OceanSide church of Christ

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Part of the series: PRIDE DESTROYS
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DESTRUCTIVE NATURE OF PRIDE (1)

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.   Here’s what it looks like.

1.     Here’s what it looked like in the life of Pharaoh (Exo. 5:2).

 

And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go?  I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.

 

2.     Here’s what it looked like in the life of Goliath (I Sam. 17:43-44).

 

And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?  And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.  And the Philistine said to David, come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

 

3.     Here’s what it looked like in the life of Nebuchadnezzar (Isa. 14:13-14).

 

For thou has said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my thone above the stars of God:  I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

 

4.     Here’s what it looked like in the life of a Pharisee (Luke 18:11-12).

 

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.  I fast twice in the week I give tithes of all that I possess.

 

5.     Here’s what it looked like in the life of Herod (Acts 12:21-22).

 

And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them.  And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.

 

B.    The above examples are very bold demonstrations of our subject.  Each of these individuals displayed the heinous sin of pride.

 

C.   Today, we are looking at pride in the book of Proverbs under the title:  “The Destructive Nature of Pride.”

1.     The word “pride” is found six times in Proverbs.  “Proud” is used seven times.

2.     We read the word “haughty” three times in the book and “arrogancy” is found once.

3.     The term “conceit” is mentioned five times.

4.     There are other passages that also deal with pride, but they do not specifically mention any of the above terms.

5.     If we were to choose one verse as a key verse, it would be Proverbs 16:18.

 

Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

 

I.           PRIDE DESTROYS SELF

 

A.   Pride is directly involved with the individual:              p  r  I  d  e

1.     It is an overestimation of self.

2.     It is an elevation of self.

3.     It is an over-estimate of one’s worth.

4.     It is a “conceited sense of one’s superiority” (101 Most Powerful Proverbs, Rabey, Rabey, and Lang, p. 9).

5.     A man who is proud is truly a “Legend in His Own Mind.”

6.     Proverbs 26:12

 

Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit?  There is more hope of a fool than of him.

 

B.    Let’s think about man as he really is for a moment.

1.     We are the work of God (Ps. 100:3).

 

Know ye that the Lord he is God:  it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves…

 

2.     We are made from the dust of the earth (Gen. 3:19; Eccl. 12:7).

 

In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the dust of the ground; for out of it wast thou taken:  for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

 

3.     We are not as smart as we think we are (Matt. 10:30).

 

But the very hairs of your head are numbered.

 

4.     We are not as strong as we think we are (Job 38:34-35).

 

Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that the abundance of waters may cover thee?  Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are?

 

5.     Ultimately, every man dies (Eccl. 12:7, Heb. 9:27).

 

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was:  and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

 

C.   Pride causes man to either ignore or negate the above facts.

1.     The Humanist Manifesto II of 1973 states the following under a section entitled, “Religion,”:  “But we can discover no divine purpose for the human species.  While there is much we do not know, humans are responsible for what we are or will become.  No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.”

a.     There were 69 signers of this Manifesto.

b.    There were four signers who last names began with an “A.”  Three of them are now dead.

2.     Most of us are not like the signers of the Humanist Manifesto II.  We do not totally reject deity.  Our problems with pride are usually twofold.

a.     We think more highly of ourselves than we ought to think (See Rom. 12:3).

b.    We partially obey God.  When God’s demands for our life are not we think they should be, we ignore God and do as we please (See I Sam. 15:3, 9, 17, 22-23).

 

D.   Those who revel in self will face destruction.

1.     Three verses from the Proverbs confirm this.

a.     Proverbs 11:2

 

When pride cometh, then cometh shame:  but with the lowly is wisdom.

 

b.    Proverbs 16:5

 

Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord:  though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.

 

c.    Proverbs 29:23

 

A man’s pride shall bring him low:  but honor shall uphold the humble in spirit.

 

2.     Look at the end of some of the examples that opened our lesson.

a.     Pharaoh’s kingdom was destroyed by the Ten Plagues.

b.    Goliath was brought down by a stone from a shepherd boy’s sling.

c.    Nebuchadnezzar was driven into the field and acted as a beast for several months.

d.    Herod fell dead and was eaten of worms.

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.   Pride is especially destructive to the individual.

 

B.    My friend, if you have a problem with pride, if you struggle with arrogance, beware.

1.     There is more hope for a fool than for you. 

2.     Seek diligently to be humble (I Pet. 5:6).

 

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.