Proverbs 28:26, “Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe.”
How many times have you trusted yourself and regretted it? If you were to be honest, I’m sure you can recall dozens of bad decisions you’ve made in life. I know I can. Whether it was a time you trusted your feelings and got hurt in a relationship, or a time when you made a bad financial decision; we’ve all been our own worst enemy.
Trust God more than you trust yourself because you’ve been wrong before and He is always right.
Albert Einstein defined insanity as, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Therefore, we shouldn’t keep trusting ourselves if we have the potential to be wrong and cause our own destruction. We need to humble ourselves and walk in God’s wisdom. God’s wisdom is multifaceted and is good for every area of our life. We should walk in God’s wisdom as it pertains to our family, job, finances, spirituality, friendships and government.
However, if we choose to trust in ourselves, we will suffer in the end. Specifically, if we trust ourselves for salvation, we’ll be cast into the lake of fire. And if as Christians we don’t follow Jesus on the path of wisdom in every area of our life, we will suffer the loss of our rewards in the age to come (1 Corinthians 3:12-15).
Everyone from time to time may find short-term success in his or her own wisdom, but this is just an illusion. God allows us for seasons of testing to get what we want without His blessing; however, those “blessings” soon turn to “curses” when we experience God’s judgment. Imagine if you were rock climbing and found gold in a cave. As you start to fill your pockets, the guide warns you to leave it there because the ropes cannot hold the extra weight. However, you refuse to listen to him because you trust your own judgment. On your descent, the rope breaks because of the weight and you die. Sure for a time you were rich because you trusted yourself but eventually you and your riches perished.
The same is true in your relationship with God. If you keep refusing to listen to God’s wisdom, because you trust yourself, in the end you will be destroyed. God said in Proverbs 29:1, “Whoever remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy.” As a result, we should be humble and submit our lives to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Certainly, God wants us to trust ourselves, after we’ve learned to trust Him, that’s why He gave us a mind. However, we should never fall for the trap of the devil and try to be our own “god” by living “self-reliant” lives. Our will should be submitted to God’s will and our mind should be set on the Mind of Christ (Colossians 3:2).
Reflection
Action
- Repent of the sin of “self-reliance.”
- Ask God to lead you in His wisdom.
- Be open to receive and give God’s wisdom to others.
