Pride is one of the seven deadly sins. The question is why and why deadly? Pride is the worst and the most prevalent of the seven deadly sins because it is either the source or chief component in all of the others. Pride is the instigator of all sin. Pride is defined as a high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority. Terms are used to describe people that are prideful as egotistical, arrogant, selfish, vain, conceited, boastful, and big-headed.
Pride is being arrogant. Pride is self-worship. It is the sin that exalt oneself and it places your own interest above everyone else interests. It craves adoration and admiration. It doesn't want to share the limelight with anyone else. The proud are in love with themselves and seek to want attention for themselves. Pride thinks that it is all about Me. Pride is the worship of the unholy trinity - me, myself, and I.
Pride is a spiritual cancer. One of the perfect examples in the Bible is the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector in Luke 18:9-14. Jesus told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and viewed others with contempt. "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.'" "But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner.' I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Pride will get you into trouble. Pride is very dangerous and it is displeasing to God. When we are filled with pride, it has several effects on our lives. Pride damages our relationships. Pride tells us lies and we truly believe those lies. Pride is the instigator of ALL sin. Pride produces laziness and you start to believe that someone else should do it for you because you are too special. Pride promotes gluttony which is an overindulgence and over consuming, which spur other sins and immoral behavior. Pride promotes anger and it can display a passionate and active response of the entire person, to a real or perceived wrong. Anger can either be constructive if handled righteously or destructive if handled sinfully and not addressed.
Pride is ALL about self, selfishness, and self-centeredness. Scripture reminds us, "There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent bleed, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers" (Proverbs 6:16-19). What is the first thing on this list? Haughty eyes. Haughty eyes is a figure of speech for pride, arrogance, or conceit. When the Bible says someone has haughty eyes, it means that they consider themselves above others and ultimately above God.
God loves us but there is something in us that He doesn't like. What it that? PRIDE! God doesn’t like to see pride in any of us. If anyone is proud they have set themselves against God. That person naturally becomes an enemy of God. Their life and actions become resistant and displeasing to God. While the thought of vainglory seeks to gain glory or admiration to prop up self, pride cuts even deeper. The thought of pride not only seeks to take God's glory for ourselves, it suggests that we are the very source of our own life and accomplishments. The essence of pride is the belief that "I am a God." When you are proud you lose out on God's grace for your life, which he loves to give to the humble, because "He gives grace to the humble."
Pride is different from self-esteem. Self-esteem is not the same thing as pride in the biblical sense. Self-esteem is confidence in one’s own worth, abilities, or morals. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", I am worthy"). The Bible clearly tells us, "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18). In 1 John 2:16, John describes the "world" as "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the sinful pride of life." Here John is not thinking of that warm feeling you get when you have done a good job or help someone. No, he is warning us against the seductive notion that you feel that you don’t need God. He is telling us to beware of the idea that we can get along very well on our own and can become a god in your own right, if you are not careful. This is the kind of pride that lies at the root of all human sins.
Satan is the model example of a prideful person, because it was out of pride that he chose to exalt himself in defiance of the Almighty God. Oh I do have the receipts. The Bible says, "And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him" (Revelation 12:7-9). Because of pride Satan was kicked out of heaven. Scripture tells us, "How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High" (Isaiah 14:12-14). He was kicked out of heaven because of pride.
There are some people who will always want to dominate. They will always want to look down on others. They will rarely ever will be submissive. They will never accept or face defeat. They think that they are invincible. They think that they cannot fail. Pride will prompt you to keep a check that you always want to be dominating. Since we are sinful by nature, we will always find pride in us and in others, but remember pride will always keep you from God's grace. Proverbs 29:33 says, "A man's pride shall bring him low; But he that is of lowly spirit shall obtain honor." We have to remember that as long as we are in pride we cannot grow in grace of God.
Whenever you see yourself behaving in pride, you need to think about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is the epitome of humility. Paul reminds us in Philippians 2:3-11, "Let nothing be done through strife or vain glory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto dead, even the death of the cross. Where fore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
We were proud in our sin and rebellious against God. What do you think would have happened if God thought the same way. We would not have received salvation for our souls. It is only because of God who humbled Himself to the point of death on the cross so that we can be save. We have to cultivate love that is godly, "agape" love. The love that doesn't find reason for loving. The love that is unconditional. We all know that "love" is a fruit of the Spirit and so is humility. Paul provides us with the characteristics of godly love. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hope, always perseveres" (1 Corinthians 12:4-7). No, pride can never be on the menu.
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