{"id":1820,"date":"2011-07-05T10:13:41","date_gmt":"2011-07-05T14:13:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.fbclafayette.org\/?p=1820"},"modified":"2011-12-12T09:26:55","modified_gmt":"2011-12-12T14:26:55","slug":"do-you-have-a-problem-with-pride","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.faithlafayette.org\/church\/do-you-have-a-problem-with-pride\/","title":{"rendered":"Find Out Right Now Whether You Have a Pride Problem"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Savonarola was a great Florentine preacher during the fifteenth century.\u00a0 One day, he saw an elderly woman worshipping before a statue which stood in his city\u2019s great cathedral.\u00a0 On the following day, he noticed the same woman again on her knees before the statue.\u00a0 With great interest, Savonarola observed that day after day, the old woman came and paid homage before the statue.<\/p>\n

“Look how the woman worships,” Savonarola whispered to one of his friends. His friend answered back, “Don\u2019t be deceived by what you see.\u00a0 Many years ago, an artist was commissioned to create a statue for the cathedral.\u00a0 As he sought a young woman to pose as the model for his sculpture, he found one who seemed to be the perfect subject.\u00a0 She was a young, serenely lovely woman, and had a mystical quality in her face.\u00a0 The image of that young woman inspired his statue. The woman who now worships the statue is the same one who served as its model years ago. Shortly after the statue was put in place, she began to visit it and has continued to religiously worship there ever since.”<\/p>\n

When’s the last time you crept out of your house to worship at the feet of a sculpture created in your own image?\u00a0 Never, right?\u00a0 While you probably haven’t done that, it’s likely that you’ve asserted your claim to the title of “Center of the Universe” in other, sometimes subtler, ways.<\/p>\n

Ever honk at another car while driving because you thought it was slowing you down?\u00a0 Ever neglect a household responsibility because you thought someone else ought to do it?\u00a0 Ever dwell on a compliment someone paid you?<\/p>\n

If we take an honest look at our lives, we’re likely to find evidence of pride under every rock and around every corner. <\/strong><\/em> I’m going to ask you some more questions to help you determine whether you have a pride problem; but first, let’s take a look at a clear example of pride in the scripture, and see its effects.<\/p>\n

Pride on Display<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In the book of Genesis we find the incredible example of a group of people who had allowed pride to become the primary motive for their lives’ work.\u00a0 In their pride, they had chosen to ignore a very simple set of instructions the Lord had given them twice before – once at Creation and once after the Flood.<\/p>\n

Now, if the Lord tells us to do something just once, we need to listen.\u00a0 But if He tells us to do something more than once, then we know He’s really serious about it, and we had better be sure to obey.<\/p>\n

The instruction was “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (Genesis 1:28, 9:1). The Lord had commanded them to work hard, to have children, and to spread out across the earth…and, for a while, that\u2019s what they did.\u00a0 In fact, we find two complete chapters in the early part of Genesis that speak about the children they had and the places they settled.<\/p>\n

But then, we get to chapter 11, and that’s where we run into a problem.<\/p>\n

Genesis 11:1-2
\nNow the whole earth had one language and one speech.\u00a0 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.<\/p>\n

Note the problem.\u00a0 They had been spreading out and filling the earth, but here they stopped.<\/p>\n

Genesis 11:3-4
\nThen they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.”\u00a0 They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.\u00a0 And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”<\/p>\n

Note just how bad the problem was.\u00a0 Not only did they stop spreading out, but now they wanted to stop permanently.\u00a0 They wanted to build a city and a tower that would reach into the heavens.<\/p>\n

Genesis 11:5-9
\nBut the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.\u00a0\u00a0 And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them.\u00a0 “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”\u00a0 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city.<\/p>\n

The Effects of Pride<\/strong><\/h2>\n

1.\u00a0 Pride distorts our view<\/strong><\/p>\n

God had commanded man to do three things – to be fruitful, to multiply, and to fill the earth.\u00a0 They did all right with the first two commands, but they failed on the third one.\u00a0 They refused to fill the earth.<\/p>\n

The idea was that parents would have kids, and these kids would grow up and get married and start their own families and then move away.\u00a0 They were supposed to spread out and oversee each part of the creation that God had made.<\/p>\n

The passage doesn\u2019t tell us why they disobeyed the command.\u00a0 Maybe it was because they were tired of leaving their parents and their friends behind.\u00a0 Maybe it was because they didn\u2019t want their kids to leave them behind.\u00a0 Maybe it was because they came upon a really nice piece of land and they thought, \u201cI don\u2019t want to leave this behind.\u00a0 I may never find anything this good again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whatever the reason may have been, they said in their hearts\u2026\u201dI don\u2019t have to obey God.\u201d\u00a0 They thought they could do whatever they wanted and that nothing could stop them.\u00a0 Of course, that wasn\u2019t true, but they thought it was true because pride had distorted their thinking.<\/p>\n

Pride is an exaggerated opinion of one\u2019s self.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I have an uncle who tells great stories.\u00a0 I love listening to him because he’s so good at painting pictures and building suspense.\u00a0 He really knows how to engage you in the tale.<\/p>\n

But it’s interesting to watch his kids when he’s telling one of his stories.\u00a0 They often chuckle and shake their heads because they know what really happened.\u00a0 And they know which details their dad is building up for effect.<\/p>\n

When you listen to someone who exaggerates, it might be entertaining, but you’re not getting an accurate picture of what really happened.\u00a0 You\u2019re getting the crazy version, the movie version, the \u201cThere\u2019s no way a person could have lived through that and actually survived\u201d version.<\/p>\n

When someone exaggerates, they\u2019re stretching the truth.\u00a0 They\u2019re making something sound bigger, or greater, or more significant than it actually is or was.<\/p>\n

So, if pride exaggerates the opinion that we have of ourselves, we come to believe things about ourselves that simply aren’t accurate.\u00a0 We might think that we\u2019re stronger than we really are.\u00a0 We might think that we\u2019re smarter than we really are.\u00a0 We might think that we don\u2019t need anyone else\u2019s help.<\/p>\n

Pride causes us to think that we\u2019re better than we really are.\u00a0 It causes us to think that we\u2019re in charge of our own lives, that we don\u2019t have to listen to anyone, and that we can\u2019t be stopped by anything.<\/p>\n

Pride distorts our thinking.<\/em><\/strong> And in the case of the tower builders, it had given them a wrong view of themselves, a wrong view of their situation, and a wrong view of God.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0 Pride puts us at war with God<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scripture very clearly tells us that\u2026<\/p>\n

James 4:6
\nGod is opposed to the proud<\/p>\n

Instead of filling the earth, the people began constructing a city and a high tower.\u00a0 They proudly rejected God\u2019s command.\u00a0 When they did that, they went to war with Him.<\/p>\n

Maybe they didn\u2019t like what God had commanded.\u00a0 Maybe they didn\u2019t understand the purpose behind the command.\u00a0 Maybe they just thought it was dumb.\u00a0 So, they attempted to build a tower that would reach into the heavens.<\/p>\n

But the most insidious aspect of their decision was their motive.\u00a0 Look at what they said.<\/p>\n

Genesis 11:4
\n“Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves\u2026”<\/p>\n

Instead of striving to make a name for God, they chose to make a name for themselves.\u00a0 They wanted the world to know just how awesome they were, and they were building this city and this tower just to prove it.<\/p>\n

Instead of being obedient to God\u2019s commands, they attempted to take God\u2019s place.\u00a0 They thought if they made a name for themselves, then they would be able to stand up to God and wouldn\u2019t have to spread out across the earth.<\/p>\n

Not smart.\u00a0 One of the things the Scriptures clearly teach is that God does not share His glory with anyone.<\/p>\n

Exodus 20:5
\nI, the Lord your God, am a jealous God<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s not like God is some kind of glory hog.\u00a0 By staking claim to His glory, He\u2019s not being vain or selfish.\u00a0 The simple fact is that He’s the only One deserving of glory.<\/p>\n

But all of their efforts were for naught because…<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0 Pride produces failure<\/strong><\/p>\n

Proverbs 16:18
\nPride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling.<\/p>\n

Because of their pride, God relocated many of these people.\u00a0 In essence, God said, \u201cFine, if you won\u2019t be obedient and spread out and fill the earth on your own, then I\u2019ll have to spread you out myself.\u201d\u00a0 And He\u00a0flung them to the far reaches of the earth.<\/p>\n

Imagine what it must have been like for those people.\u00a0 One minute, you\u2019re standing next to your family and friends, and the next minute, you\u2019re by yourself in some strange new part of the world that you\u2019ve never seen before.<\/p>\n

In addition to that, God confused their languages.\u00a0 That made it impossible for them to communicate effectively or to work together.<\/p>\n

Imagine being relocated to a place like Siberia or the Sahara Desert, and when you try to speak, strange sounds that you’ve never before heard fall on your ears.\u00a0 Talk about failure.<\/p>\n

These people went from making a name for themselves, to making sure they could survive.\u00a0 What a humbling experience it must have been.\u00a0 Pride had caused them to fail, and fail big time.<\/p>\n

Do You Have a Pride Problem?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Ok, so clearly pride is something that, if present in our lives, needs to be addressed–now. What are some evidences of pride in our lives? Consider these questions regarding your interactions with others:<\/p>\n

Your spouse<\/strong><\/p>\n