Thesis 11: Subtle Pride Manifesting as Cancer in the Dying Church

This is Thesis 11 of the “End Times 95 Theses by The Two Witnesses of Revelation", a parallel of the work Martin Luther did hundreds of years ago. This thesis will explore the subtle pride that is killing the church like a silent, deadly cancer. Here are the previous theses for reference, which I recommend reading in order:

Witness 1 is working on compiling this for me. : )

Subtle Forms of Pride

We often hear about pride in an overt way, with the "Pride" month of June, or the pride of Satan and his fall. However, this morning, when I was praying, a thought from the Holy Spirit came to me - some forms of pride are subtle and slowly destroying people like a hidden, malignant cancer. Not all forms of pride are obvious, and this thesis will discuss the subtle pride that has taken over the end times dying church. Just as pride is the first sin, it will be the last sin.

As a reminder, the reason why pride is so dangerous in comparison to other sins is that a prideful person cannot self-reflect. They are blinded by their own pride, and it is difficult to change.

For example, when I struggled with alcohol, I could clearly see its overt effects, and it was a sin I could not deny. I knew it had to be changed because it was blatantly affecting my life. This is true of many sins - they are blatant and undeniable - and this helps us reflect and change.

However, with the sin of pride, it's hard to see - it is often hidden and manifests in subtle ways. Unfortunately, some reading are going to immediately say, "I don't have pride!", and how about, right now, we pray this instead:

"Father in Heaven, if I have any forms of pride, please expose them so I can change and repent in Jesus's name."

If one cannot do this prayer, it is likely because of a form of pride, and I urge readers to say the prayer to combat this pride. Witness 1 notes, "It's a Catch-22." In the meantime, I came up with a list of more "subtle" forms of pride that may be emerging in our lives and have been destroying the church for many years.

Remember, I write everything for me, too. I am not perfect, nor do I claim to be. I am in a process of sanctification, and I strive toward holiness. However, I know there is always a way I can improve and grow, and this mindset has helped me be very successful in life! Humility is the opposite of pride, and something God loves. It is saying, "I don't know it all. I need your help, Lord!"

Now, let's examine this list to see if any of us are struggling with subtle pride. To note, for the most simple definition of pride, it is a form of too much confidence in one's self and own abilities, often presenting itself as, "I've got this all figured out by myself."

On a larger level, this subtle pride is the last sin of the end times church. It will be its fatal wound unless people repent, so this thesis is actually a warning to all in the end times. We must repent of our pride, overt or subtle, before it kills us!

Subtle Forms of Pride

1) Procrastination: You may be thinking, "How is procrastination a form of pride?' Well, the idea of procrastination is that "I can do this later or tomorrow", but the Bible says we are not guaranteed tomorrow. In fact, the Bible tells us not to boast about tomorrow because we do not know what it will bring. So, when we procrastinate, it is prideful because we are saying "Tomorrow is guaranteed," but it is not. We must not wait to do things, and we must seize the opportunity. A form of humility is to say, "My life is all in God's hands. I must seize every opportunity each day. It is disrespectful to God to wait until 'later' to do this task." Procrastination can actually manifest as a spirit, so if you need deliverance from this, please contact us.

2) Entitlement: This is something we have to discuss often in our real life ministry because we spend a lot of time giving out charity to those suffering. Unfortunately, many develop an "entitled" attitude. For example, I may give them $10 for food, and they ask for more. That is entitled and rude. Or, sometimes there is a general attitude that we "owe" them something, when in fact, we do not. We have given many speeches to our congregation, and we have said, "We do not owe you anything, and really, neither does God." We often have to quote this verse to them: "A man who does not work should not eat", and we encourage them to work in our ministry. This could be an entirely different post, so I am summarizing. To simplify, we see an entitlement in many who believe they should get things for free with no work. With that being said, Witness 1 and I are extremely charitable and help as many people as possible, and we understand this calling as Christians. Still, we have to call out attitudes of entitlement in our ministry, with people expecting they are "owed" something from us, when in fact, they are not.

Now, the entitlement in the first world is different than the third world. For the first world, which encompasses most of our readers, there is this "entitlement" view of God that He is some type of genie, and your wish is His command. People believe that if they follow Him, they are entitled to an easy, prosperous life, with no suffering. This transforms to the "prosperity gospel" that has taken over the church. The prosperity gospel is pure entitlement - it is pride in action.

Instead, the Bible casts out all views of entitlement, and really, though God owes us nothing, He gives us everything, including eternal life through salvation in Jesus Christ. Paul writes,

34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?”[a] 35 “Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?”[b] 36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be the glory forever! Amen.

God is nobody's debtor; however, he has freely given us the gift of salvation and so much more, which leads to the next point.

3) Ingratitude: This is probably the number one problem in the first world. Ingratitude can go along with an attitude of "entitlement" and "nothing is ever good enough."

Honestly, I would even say "ingratitude" is one of the largest sins of this generation - another form of pride.

I believe if readers focused on gratitude from day to day, 95% of their problems would go away. When I wake up in the morning, I simply say, "I am grateful to be alive. Thank you, God, for waking me up this morning."

Do you know how powerful that statement is? We must start by thanking God from the moment we wake up, as our lives are not owed to us. To be breathing, to be alive right now - we should be grateful!

This one does not go over well with this prideful generation because I hear the complaints..."But what about...?"

I know, I know - most are suffering in some way, and I am not dismissing your suffering. However, we can transform a great deal of our suffering through gratitude.

I have written, "Gratitude is an act of power", and I challenge readers to read this document. To summarize, when we are in a state of gratitude, we encompass the love of Jesus Christ, and it is true power against our enemies.

The Bible is clear that we are to give thanks in ALL circumstances, and for more information on this, read the book of Job.

Ingratitude is a form of entitlement, which is a form of pride. Let us be thankful for what the Lord has given us, and honestly, if you are reading this right now on a phone or computer, well, you have much more than many, many people around the world. Did you eat today? You are doing better off than many. Are you warm? Are you comfortable? Yes, you have much to be grateful for - we all do.

4) Philosophical Hubris: Hubris is defined as "excessive pride", but specifically, it is about someone's confidence in their own knowledge or wisdom. This is seen greatly in the academic world, and it has come into our churches. It is almost as if the person speaking sees themselves as a god, and this form of pride can translate philosophically, linguistically, or even scripturally.

I have a recent example of this happening. A man debated me regarding Revelation, and he said, and I quote, "I am 100% certain of my view of Revelation." Note from Witness 1: Anyone claiming to understand the book of Revelation 100% is a fool.

That is GREAT hubris, and it is extremely dangerous. Because of this view, he would not listen to me or see his own pride in his beliefs. I do pray he repents in Jesus's name.

None of us should believe we know it all or that we are "so wise" or "so knowledgeable." In fact, the Bible warns us that the more "wise" we think we are, the more we become foolish in His eyes.

In order to combat philosophical hubris, these are statements we can pray:

- Father in Heaven, I confess I do not know everything. Can you help me know the truth in Jesus's name?
- Father in Heaven, it's okay if I do not know everything. I accept there are some mysteries in Jesus's name I pray.
- Lord, help me uncover new wisdom. I accept that I am not wise, and I ask that you help me become wise in a way in which I remain humble in doing so!

These are just examples, but in order to combat this philosophical hubris, it starts by reframing our language and perception of ourselves. More can be said about this another time, but I must move on.

5) Apathy and Sloth: Like ingratitude, apathy and sloth are sins of our generation.

Apathy is a form of pride because it generally manifests as a lack of concern for others. I notice apathetic individuals always are concerned about themselves but they do not care about anyone else around them. It manifests as a prideful, self-centeredness. It is the thought, "I am comfortable. Who cares about anyone around me?"

This one angers me because it is what I see the most online. I notice people spend hours upon hours reading news and information, but they do little for others or to help others. They are apathetic about the world around them, and they are in these bubbles of information where they become their own self-serving gods.

The best way I can explain this is that if you are reading this site every day, enjoy our work, and then, you refuse to reach out or help us in any way, that is a form of apathy, and therefore, a form of pride. The pride is "Only I matter, and nobody else does."

We had a reader (who we no longer talk to) who would spend the majority of her day reading article after article about Q, "redskull", and God knows what. This person would constantly send us information, but they would rarely ask us if we need prayer or help in any way.

Though they professed to care, the truth is, they were apathetic. The constant internet browsing was a form of avoidance of reality, an avoidance of care, and it is happening around the world.

Spending hours reading articles and watching videos means nothing to God if you do not do anything with the information. You can know Scripture inside and out, but it means nothing without action.

Apathy often manifests as sloth, and these are sins of pride. This is warned about in James:

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

Apathy and sloth manifest in inaction, which is a form of pride. When someone is lazy or inactive, they pridefully say, "Someone else will do the work!" No, God wants you to do the work, and we cannot wait around for someone else to do it. There are many ways that you can help us with our ministry, and please, reach out to us and we will share how.

6) Lack of Faith: Many in the end times "have a form of godliness but deny its power."

This can manifest in many ways, but one way I see it the most is that people do not believe in things of the Spirit. They deny "The More Spiritual Worldview."

They pridefully try to explain the world around them in worldly way, never acknowledging the Holy Spirit or the spiritual world around them. If you read the gospels, Jesus is constantly talking about how much of what He says can ONLY be understood through the Spirit - the Spirit of Truth, which the world cannot receive.

They say they believe in God, but they deny His spiritual power and impact in their lives. There can never be enough evidence for them, they never form conclusions, and in the end, they lack faith.

Faith is what keeps us in humility. It is saying, "I believe God is operating in ways I cannot fully understand."

When someone lacks faith, it is actually a form of pride because they are trying to use their own understandings to comprehend the work of Jesus Christ.

This is prideful. Faith always requires humility, or it cannot exist. Faith cannot exist in pride.

7) I AM THE TEACHER! Everyone wants to be the teacher, but no one wants to learn anymore. Now, obviously, I am using this blog to teach, but I believe I have been called to do so. Has everyone been called to teach? No. By the way, you can pray and ask God if I was called to teach in the end times in Jesus's name. I believe He will you tell you I am a teacher if you pray with a true heart and faith to the one and only Jesus Christ.

The amount of online ministries out there is evidence of the GREAT pride amongst people. There should NOT be this many ministries - not everyone is a teacher.

The pride is that everyone wants to be first, but Jesus is clear that the last will be first, and the first will be last.

I am calling fire from Heaven upon the false ministries online, and I pray God exposes them and eradicates them in Jesus's name. The majority you see doing these online ministries were not called to do so. God has even sent them warnings and messages to stop their ministries, but they refuse. It's up to you to pray about ours, and whether or not we were called by God to do this work.

In the meantime, let us all remember that ALL PARTS of the body of Christ are important, and when everyone is trying to be the teacher, it takes away from the beauty of unity in Christ that I have written about here.

Not everyone was called to be a teacher or leader, and that is okay. We are over-congested with teachers and leaders, and honestly, the best teacher says, "I am always learning. There is always something new to learn." Most of these "teachers" think they know it all.

There can be more said about this, but I believe it is time to wrap-up.

Concluding Thoughts

The reason these are all "subtle forms of pride" is most would not recognize them. When we think of pride, again, we think of a showy arrogance that manifests clearly.

However, pride can be subtle, and it is killing many people.

Today, I ask all readers to examine their own levels of pride. I believe it is one area we can all be better, and Witness 1 and I are not exempt from self-reflection. We must be constantly self-reflecting in order to keep this website alive, and that is something lost from most churches today.

Subtle pride is like a slow, hidden cancer. It may have signs, but it is hard to find, and often, people do not discover it until it is too late. Subtle pride is the spiritual cancer killing the churches today.

In my next post, I will have a prophecy update and reader contributions, so please check back. I actually didn't expect to write this today, but that's just how God works sometimes!

Thank you, God, for all you do for me in Jesus's name. I truly appreciate that you allow me to do this writing and have allowed me to be an end times teacher in Jesus's name. All glory I give to my Lord Jesus Christ!

Love

Witness 2 (Elisha)