How does being puffed up affect our relationship with God?

When a person is puffed up or has an inflated sense of self, it distorts their understanding of their true condition before God. Galatians 6:3 cautions, 'If a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.' This state of self-deception not only blinds us to our need for God's grace, but it also fosters a false confidence in our own abilities and righteousness. As long as we maintain this prideful posture, we resist the grace that flows freely to those who acknowledge their insufficiency and rely on Christ's sufficiency alone. It is through humility that we can genuinely experience and rejoice in God's unmerited favor.