Pride

In sports and some other occupations a certain amount of arrogance is regarded as appropriate. You have to believe you are good in order to win the job or get promoted. The danger comes in transferring this self belief into other areas of life. In that way we become selfish, self-centered, uncooperative and aggressive.

Proverbs 8:13 quotes God as saying, “The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.” Why is God so opposed to pride, when it can be helpful to us in some situations? That’s because pride is the opposite of faith and trust. When someone believes in himself so much that he ignores God, he has sinned greatly in God’s eyes. God is good and strong, along with having all wisdom and knowledge. So failure to trust Him is not only unwise but sinful. In addition, self-aggrandizement excludes love for others. God is love and commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves.

We must trust God with our lives. Let’s ask Him to root out harmful and destructive pride and arrogance from our lives. Let’s believe that God loves us enough that He will do what is best for us.