Throughout God’s Word, we clearly read that God hates pride (James 4:6; Jeremiah 50:31; Proverbs 8:13). He opposes pride because He knows that, as it blinds us, it causes us to loose sight of the fact that we need Him in every area of our lives. Pride leads to self-exaltation and independence, not to a growing relationship with the Lord and others.
In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says,
“As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”When we have pride in our lives, it envelopes us in a world of delusion that denies the reality that following God’s laws is the only way that leads to true freedom.
In last week’s study, we briefly covered four areas of pride that we tend to overlook.
1) Moral Superiority
This form of pride is really somewhat ironic. When we look down at others because of how good we think we are, we are really demonstrating how bad we actual are. We fall into this category when we take the moral high ground in an area and look down at others who don’t. Regular church attendance, the kinds of movies we watch or don’t watch, our language, how many missions trips we’ve been on or ministries we are a part of, how much money we give to the church… All are areas that can lead to a sense of moral superiority when pride creeps in.
In Luke 18, Jesus tells a story of a Pharisee and a Publican. The Pharisee thanked the Lord that he was righteous and upright, unlike the people he was comparing himself to. He waxed eloquent of how dedicated to the Lord he was in his giving and fasting. On the other hand, the Publican (tax collector) humbly acknowledged that he was a sinner in need of God’s grace. Jesus praised the tax collector for his humility. When we see ourselves as sinners in need of God’s grace, we will avoid the sin of moral superiority.
2) The Pride of Correct Doctrine
This is also a danger to believers, especially to those who are diligent to study God’s Word. The more we learn about the Bible, the more familiar we become with doctrine (doctrine=teaching). As we develop doctrinal convictions and gain more Bible knowledge, the temptation is to become prideful. We think we’re pretty awesome because we can explain the difference between infralapsarianism and supralapsarianism and casually use words like “hypostatic union” when teaching Sunday School to the 1st graders. This can make us feel pretty good about ourselves. C.S. Lewis said,
“Whenever we find that our religious life is making us feel that we are good- above all, that we are better than someone else, I think we may be sure that we are being acted on, not by God, but by the devil.”To avoid this trap, it’s important to never forget Biblical soteriology and hamartiology, (whoops, pride!)… the doctrines of salvation and sin. As we remember the gospel, we will be reminded of the humility of Christ and that we were sinners saved by His grace, completely undeserving of salvation. Our correct doctrine should create a love for others, rather than a prideful, condemning spirit toward those who may not be as grounded in good theology.
3) Pride of Human Achievement
This form of pride celebrates accomplishments without seeing God in the picture. Maybe we celebrate an advanced degree in biology or a raise at work. Maybe it’s finishing a marathon or being smart enough to fix our car without a mechanic. Even though our accomplishments take hard work, it is still God who blesses the effort and controls the outcome. When diligence produces fruit, we are tempted to pat ourselves on the back by taking all the credit.
The Israelites in the wilderness were beginning to grow prideful over “their” accomplishments. Deuteronomy 8:16-18 says,
“In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end. Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth…”Any achievement we attain is really the result of God working through us, enabling us to continue strong in diligence. When we thank God for blessing our efforts, we will grow in humility and thankfulness rather than in pride.
4) An Independent Spirit
This was the fourth and final sin that was discussed. When we are prideful, we tend to think that we can handle things on our own. We don’t seek accountability and have no desire to listen to the counsel of our spiritual authorities. As those who attend Mountain View Community Church, God has called us to submit to the Pastors who shepherd and watch over us (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; Hebrews 13:17; Romans 13:1-7).
One of the hardest areas to listen to our Pastors is in the area of relationships… I’m not just talking about the roommate kind, but more of the romantic kind. If we desire to get into a dating relationship, it is wise to seek out the counsel of a Pastor or someone in leadership at Mountain View. This is one of God’s ways of helping us to make wise decisions. If a Pastor or mentor has a red flag with us being in a relationship (whether it’s us or the person we are interested in), it is wise to use caution. Pride will find ways to justify going against godly counsel. Over the years, I’ve seen many with an independent spirit get into a relationship against wise counsel only to end up in heartbreak and even divorce. This is no way to go! Galatians 6:7-9 talks about how we reap what we sow. The person who sows pride will reap sorrow, but the person who sows humility through the Spirit will reap life and peace.
So, in summary, pride is sin! Let’s seek the wisdom from the Lord and the insight of others to rid our lives of the subtle forms of pride. Of the four areas we discussed, which one do you struggle with the most? How can you develop humility in this area and overcome pride? Let’s take what we’ve learned and put it into action!
~AF
