What Does the Bible Say About Pride?
What does the Bible say about pride? This is such a fitting question in the month of June. Many in the world will dedicate their parades, practices, and professional businesses to celebrate the prideful purposes of the LGBTQ+ agenda. How does the Christian respond? Is pride ever a good thing? I know that sometimes people have civic pride, or are proud of where they came from. You can have an affection for where you came from, etc., but pride is a sin, most especially when celebrating, endorsing, and encouraging sin is fully wicked. Pride is warned against throughout the Bible, and we ought to take consideration of what the Holy Spirit said regarding it.
Pride is an Atheistic Practice
The psalmist wrote, “The wicked, in the pride of his countenance, saith, He will not require it. All his thoughts are, There is no God” (Psalm 10:4). To assert that there is no God is the epitome of pride. A created being in a created world who is enjoying the benefits of creation asserting that there is no God is not the heart of thanksgiving that a humble and meek person should have.
Pride is not merely audacious, it is equally imprisoning. “Therefore pride is as a chain about their neck; Violence covereth them as a garment” (Psalm 73:6). If we envision pride as it truly is, it is a chain, like that put on a prisoner of war taken wherever his captor wishes. Many men in this world may not be atheists, but function certainly as such. These men will not heed the warnings of God's Holy Word proclaimed in the Bible and from the pulpit. These men will be assured by their understanding, or hardness of heart. We each must remember the words proclaimed in Romans 3:1-4.
What advantage then hath the Jew? or what is the profit of circumcision? Much every way: first of all, they were entrusted with the oracles of God. For what if some were without faith? shall their want of faith make of none effect the faithfulness of God? God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy words, And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.
Do not be persuaded by the wicked who are prideful and without understanding; we all must strive for holiness over the haughtiness of the atheist. It is written, “The fear of Jehovah is to hate evil: Pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, And the perverse mouth, do I hate” (Prov. 8:13). Pride is a practice of the one who does not know God–the godly cannot partake in, promote, or ally themselves with pride.
Pride is a Destructive Practice
This should be so blatantly obvious to us that we would never consider pride as something that is to be celebrated, rather it is contemptible. The most prideful in this world are those who suffer the most from the consequences of their sins. Consider the statistics on youth suicidal ideation in the LGBTQ+ identification.
LGBTQ+ young people are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers (Johns et al., 2019; Johns et al., 2020).
According to The Trevor Project’s analysis of CDC data, almost half (48%) of bi young people seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, and 27% attempted suicide. Among gay or lesbian youth, 37% seriously considered suicide and 19% attempted. And among straight youth, 14% seriously considered suicide and 6% attempted suicide.
The Journal of Adolescent Health found that transgender and nonbinary youth were 2 to 2.5 times as likely to experience depressive symptoms, seriously consider suicide, and attempt suicide compared to their cisgender LGBQ peers.
I obtained these statistics from a pro-LGBTQ+ group (The Trevor Project), mind you. So let me ask this question: are these rates alarming to you? Is it possible that these rates are because of the alleged severe rejection of these individuals and the bullying that corresponds with that rejection? This cannot be the case since society has become progressively more welcoming of these lifestyles in the last 10-30 years. The reality is that sin destroys people: physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Consider the wisdom of the Proverbs, “When pride cometh, then cometh shame; But with the lowly is wisdom” (Prov. 11:2). Pride will destroy a person. “Pride goeth before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16:18). Pride destroys all who touch it. The Christian must avoid pride at all costs.
Pride is a Divisive Practice
Pride is shameful but also divisive. “By pride cometh only contention; But with the well-advised is wisdom” (Prov. 13:10). This is certainly true by observation. There is a certain militant behavior that has become the normal practice of the Pride month proponents. There is a support-and-ally-with-us-or-else mentality. Streets are painted, flags are flown high, books are printed, and pledges are made. Many people who see the dangerous reality of this lifestyle are fed up and reacting against it. The people, not just New Testament Christians, are fed up and contentions are continuous.
Pride is not helpful, but hateful. To celebrate, engage in, or support pride in June or any other time is an affront to Jehovah. Jesus included pride when He spoke about the evils that proceed from the wicked heart.
For from within, out of the heart of men, evil thoughts proceed, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, covetings, wickednesses, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, railing, pride, foolishness: all these evil things proceed from within, and defile the man.
(Mark 7:21-23)
In this next month, we will be confronted by many kinds of debauchery. We must remember that those souls who are either engaged in or supporting this great evil need a savior. The only savior for any sinner is Christ Jesus. We are His representatives and we must be able to show the lost the Good News of Christ Jesus. We must be able to talk to individuals and present the facts concerning the danger of pride and the illicit sexual practices in this world. We must not let the pride of the world allow us to become contentious, but rather we should compassionately contend for the faith with the hope of winning a soul.
Grace and Peace,
R.D. Beavers
