“And as he grew strong, his heart grew more proud, leading to his destruction. Then he acted unfaithfully against the Lord his God, for he entered the temple main hall of the Lord to burn incense on the altar.”
— 2 Chronicles 26:16

One day, Judah’s King Uzziah transgressed against the Lord God by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the altar of incense, and God punished him with leprosy. Well, you say that wasn’t such a great crime. Or was it? If you understand what was meant by it you would understand that it was. He was not a priest of God. He was not set aside and sanctified unto the priesthood. But he decided that this is what he would do. He should have looked forward to an old age of rest and honor and contentment. But really the problem was that he had everything that he could have desired.

This is what happens to the spoiled kid. This is why we have young people today who come from upper middle class homes, who have two or three cars in their driveways, and yet they are out knocking people in the head. They kill for the joy and excitement of doing it. They rob and take dope for the excitement because they are just bored. They have everything.

Well, Uzziah had everything. He thought that he would be the high priest. He not only usurped the position of the priest, but he usurped the position of the high priest of God. This is the same sin that had caused the kingdom to be wrested from the hands of King Saul. We must guard against the sin of pride in our hearts. As C. S. Lewis once noted, “It is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.”

Lord, give me strength for today to follow You humbly. Forgive me for the pride in my heart. Help me to remember that all good things come from You. There is nothing I have that I did not receive. Please replace my pride with gratitude…

BY GOD’S STRENGTH, WE CAN
WALK HUMBLY WITH HIM.