Pride?
What Kind of “Pride” do we Have Today?
Today I was in my car and driving a short distance. I came upon a car with the sign in the back that simply read, “Pride!” I had to think, just what does this mean? We (or all who know the mind of God) know that “pride” is a deed of the flesh according to Scripture. Of course, pride comes from a corrupt heart that defiles a person (see Mark 7:22; 1 John 2:16-17).
But if the reference wasn’t simple pride, what else could it refer to? Regular “pride” (if we may call it that) is a common expression today. Some may refer to their “pride” in a job well done. Or maybe they will refer to a “pride” in the scores of a test. They may also speak of a “pride” in ancestry—that their ancestor was on the Mayflower, etc. This is a common usage of the term. It may be better to change our attitude and eliminate the word from our vocabularies.
But because of the bad connotations and connections, it might be better to just eliminate “pride” from our mouths. We think of Paul’s questions at 1 Corinthians 4:7: “Who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?” What you have has been given by God, so let’s not boast in such things!
However, as we think about “pride” we believe that the reference may be to a special kind of pride. Now, the pride is just as sinful—and even more sinful—but it is used today in a special way. People (some people, that is) may refer to “Gay Pride.” There are “Gay Pride” parades, for instance, in which sodomites or homosexuals parade down certain streets in liberal cities in America (and certain other countries, especially in liberal Europe and elsewhere) and display their “pride” in their sin. With this very much in the minds of people today, especially at this time, we think that this reference to pride may be a sinful pride.
We know that this sort of “pride” is something that God hates! He abhors it—and it is something that should also cause every honest-hearted and holy person to revolt. It is something that us under God’s wrath and will be under His wrath in the future.
For instance, God says (through Paul): “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). God’s wrath is upon sodomites (homosexuals) who parade their wickedness before others and boast in their sin before others.
In former times, people who committed the sin of homosexuality would “hide” it from others (and thus were called “closet homosexuals”) but today it is different. People who commit this sin take “pride” in it and display it before others. They allow hundreds (perhaps even thousands) of others to see that they commit this sin, they revel in it, they participate in it, and (from the pictures we have seen), they wear clothes that display their perversion.
Whatever this person in the car meant by his display of “pride” (and I am sorry that I didn’t get the full story), we can see that this term—pride—is not a good one. It should be avoided. We should find a substitute one.
Especially if this refers to any sin of any sort (such as sodomy/homosexuality), let’s avoid the term. Let’s determine to “give grace” to those who hear us, thus let us have pure, holy, and good speech on all occasions.