Sin Of Pride – How It Manifests Itself In Our Lives
Here are some of the ways the sin of pride might manifest itself in your life. We’ve already seen from the lives of Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar how pride can simply be an over-estimation of one’s ability or even one’s security. It can also be an over-estimation of one’s righteousness or overall self-worth. For example, if you happen to think that you’re worth more to God than some other person, you’ve fallen victim to the sin of pride. It’s distorted your view of reality, because the truth of the matter is, “there is no partiality with God,”1 “nor does He regard the rich more than the poor; for they are all the work of His hands.”2 Or if on the other hand you have a habit of looking down on others because you think you’re more righteous than they are, consider the parable which Jesus gave to those “who thought they were better than others and who looked down on everyone else:”3

“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men – extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”4

Sin Of Pride – Looking Down On Others
If you look down on others because you surpass them in virtue, knowledge, skill, wealth, or for any reason at all, you have fallen victim to the sin of pride. And not only that, you have, like Belshazzar, insulted the Creator Himself. For “he who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker.”5

What gives you the right to look down on others? And why would you boast of your skills or abilities? “For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?”6 Be careful not to take credit for God’s work in your life. “Know that the Lord Himself is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.”7 Never presume to say to yourself, “My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth,”8 but instead, “remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth.”9 He is “the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways.”10

It was God who gave you your natural skills and abilities, and he didn’t do it so that you can despise others. Believe it or not, God gave you your skills and abilities so that you can serve others. That’s the kind of Person He is and that’s what He wants from us: for us to love each other. He Himself came, not to be served but to serve. Jesus taught, “Whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”11

Sin Of Pride – Love One Another
God despises the sin of pride especially because it’s totally contrary to His purposes for us. He wants us to live by His example and to serve each other in love. And He’s given us the most beautiful example. Not only did He die for us, He lives for us as well. The Apostle John tells the story how one night Jesus “rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. …So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, ‘Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.'”12

Therefore, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!”13 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”14
Sin Of Pride – How To Fight It
So how do we fight against the sin of pride? First we need to recognize that we have a problem. And this might be the hardest part, because as we have seen pride skews our perception of reality. It lies to us. It says to us, “You don’t have a problem with pride; you’re not being proud, you’re just being honest with yourself! You are better than everyone else and you deserve all the glory. You’ve established yourself by your wisdom and your might. You, you, you…” And it feels good. It’s hard to see the truth when your own heart is lying to you – wooing you with approval. It’s hard to stop and think for a minute, “No, I’m not worth more than anyone else, God loves us all the same and His opinion is the only one that really matters. And as for my glory, to God be all praise and glory! I didn’t establish myself by my wisdom and might, I’ve just used the gifts which God gave me to do that for which He gave them to me in the first place! I am an unprofitable servant; I’ve only done that which was my duty to do.”1

It’s hard to humble yourself like that when you’re stuck in pride. And it’s hard to see the truth when you’re lying to yourself. So you’re going to need help. The Lord says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”2 Your heart might be able to trick you, but it can’t trick God!

So the very first thing to do is to get on your knees and pray. Say with David, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”3 Ask God for mercy. Cry out with David, “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.”4 By asking for God’s help you’re actually humbling yourself before Him and God will honor that. The Scripture says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” This isn’t just a warning to the proud; it’s a promise to the humble. If you humble yourself before God in prayer, God will pour His grace upon you. And while sin might be able to overcome you, it’s no match for God’s awesome power. So pray. Pray, pray, pray. That’s the first step. By praying you’re, not only are you petitioning God to intercede on your behalf, which He’ll do by His grace if you’re sincere, you’re actually combating the sin of pride yourself by humbling yourself before God, humility being the opposite of pride. It’s like fighting fire with water.

The next thing to do after God starts to show you areas where you’re proud is to fight it mentally. When you experience a sudden pang of pride and you recognize it for what it is, mentally expose it. Admit to yourself that you’re being proud and ask the Lord to forgive you. Say, “I’m just being proud; Lord, please forgive me.”

The third and final thing to do is to tell your brothers and sisters in Christ that you’re struggling with pride and ask them to pray for you. “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”5

Sin Of Pride – In Summary
So in summary, the sin of pride manifests itself in selfish motives, an exaggerated ego, a low opinion of others, and disrespect for God. It can lead to other sins against God. For example: robbing God of the glory He is due, and it can and does distort your perception of reality. We fight pride by humbling ourselves before God in prayer, asking Him to reveal the pride hidden in our hearts, acknowledging and repenting of pride when we see it in ourselves, and by being transparent with our Christian family for the sake of accountability and prayer.

In closing here are a few passages of Scripture dealing specifically with pride:

“The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.” (Psalms 10:4)

“Though the LORD is on high, yet He regards the lowly; but the proud He knows from afar.” (Psalm 138:6)

“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.” (Proverbs 8:13)

“When pride comes, then comes shame; but with the humble is wisdom.” (Proverbs 11:2)

“By pride comes nothing but strife, but with the well-advised is wisdom.” (Proverbs 13:10)

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

“Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD; though they join forces, none will go unpunished.” (Proverbs 16:5)

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

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