Episode 16: The Problem with Pride

Pride is tricky. We easily recognize it in others, but rarely do we see it in ourselves. It shows up in ways we often don’t associate or categorize as with pride, such as insecurity or independence. Ryan Holiday even wrote a book titled, “Ego is the Enemy”.  He explains the dark reality that when you’re on the rise, pride says, “I should be where that guy is…that should be me!” When you’re on the top, pride says, “I don’t need a coach. I should be the one coaching!” And when you’ve failed, pride says, “No one has ever failed like me.” Regardless of what phase of the journey you are in, pride is always the enemy. In fact, it’s the devil’s disease. 

The life of Samson, from the book of Judges, shows a sad demise because of the long-term power of pride. Samson’s mother was one of the few women visited by an angel as her son’s birth was announced (think John the Baptist’s mom Elizabeth and Mary—the mother of Jesus!) He was to be set apart for God’s purpose (Judges 13) and dedicated to God from the womb until his death. He was also to live under the Nazirite Vow, which meant his hair would remain uncut…a sign of being set apart. 

During this time the Philistines were rivals to Israel. As Samson grew, his strength increased but so did his love for dangerous women. After marrying a Philistine against his parent’s wishes, the marriage goes completely south. When Samson found his wife had been given to his friend, his fury raged. He went on a killing spree, leaving many dead. As we were researching Sampson and the dangers that pride presented in his life, we found an illuminating article by Pastor Doug Humphrey. He states the following warnes signs of pride: 

WARNING SIGN #1: PRIDE NEVER ADMITS IT’S WRONG

Samson made a mistake by marrying this woman, and when it goes bad, his anger flails. He takes revenge out of anger, and then brags about it. He has the opportunity to humbly admit his anger problem but instead, he chooses to continue to feed his temper ultimately, his pride. Do you constantly justify your actions? Are you defensive and revengeful? Admitting you are wrong and apologizing for the harm done has the potential to eliminate pride and prideful mistakes. 

WARNING SIGN #2: PRIDE CRAVES RECOGNITION 

C.S. Lewis once wrote, “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something. Pride only has pleasure in having more than the next person. Proud people are not really proud of being successful, or intelligent or good looking. They are proud of having more success, more intelligence and better looks than the people around them.” He see this pattern throughout Sampson's life, especially in Judges 15:17 where he brags not about what God has done, but about what he did...

WARNING SIGN #3: PRIDE NEVER LISTENS TO ADVICE

Although Samson’s parents warned him about his choice in marriage, he didn’t heed their advice. Later, he sleeps with a harlot, and soon after that he meets another dangerous woman named Delilah. She repeatedly used his affection as a chance to steal his strength. After her repeated attempts and his flagrant disregard for God’s gift, he eventually shares his secret and loses the very thing that made him stand out. 

WARNING SIGN #4: PRIDE DOESN’T THINK ABOUT OTHERS

A life with Christ is “other” centered, not “me” centered. When we focus on others, we tear down the power of pride.  As we see in Sampson’s life story, pride is the ultimate result of his demise.

Have thoughts or questions about today’s episode? Message us or leave a comment below.