Pride Problem

Proverbs 11:2

2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

In Genesis 3, we find out that the serpent was "more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made."  In the garden, Satan, in the form of the serpent, asked Eve a question: "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"  Of course, even with his question he twisted God's words to confuse Eve.  Remember, he was "more crafty."  What exactly was Satan doing there in the garden?  What exactly was he trying to accomplish?  It's easy: Satan wanted rebellion!  The crafty serpent wanted Adam and Eve to rebel against God.  Dr. David Jeremiah says in Genesis 3, Satan attacked God's character by creating doubt about God's love, by denying the truth of God's word, and by accusing God of jealousy.  Satan's words to Eve were, "You will not certainly die.  For God knows that when you eat from it you eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  One phrase sticks out to me: "You will be like God."  What could that possibly mean from Satan's point of view?  Position.  Power.  What could that possibly mean from my point of view? PROBLEM!  I believe we can see PRIDE all over this passage.  

In the book of Proverbs, we can find all kinds of passages that talk about pride.  Solomon was the one of the wisest men to ever walk on this planet.  He was a popular, attractive, healthy, wealthy, and powerful king.  In his later days, he said something very profound in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.  He said, "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil."  Throughout the Proverbs, Solomon speaks of pride.  Proverbs 11:2 says, "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom."  Proverbs 16:5 says, "The Lord detests all the proud of heart.  Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished."  Proverbs 16:18 says, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."  Proverbs 18:12 says, "Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor."  Proverbs 29:23 says, "Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor."  Those are just a few of the wise words from Solomon.  Over and over again, Solomon shows us something important.  He shows us that disgrace and downfall and destruction is the result of a PRIDE PROBLEM.

In his writings, Jonathan Edwards shared several signs of a pride problem.  Edwards said a pride problem would lead to "fault finding."  We tend to filter out the very evil in ourselves and at the same time filter out the very good in others.  He said a pride problem would lead to a "harsh spirit."  We tend to get easily irritated, frustrated, and judgmental at others' successes.  Edwards said a pride problem would lead to "superficialities."  We tend to be far more concerned with people's perceptions of us that the reality of our own hearts and the reality of God's heart.  He said a pride problem would lead to "desperation for attention."  We tend to seek out and hold on to recognition, attention, respect, honor, and we even tend to seek out worship for ourselves.  These are some of the results of a PRIDE PROBLEM.  The great evangelist and preacher Billy Graham said, "Pride becomes a deadly poison when we begin to take credit for our successes and begin to think that we are better than others."  We all need to be very careful and very honest with ourselves in the area of PRIDE PROBLEM.

What can we do about our PRIDE PROBLEM?  It starts with confession.  We have to see the problem and confess it out loud to our Sovereign God, to our loving and forgiving Father.  We have to repent.  We have to turn away from sin and self and pride, and we have to turn to God.  God is the only One who can rescue us from sin and self and pride.  We have to put our faith and our trust in Jesus.  He lived a perfect life for us; He died a sacrificial death for us; He rose from the grave victoriously for us.  Through His life, death, and resurrection, we have access to the Father.  We have the unlimited power of forgiveness, redemption, and assurance!  We can choose each day to live with humility rather than pride.  We can choose each day to glorify God rather than glorify self.  We can choose each day to serve others rather than be served.  We can choose each day to give attention to God rather than seek attention for self.  I could go on and on with this discussion on our PRIDE PROBLEM, but I will stop here.  What can we do?  CONFESS.  REPENT.  SURRENDER and BELIEVE.  LIVE HUMBLY.  Amen!