LUST AND PRIDE
Proverbs 11, 1 John 2 and James 4
“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Genesis 3:4-6)
It is interesting that the New Testament rarely focuses on specific acts of sin that we consider major and abominable, like murder, adultery, robbery, cheating, breach of trust, but dwells on lust and pride.
We forget that in the original temptation it was lust and pride (“you will be like God”, “good for food and pleasing to the eye and also desirable for gaining wisdom”) that led Adam and Eve to disobey God and seek out what the serpent offered.
In quoting Proverbs 3 “He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed”, James goes on to tell that when we harbour pride and seek God with arrogance (not that we think we are being arrogant), we not only do not have his ear but he actively opposes us.
Jesus, in telling the parable of the two men praying at the temple tells us in Luke 18, “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
It is left to John, in his first letter, to tell us that lust and pride are what make the world go round and as much as we yield ourselves to them, we increasingly morph into citizens of the world rather than citizens of the kingdom of God. James describes such people as adulterous.
The passage in proverbs helps us to understand the danger further: those that are arrogant will justify their lust, allowing them to cheat and lie in pursuit of what they lust after, which will further entrap them. This will be their downfall, if not in the eyes of the world then in the eyes of God. The humble will gain wisdom, guidance and deliverance from the temptation to sin, because they will find favour with God.
Paul Sands, in his article on pride, nicely summarises it for us: “Sinful pride must not be confused with self-respect, proper self-esteem, self-love, or “feeling proud”— each of which is essential for human flourishing. Pride is best viewed as an irreligious and antisocial assertion of the self. We see this in the way pride elevates the self over others.” It boils down to vanity, conceit and arrogance, an attitude that flows out of self-absorption and self-centredness, to the detriment of others. When coupled with lust, only the limitations of our resources and opportunities would hold us back.
Lust and pride in today’s world are the minor infractions that lurk behind the dark deeds that those who have sunk into their depths have committed. Most of us would never commit the big sins (at least we don’t think so) yet we would allow lust and pride control. The bible calls us to remain humble, conscious of our own vulnerabilities, and in that humility be shielded by God, redeemed by Him when we fail, and be lifted up even as we mourn in His presence.
“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.”