The Symptoms of Pride- Part 1
What does pride actually look like?
Verse of the Day
‘And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you.’
Today’s Devotional
For several days, we have been studying pride and the dangers it poses in our lives. But sometimes, I need more explanation of something to really know what to be looking for. We are now going to spend some time looking at the symptoms of pride. And if we look at today’s verse, we see Jesus telling us that it is the internal condition of our hearts that defiles us.
If you continued reading in Mark 7, you would see “pride” on the list of things that defiles us from within. If we have any pride in our hearts, it might be helpful to look at some of the symptoms of that defiling resident of the heart.
- Too Proud to Seek God: ‘The wicked are too proud to seek God. They seem to think that God is dead.’ (Psalms 10:4) Please don’t get caught in the word “wicked”. The focus here needs to be whether or not I am too proud to seek God. Do I ever think that praying about something is irrelevant? Do I ever think I am too busy to read the Word? Am I ever too busy patting myself on the back to give God the glory for something? A symptom of pride is not seeking God, and not seeing the need to include Him in all aspects of my life.
- Proud of Our Pride: ‘They wear pride like a jeweled necklace and clothe themselves with cruelty.’ (Psalms 73:6) This verse makes me think of America. We are so eager to be proud of ourselves. And when we think we have done something worthy of praise, don’t we want everyone to know about it? Our culture gets this one dead wrong. This is going to seem anticlimactic, but pride is a symptom of pride. Wanting others to know about your status or accomplishments is pride. Likewise, feeling free to be biting or cruel to others, whether to their face or in online communities, is a symptom of pride. I have a mentor in my life who, when I was expressing that I was proud of myself for something, said, “You let me be proud of you. You, however, need to be grateful.”
- Slander: ‘I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors. I will not endure conceit and pride.’ (Psalms 101:5) What if talking about anyone in a way that might make them look bad is a symptom of pride? Does it, intentionally or not, make them a little lower and me a little higher? Is it possible that I don’t know all of the details and have no right to be discussing any details about another person’s life?
- Conflict: ‘Pride leads to conflict; those who take advice are wise.’ (Proverbs 13:10) This verse speaks for itself. Conflict with others is a symptom of pride.
- Talking Too Much: ‘A fool’s proud talk becomes a rod that beats him, but the words of the wise keep them safe.’ (Proverbs 14:3) Not all talking is “proud talk”, but we would be wise to look at the use of our words for any symptoms of pride. Are we eager for attention? Do we find ourselves thinking of our response instead of really listening? Are our words many and our actions few? Do we ever say things that we don’t follow through with?
- Looking Down on Others: ‘Haughty eyes, a proud heart, and evil actions are all sin.’ (Proverbs 21:4) Haughty eyes reveal a heart that has pride. Haughty eyes are eyes that see any other human as “less than”. This symptom of pride is easy to overlook because we mistakenly think that we have good reasons to look down on certain people. For me, I struggle with looking down on panhandlers. I justify this by saying, “Don’t they see all of the “Help Wanted” signs everywhere?” I am not better than a panhandler. I have been given a different set of circumstances. For me, it’s important to remember that.
- Mocking and Arrogance: ‘Mockers are proud and haughty; they act with boundless arrogance.’ (Proverbs 21:24) Arrogance is pretty easy to identify as pride, right? But mocking, which is any form of ridicule, contempt, or derision, is much harder to spot. Sometimes we are just trying to be funny. But if my humor comes at someone else’s expense, that is a symptom of pride.
I don’t mean to be the bearer of bad news, but…this is just the first part of our list of symptoms of pride. There are many more examples from Scripture of what pride might look like. And we have to know what we are looking for. If we can’t identify the pride in our hearts, we cannot expose it to the Light and ask for God’s help to remove it.
Going back to today’s verse, Jesus says that pride in our hearts defiles us. If I am cleaning out a room, I make piles of things to keep, to donate, and to throw away. As I take inventory of my heart, it is helpful to see from Scripture what things in my mind and heart need to go in the trash pile. Some of those things may have gone unnoticed for years. Maybe I didn’t know they were there, or maybe I didn’t know they were harmful. There is a saying that applies here: “A few bad apples spoil the whole barrel.” With regard to pride, I may need help identifying what a bad apple looks like.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Which of the symptoms of pride do you recognize in your own life? Either currently or in the past?
Do you find it easier to see these symptoms in another than to see them in yourself?
If you are willing, pray (out loud) Psalm 139:24, and then read through the verses in today’s post again. ‘Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.’