Wednesday, July 16, 2008

The Destructive Nature of Pride

Posted by adam herod at 3:13 PM

Musicians always seem to struggle with pride. It’s a constant thorn in the side of most musical and creative people. We’ve all read the scriptures that God “opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” and “pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.” I read a new one the other day that really caught me off guard. It was Proverbs 17:19. It says this:

“He who exalts his gate seeks destruction.”

The Hebrew there for “exalts his gate” loosely translates to “glorifies his/her position”. The Bible says that people who do this “seek destruction”. I thought about the numerous times I felt it important to tell other people where “God had taken me"(telling about people I’ve met, worked with, written with). Sometimes this can be shared in very positive ways with close friends or new relationships, but I think most creative people could say that they’ve been in conversations where the person was clearly using those conversations to “exalt their gate”. I’ve been guilty of it. I’m sure you haven’t. ;-) Our heart tells us when we cross that line.

It was eye opening for me to see that when I do this, I’m actually getting the opposite of what I was hoping for. I have done that in the past to try and solidify my standing to the person/people I was talking to, but according to Scripture I was actually seeking out my own destruction. The Bible is full of warnings pointing to the destructive nature of pride, but this was the first one that clearly told me that a prideful person is not only due for destruction (Proverbs 15:25), but actively seeking it. That’s a scary thought.

Those closest to me would hopefully tell you that I’m not the most prideful guy on the planet. I try hard to keep that in check. I pray that God would help me retain humility and be able to spot and stop pride in all its various forms in my life. David actually prayed that God would “cut off all flattering lips and the tongue that speaks proud things” (Psalm 12:3) and instructed that “blessed is the man who does not respect the proud”. (Psalm 40:4)

I see humility as a crucial component in my personal journey to be used by God for His fame and to see people exalt Him. As you pray today for God to use you, let a request for humility be close by. Don’t let the destructive nature of pride convince you that if you are just forceful enough, charismatic enough, gifted enough you will have influence and favor. Peter said it this way after quoting Proverbs 3:4: “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.” Our position as worshipers and believers should be to have lives that exalt Him. We should let God be the one to exalt us, where He wants us, when He wants us.

 

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2 Comments:

  1. Anonymous said...
    6:07 PM  
    I remember you sharing this with me. That day we talked in the sound booth. You were showing me pictures of people you met and had played with before. I however didnt think you were being prideful or arogant. I was actally proud of you. The bible says that "A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men." (Pro. 18:16) I guess that's how you know that God is working.

    But I do know what you mean about pride creeping in. After God get's done using you like never before and after a while you start ministering off of your credit and not God's power. And that's where we fall into destruction. When we perform off of our own efforts. but the word of God says that it's "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts" (Zec 4:6)

    Just the Humble heart that says "Lord I need you, and I'm nothing without you". and watch him show up.

    Erik
    Anonymous said...
    11:37 AM  
    Adam, you are definitely on to something of significance - that is, your comment about musicians and creatives being susceptible to pride and arrogance.

    I don't think it's coincidental that the first 'worship leader' in heaven - the first great creative musician - introduced the original sin: PRIDE.

    Likewise, I don't think it coincidental that everything he (Satan) has done ever since is replication - not original creation. Yet his servants, many of those who 'create' pop culture- leading music, film, television, books, etc., seem always on the vanguard of culture.

    The insidious nature of Pride is that (being Satan's best weapon against all of us, especially Xians) he buries it so deeply within us that, even when we're truly introspective, we often can't find its ugly roots.

    The nature of a saint, I believe, is to be constantly vigil - be aware of our propensity to arrogance, be diligent to HONESTLY search our own heart, be tenacious in checking our own responses with those around us we trust - and then, most painfully, be OPEN to the feedback we receive (on this topic).

    Rambling thoughts on one who's been there and daily slogs the bog.

    norm

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