Pride of the Proud

1 John 2:16 “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.”

The word “pride” here is defined as: an inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, accomplishments, rank or elevation in office, which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others. The late pastor . Vernon McGee states once that he was confident that many readers look at pride of life and says, “Is that all? Pride is bad, but it’s not that bad, is it?”

Proverbs 29:23 “A man’s pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honor.”

Actually, pride makes very little impression on us today, because we have lost our sense of the proportion of sin and our moral compress. We think pride is a nice, polite sin. Don’t good people indulge in this? You do not have to get down in the gutter to be filled with pride. Or do you?

Obadiah 3:1 “The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; You who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’”

McGee explains to us, pride is the sin of sin! Pride of the heart is deeper and darker than any other sin you can mention. We do not condemn it, but God does! God Word says in James 4:6 “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Proverbs 8:13 tells us, “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.”

A great many saints (those who have been sanctified) are proud they have been saved by grace! My friend, your salvation ought to make you proud; it is even something to brag about. It is something about which to glorify God. It should humble you. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself that you have to be saved by grace because you are such a miserable sinner? I wish I had something to offer God for salvation, but I have nothing. Therefore, I must be saved by God’s grace, receiving what I do not deserve, and I cannot even boast of that. There are too many folks boasting of the fact that they have been sinners. God gives grace to the humble.

Proverbs 11:2 “When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is

wisdom.”

The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” What kind of mind did He have? Lowliness of mind. He said in Matthew 11:29, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle (meek) an lowly in heart.” Pride is destroying the testimony on many Christians and has made them ineffective of God. They are not building on the foundation of Christ.

Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”