MARRIAGE 30 JULY 2025 www.goodnewsfl.org Good News • South Florida Edition Hey, Pride! How are you? Doing well? Yeah. Good. In the show NCIS: New Orleans the name of the main character is Dwayne Pride played by Scott Bacula. I always wondered how having your name be the primary sin in the list of seven would make me react. Pride and I have always had a very interesting relationship. Sometimes I call and he comes. Sometimes he calls and I show up. Sometimes I do not call, and he shows up anyway. Pride shows up as a friend, but he is one of my worst enemies. The problem with pride The reality is that pride has always been very near to me… and to my human forefathers. Pride was the first sin that entered the door of the collective psyche of humanity after Adam and Eve experienced the “great fall” and were sent packing from Eden… because of pride. When primal sin entered this world, pride was the first to go through the threshold. If you believe some interpreters of the Bible, pride was there even before the world began when the angelic hosts fought one of the biggest battles for heaven itself. Lucifer, the grand marshal of it all, was ousted and thrown out… because of pride! No pride in heaven! But on earth things are different. Pride is a biggie! And it shows up in all of us in the most natural forms. In Judaism, pride is called the root of all evil. And in truth, it is at the bottom of all sins. It is notable that pride, in English, has the letter “I” in the middle of it. And that is how it works. Pride always puts the “I” in the middle of everything, turning things sour. Pride is a selfish sin. Pride only thinks of itself. Pride only thinks of the act, never of the consequences of it. It is no wonder that: “The Lord mocks the mockers but is gracious to the humble” (Proverbs 3:34 NLT). We can become more self-aware in overcoming pride. The Holy Spirit shines a light in our lives in anything that looks like pride… and we know it. We can hear the alarms go off… and yet we do nothing. God has a specific allergy, or negative affinity, to pride. God will not have any of our pride try to steal any of his glory. We know when we are being proud. Anytime the I’s have it in our lives is a reason to be defensive for chances are that pride is on the loose. Examples of pride To show the negative effects of pride in people we can cite myriads of examples. In the Bible, we can find many of them. King Nebuchadnezzar exuded pride when “As he looked out across the city, he said ‘Look at this great city of Babylon! By my own mighty power, I have built this beautiful city as my royal residence to display my majestic splendor’” (Daniel 4:30). Those were famous last words! For seven years he roamed as a mad man in this world. He then came to his senses and finally gave God all the glory for everything. But let us go beyond the kingly to the most insidious example that we can find. Nowhere is pride more evident, and dangerous, than in family relationships. Pride taints even the very real and pure love of a mother for her sons. In the New Testament, we find the example of this type of insidious pride in the person of Salome. She was the good wife of Zebedee and the doting mother of the apostles James and John. She was a faithful disciple of Jesus and went with him on his missionary outings when she could. She was one of the women mentioned at the crucifixion of Jesus (Matthew 27:56). She was also at the empty tomb as one of the first witnesses of the resurrection (Mark 16:1). She was the perfect example of the perfect mom, yet she succumbed to pride. We find Salome abusing her closeness to Jesus and making a special request, a proud request, on behalf of her two sons (Matthew 20:20-28). Incredibly, she saw nothing wrong with her request. As a good mom she wanted the best for her sons. She asked if her sons could sit at his right and left hand in the kingdom. Notice that she did not ask for herself, she asked for her children. How many moms do we know that would do that? I can think of many moms right now. Her pride blinded her to what she was really asking. She was really asking for special treatment based on her perceived status and that of her sons. Of course, Jesus said no. He gently rebuked Salome and her motherly pride. He very carefully explained the situation to her and let her down gently. And then Jesus proceeded to give one of the best teachings on radical discipleship and how humility works among his disciples and followers. A true disciple must put aside his pride and serve his brothers and sisters. So, for us, how does pride come and what can we do to combat it and its effects? Mothers, what example are you giving your children? Are you like Salome, asking what she thought was best for her sons? If pride impacted a mother in such a way, what could pride do to you? How can pride impact a father? A grandfather or grandmother? A brother or a sister? A child? Solutions for pride If you are anything like me, pride is putting up a good fight. Pride is telling me that I am the very best… the smartest person in the room, the most able in my peer group, the best father, the best thinker, the best looking, the best dressed, the best choice maker, the wisest spender, the best decision maker, the best lover, the best cook in the world, the best snorkeler, the best driver, the best son, the best husband, and even the best worshipper! And then there is silence. And in the deep chasms of my mind, I hear the echoes of the still small voice of the Holy Spirit saying: Fool, these are all lies that your friend pride is telling you to believe. I confess to the Spirit the lies I am believing. I repent of all these seemingly childish wishes in my mind. I repent of how these lies have impacted the actions of my life. The Spirit gently ministers to me and pushes pride out of my life. Humility shows up as the antidote of pride. Humility is always welcome in my life, in this world, and in heaven. And so, I survive to fight another day. Dr. David Lema is Coordinator of Hispanic Outreach and Instruction for Relate Well Live Well. This article includes quotes from his book “Seven Sins that Sink Your Family…And How to Overcome Them.” If you would like to purchase the book, visit rwlw.org. - Dr. David Lema - Coordinator of Hispanic Outreach, Relate Well Live Well My Friend Pride
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