Life in Christ: Identifying Prideful Living

Prideful Living Is Not From God

James 3:13-4:10 — "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that come from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such 'wisdom' does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness."

Prideful Living Leads to Hating God

"What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? But he gives more grace. That is why Scripture says: 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble'" (Proverbs 3:34).

Prideful Living Has a Cure

"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the LORD, and he will lift you up."

Examples of Prideful Living With Repentance

2 Kings 5:1 — "Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy."

2 Kings 5:8-14 — When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: "Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel." So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, "Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed."

But Naaman went away angry and said, "I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the water of Israel?"

"If the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, 'Wash and be cleansed'!" So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.

Job 40:3 — Then Job answered the LORD: "I am unworthy, how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer, twice, but I will say no more."

Job 42:1-6 — Then Job replied to the LORD: "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?' Surely I spoke things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. You said, 'Listen now and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.' My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes."

Prideful Living Warned Against

Proverbs 11:2 — "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom."

Proverbs 16:18 — "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."

1 John 2:16 — "For everything in the world, the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does, comes not from the Father but from the world."

Humility Overcomes Prideful Living

Philippians 2:3-4 — "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."

(Excerpt from Steps to Freedom by Neil Anderson)

Pride says, "I don't need God's or anyone else's help. I can handle it by myself." A good definition of humility is: putting no confidence in the flesh, that is, in ourselves; but, rather, being "strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might."

Identifying Areas of Pride

• Relying on my own strengths and abilities instead of depending on the power of the Holy Spirit
• Leaning too much on my own understanding and experience rather than seeking God's guidance through prayer and His Word
• Having a stronger desire to do my will than God's will
• Being more concerned about controlling others than in developing self-control
• Having a tendency to think that I have no needs
• Finding it hard to admit when I am wrong
• Being more concerned about pleasing people than pleasing God
• Being concerned about getting the credit I feel I deserve
• Thinking I am more humble, spiritual, religious or devoted than others
• Being driven to obtain recognition by attaining degrees, titles or position
• Often feeling that my needs are more important than another person's needs
• Considering myself better than others because of my academic, artistic or athletic abilities and accomplishments
• Other ways I have thought more highly of myself than I should

Jeremiah 9:23 — "This is what the LORD says: 'Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,' declares the LORD."