Speaker: Darlene Sala | Series: Encouraging Words

Mart DeHaan calls pride “a great imposter—one so clever that he deceived even the devil himself.” He writes, “I’m learning that he is no fool. He flatters us. He defers to us. He encourages us to develop an exaggerated opinion of our own importance, while at the same time letting us think negative and self-destructive thoughts about ourselves…. He has hats for every occasion and masks for every emotion. He has a different voice for every decision. Sometimes he struts—sometimes he limps.”[1] Good description, isn’t it!

We all deal with pride in one form or another, if for no other reason than the fact that some of us are proud that we are so humble! Pride is sneaky. You don’t have to be a highly accomplished, type-A person in order to be proud.  Pride crops up when we compare ourselves with other people and think that we are better than they are.

It’s not pride to know what your talents and abilities and gifts are. It’s not pride to know what you’re good at doing. Those abilities are gifts from the Lord to be used for His glory. Pride comes when we compare our gifts with those of others and think we’re worth more than they are. Then, as Mart DeHaan says, we develop an exaggerated opinion of our own importance.

Pride can slip up on you when you’re not looking. A little success in your arena of endeavor can make you feel that you’re better than you really are, and before you know it, you’ve become proud. It’s a dangerous position, for, as Proverbs says, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18.

Yes, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Thank God for the gifts and abilities He has given you and at the same time keep on the watch that pride doesn’t sneak up on you. “When pride comes, then comes disgrace,” says Proverbs, “but with humility comes wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2).

[1]Mart DeHaan, “A Great Imposter,” pamphlet produced by RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI, February 2005.