in their arrogance, inventing and creating gods with their own hands.  In Judah, in the days of Isaiah, God witnesses His own people falling down and humbling themselves before the works of their own hands.  He sees them giving to gold and silver idols the love and reverence and awe that is legitimately due to Him alone!  

And God says, “the haughtiness of man shall be humbled, and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low, and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.”  In fact, if you didn’t notice, God says it twice, in verses 11 and 17.  The things they felt were worthy of their worship will be thrown away as dead weight that weighs them down as they flee to hide in vain from the wrath of the true God.  For the Lord of hosts has prepared a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low (v12).  If they would not exalt God as their redeemer and creator, they will honor and exalt Him in His wrath and judgment as they finally part company with their precious non-gods.

Someone will say to me, “Boy, I sure am glad I’ve never worshipped idols.”  If you’re an American, you’re most likely guilty of idol worship.  We as a nation have, in various ways, replaced the God of the Bible with the god of self.  We have turned from serving God, to having God serve us.  We have no need of Him, except in times of calamity.  Otherwise, we’re quite content for Him to leave us alone and let us run our own lives without a single thought given to how He would have us live.  

The evidence of that is in the epidemic neglect of the Word of God.  We don’t know what God says in the Scriptures, and we can’t be bothered to figure it out.  It just isn’t that important.  So we esteem our own understanding of everything above God and His Word.  We make ourselves the measure of truth, we trust in our own wisdom, rather than in God and His word.  We find our meaning and purpose in this life in our jobs, our careers, our families, our children, our homes, and our stuff that is packed in our houses so tightly we have to rent storage buildings to stow the excess.  

But we can’t seem to fit the glorious and magnificent Creator and sustainer of our lives, the One who actually gives us the breath in our nostrils,  . . . we can’t find time for God in our busy schedules.  Who says Americans don’t worship idols?

Judah had the same problem.  Isaiah spoke against them, and told them God was against everything they highly esteemed because they esteemed EVERYTHING more highly than God.  They were healthy and wealthy and in need of nothing.  According to verses 6, 7, & 8, Judah was FILLED with everything foreign, from the east and the west.  They had stuff from the east and fortune-tellers who could divine the future from the west.  They had trade agreements with everyone.  Business was good!  Unemployment was down.  There was no end to the silver and gold and treasures and horses and chariots.  They had everything valuable in abundance! 

They even had plenty of gods to worship!  And in their great religious piety, they humbled themselves and bowed low to the ground to pay homage in worship to the idols they themselves had made.  Man-made religion, man-made piety, man-made gods.  Who needs Jehovah?  We have everything we need, even religion.  We are self-sufficient.  

If you recall, Jesus spoke to a church about their self-sufficiency in Revelation 3.  To the church in Laodicea, He said  “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.  This is the lukewarm church to which Jesus also said, ”I will spit you out of My mouth.”  Prideful self-sufficiency, especially on the part of God’s people, is repulsive to God.  The self-exaltation of the creature, to the neglect of exalting the Creator, is as evil a sin as can be imagined.  In recent years, we’ve become familiar with the phrase, “Crimes against humanity.”  Is anyone concerned about crimes against Deity, crimes against God, crimes that minimize the great Jehovah for the sake of exalting sinful man?  Judah is guilty of crimes against Deity, and God is finally finished being the victim.  Look at Isaiah, chapter 3. 

8 For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their deeds are against the Lord, defying his glorious presence. 
9 For the look on their faces bears witness against them; they proclaim their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.  Woe to them!  For they have brought evil on themselves. 
10 Tell the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds. 
11 Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him.  (Isaiah 3:8-11)

The thing that comes to mind when I read these verses is Gay Pride parades.  They proclaim their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.  “No, we’re tired of hiding it.  We’re coming out of the closet, and we’re proud of what we are.  Not only that, but you are going to accept us for what we are because we have so much self-esteem that we just can’t contain it all.  You must highly esteem us also, whether you like it or not.”

All of this is part and parcel of defying God’s glorious presence.  It defies nature.  It defies common sense.  It defies the definition of sin.  It defies the holiness of God.  It is wanton rebellion against conscience, against society, against marriage, against one another.  “Woe to them!  For they have brought evil on themselves.”  God will repay for being robbed of His glory.

But it is not only the homosexual community that is guilty of robbing God, and defying His glorious presence.

16 The Lord said: Because the daughters of Zion are haughty and walk with outstretched necks, glancing wantonly with their eyes, mincing along as they go, tinkling with their feet, 
17 therefore the Lord will strike with a scab the heads of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will lay bare their secret parts.

18 In that day the Lord will take away the finery of the anklets, the headbands, and the crescents; 19 the pendants, the bracelets, and the scarves; 20 the headdresses, the armlets, the sashes, the perfume boxes, and the amulets; 21 the signet rings and nose rings; 22 the festal robes, the mantles, the cloaks, and the handbags; 23 the mirrors, the linen garments, the turbans, and the veils.

24 Instead of perfume there will be rottenness; and instead of a belt, a rope; and instead of well-set hair, baldness; and instead of a rich robe, a skirt of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty. 
25 Your men shall fall by the sword and your mighty men in battle. 
26 And her gates shall lament and mourn; empty, she shall sit on the ground.  (Isaiah 3:16-26)

If that was true of the women of Judah 2500 years ago, what would Isaiah have to say about our women today?  Has there EVER been a more self-absorbed female population than in America today?  The hair, and the nails, and the skin, the shape, the plastic surgery, the weight loss programs, the fitness clubs and the spas, the manicures, the pedicures, the teeth-whitening, waxing, tanning, the accessories, the shoes, the jewelry, the clothes and the clothes and the clothes, and the LACK of clothes, and on and on it goes.  I could not believe it when I saw that women (and I guess guys also) can now get a prescription medication to grow longer, more luxurious eyelashes!  

This is nothing less than total, unbridled, self-absorption.  Self-aggrandizement.  Self-centeredness.  Self-esteem.  Self-exaltation.  Self-worth.  Self-worship.  It is the idolatry of self.  And all of that to the near total neglect of the true and genuine worship of God, who, by the way, is the ONLY one who is actually, infinitely worthy of such worship and such attention.  But God has to compete with us for our attention because we can’t stop looking in the mirror long enough to look to Him.

Someone will say, “But doesn’t God expect us to take care of our bodies?  Doesn’t the Bible say our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit?  Surely we shouldn’t neglect our physical health and well-being?”  That is not what I’m talking about.  This is what I’m talking about:

 “Americans spent more than $13 billion on 11.7 million cosmetic surgery and non-surgical procedures, such as Botox in 2007.  According to the British Association of Aesthetic and Plastic Surgeons, cosmetic surgical procedures in 2007 were up 12.2% from the previous year.  Men are also increasingly going under the knife.  Tummy tucks for men were up 60% in 2007 compared with the previous year, although rhinoplasty (nose job) remains the most popular procedure for men.” 
 “While many people go without necessary health care treatments because they can't afford insurance -- a growing number of those same people find the money to serve their vanity.
 "Out of the roughly $14 billion spent on cosmetic procedures last year, $1 billion was financed," said Tom Hooyman, a health care administration professor at Regis University.  "And that's a real trend.  Finance companies are now allowing people, even people without health insurance to take advantage of these procedures."
 "A 2004 study showed that one-third of the people who had cosmetic surgery last year, had average household incomes of under $30,000," he said. "It's opened up a whole new field of vanity medicine." 

The problem the Scriptures are addressing here in Isaiah is the adoration of self (i.e. vanity) to the neglect of the adoration of God.  You say, “Well, that sounds a bit self-centered on God’s part!”  When you really ARE the center of the universe, you deserve to be worshipped!!  God deserves the worship of every creature, of every man, woman and child that has ever, or will ever exist.  He deserves, and GETS worship from the holy angels.  He is in fact, the exalted, glorious, magnificent, all-powerful, all-knowing, holy and righteous and just God who sits upon His throne in Heaven, before whom every knee will one day bow either in absolute fear of His wrath against sin, or in absolute adoration of His infinite mercy.  He is the One from whom we all get the very air we breathe.

How we think of God now will determine our mindset, and our eternity, when we stand in His presence on that last great day.  Here is the question Isaiah forces us to ask of ourselves, and we must be absolutely honest in asking the question: Do I think more highly of myself than I do of God?  And if you are saying to yourself, “Of course not!“ then where is the evidence that that is true?  What evidence is there in your life that God is more important to you than your comfort, your wants, your desires, your goals, your pleasure, your family, your spouse, your parents, your career, your personal fulfillment, your personal appearance, your life?  

Is there is anything in my life that ever trumps God?  Then I am an idolator.  In that moment I make myself my own god.  I have made something of greater value to me than God Himself.  And God will not share His glory with another.  He was not willing to share His glory with the self-worshipping people of Judah, and He is not wiling to share it with self-worshiping Americans who think more highly of themselves than they do the King of Glory.  It is a very dangerous thing to minimize God and exalt self.  The relentless, unrepentant pursuit of self-esteem eventually results in self-condemnation.   

For the look on their faces bears witness against them;  Woe to them!  For they have brought evil on themselves (3:9).

Pride before God is the most intolerable sin we can commit.  It was the original sin of Satan himself, and it is the sin that most easily besets fallen men and women.  “Believe in yourself.”  “Trust your own heart.”  “Get the best money can buy because you’re worth it.”  “If you were the only person in the world, God thinks so much of you that He would have sent His Son into the world to die just for you!  That’s how important you are!  You are more important than Jesus is to God!”

Beware, brethren, of such insidious lies that play upon our tendencies to be worshippers of self.