Pride in the Last Days
Introduction: Usually its typical and appropriate to preach about new beginnings and resolutions during the new year. I've done so in the past and reckon I will do so again -in the future but this year is different, perhaps because the times we live in are different. But after thoughtful consideration and prayer for the Lord to give me the message for the new year, I believe the word for 2016 is this: beware of the sin of Pride in the last days.
In his book “Journey to Hell” John Bunyan describes the life of Mr. Badman through the conversation of two observers, Mr. Wiseman and Mr. Attentive. Early in the conversation Mr. Attentive asks Mr. Wiseman what he thinks of these times. Mr. Wiseman then says “why, I think, primarily, that they are bad times, and bad they will be, until men are better; for bad men make bad times.” “If people, therefore, would change, so would the times.” Isn't it strange that as society drifts further from God, some believe that the church should follow suit to "win the lost" the truth is simply rhis: we must change for the better if we don't want those around us to change for the worse. Matthew Henry says that sin is what makes the times perilous. Indeed! . . . and its difficult to be a Christian in sinful times.
The times would be so bad that the apostle Paul tells Timothy to make a special note about it:
“But mark this:” In other words 'keep this in mind' because this is something you can be sure of, then he says, “There will be terrible times in the last days.” 2 Timothy 3:1
The word terrible is also translated perilous, difficult, hard, grievous etc. In the original Greek it is
'Chalepos' (khal-ep-os) and the intention behind this word is that the times will be very hard to bear, the times will be oppressive.
Paul then gives Timothy a revelation of the dominant characteristic in people during the last days in the next verse “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,” 2 Timothy 3:2
Transition: We will be using the word 'Pride' and 'self love' interchangeably this morning, as we analyze Pride, by asking four relevant questions, lets first begin with the obvious question: what makes Pride so dangerous?
The danger of Pride
Let's note that all godlessness flows from self love. Self-love makes the times dangerous. Everyone loves themselves to one degree or another. If we didn't love ourselves how could we Love our neighbor as we love ourselves? Believe it or not the self -loathing person can be just as difficult to love, because they insist on reading the worst into every situation. As a result you feel that you have to carefully monitor everything you say around them for fear of being taken out of context. They are bitterly angry if you don't encourage them but they don't believe you when you try. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to encourage those who reject your support. How do you love someone who won't receive it? According to Psychology Today the self-loather doesn't handle praise well, instead of just saying “thank you I appreciate that very much.” they either reject it (“No, I'm not that smart.”) or minimize it (“I had a good day it won't happen again.”) or divert it (“sure, but look how much better you did.”) So before we begin I want to be clear that I'm not telling you to hate yourself.
But this scripture is speaking of an irregular sinful self-love. They love themselves ONLY. People in the last days will love their carnal selves more than their spiritual selves so as a result they will want only to gratify their lusts. They will be lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God When men are lovers of themselves, you can't expect anything good from them. When everyone is only looking out for their own interests, it tempts others to do the same. It becomes increasingly difficult not to want to join them. “Well if everyone else is only going to care about themselves, then I'm only going to care about myself.” as a result this selfishness causes everyone to be defensive and constantly standing on guard against their friends, neighbors and even their own family for fear of offending them.
How do you give love to those who either don't want it or want nothing but it all the time? People will be lovers of themselves, like sponges always looking to soak in the love from others, but when everyone is soaking in, no one is pouring out. The dead sea is famous for the fact that nothing lives in it, because all the waters flow into it but nothing flows out of it. When we are always receiving and never giving there is NO life! And that will make the times dangerous and the Lord has shown me it will make 2016 a difficult year to be a Christian. If others are already full of their own love there is no room for anyone else's. Its not only that people will be lovers of themselves Paul says they will be 'boasters' - its strange that they want to impress those they despise or want to gain the approval of those they feel superior to anyway, but that's the danger of pride. Pride causes us to be out of touch with our fellow man; it causes us to want to take from him but never to give back to him.
Notice how several words in verse 2 associate with pride: boastful, proud, abusive (The Berean Literal translation says “verbally abusive”- sarcastic, demeaning, insulting etc.) unthankful, the proud don't appreciate what others do for them they merely expect it to be done. In verse 3 it says people will be without love, unforgiving Being lovers of themselves causes them to be without love for others. The proud man can never say “I'm sorry” or "please forgive me." because to do so would be an admission of wrong and their pride simply won't allow that. Pride separates us from others but whats worse is that it separates us from God. That is the greatest danger. In 2 Thessalonians 2:10,11 Paul warns us about the godless times, if we have no love for the gospel, then in the end, we will be turned over to a powerful delusion. I wonder how many masses of people will believe the antichrist? If they won't believe the Gospel they will be believe the lie. If they don't love Jesus they will love the antichrist. This is the ultimate danger of pride - turns people from God.
Transition: In order to diagnose a sickness, doctors will look for symptoms. These are indications that you may have a particular illness. When we look at pride as a sickness the next obvious question, what are some of the symptoms of pride?
The symptoms of Pride
Symptom # 1 Prayerlessness
“In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.” Psalm 10:4
The proud will not seek him. He will not pray. A praying man is hardly a proud man, unless the only time he prays is in public so everyone can see him praying. He does not seek God's counsel or his help. We say "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." The proud man believes "I can do all things through myself, for myself, and by myself.- I'm a self made man!"
Spurgeon humorously said “a man who makes himself has very great respect for his maker.” It's not natural for a proud man to worship his creator. The proud man thinks that if there is a God He doesn't care about what he is doing on earth and the proud man doesn't believe that he will be called to account on the day of judgment. Nothing can be more painful to the proud man than thoughts of God. God means that He has a superior, a master, and God means that there is an authority outside of himself that he cannot escape, whose power he can not resist, and whose will he must obey.
I think it was John Bunyan who said “(Pride) is impatient of a rival, hates a superior, and can not endure a master.”
“. . . in all his thoughts there is no room for God.” Just as there was no room for Christ in the inn there is no room for God in the proud mans mind. He is much more distracted with other thoughts. Distracted with lustful thoughts, distracted with selfish thoughts, distracted with vain imaginations and vile affections! If we are not setting our minds on heavenly things we will be pulled away by worldly thoughts.
During this past Christmas, a man in San Diego was found dead after falling off a large cliff. Witnesses said they saw him looking down at his cell phone and walked right off the cliff. The proud man is so distracted with selfish thoughts that he loses sight of where he is going. Proverbs 16:18 says that “Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.” The proud are so full of thoughts of themselves they don't realize the fatal fall that is ahead of them. Get your eyes off yourself and look up toward God or you will fall!
Symptom # 2 Contentiousness
“Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.” -Pro. 13:10
The proud act as if whatever they say should never be contradicted or opposed. Its true that wise men ask questions. They will seek advice of their good conscious, their ministers, their friends, and their Bibles. They will humble themselves to good opinion of others to prevent a quarrel. Proud men on the other hand demand that all others yield to them and to their opinion. They hate to be contradicted in any way. Its true that “we are better at giving good counsel to others than at taking good counsel ourselves.”
Proud people are contentious. Things must go their way, they must have the last word in everything. The proud raise contentions and foment divisions in neighborhoods, schools, churches, communities, and work places. There are so many unnecessary disputes and quarrels that would easily be prevented if it weren't for one thing . . . pride. And if you get two proud people in an argument, things can come to blows pretty quickly.
Proud people like to argue and they will stand on the bow of their argument, even as their evidence sinks all around them. They will defend their Alamo to the bitter end. Even when they are met with all kinds of compassion, the most reasonable persuasion, or indisputable evidence they will still continue to resist the truth at every turn. Pride.
Symptom # 3 Disdainful
“The arrogant mock me without restraint but I do not turn from your law.” Ps. 119:51
In the last days we are promised terrible times will come. But truthfully, we have always been promised trouble and even persecution: “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” 2 Timothy 3:12
David says that he knew that he was the butt of proud men's jokes. To say they made fun of him would be an understatement. They mercilessly mocked him. They ridiculed him for his praying, they tried to expose him to contempt, to get those who loved him to hate him as much as they did. Pride causes men to hate believers and hate their love for God – In this they are never more like the devil who was thrown out of Heaven for his pride.
When a traveler goes on a journey and hears dogs barking at him because He is a stranger He doesn't turn back but continues traveling on. A good soldier behaves well under fire. It doesn't hurt the Christian to have dogs bark at him, he just needs to keep traveling on.
Transition: These are all symptoms of Pride, and there are more such as being oppressive to others and being irreverent to God, but let's move on to the third question about pride: what are its consequences?
The consequences of Pride
Its really simple. The wages of sin is death. And with any sin, sinner loves their sin but they don't love to have their labels. The drunkard loves to drink but he hates being called a drunkard, the theif loves to steal but he despises anyone who calls him a thief. A whore loves debauchery and fornication but hates being called a whore. Wicked men love to love themselves but they don't like to be called proud. Pride is a sin, but it may be the worst of sins because it creates a barrier that blocks God's forgiveness of sins. It says “I don't need anyone to save me, I can save myself.” God promises that we will reap what we sow. God will weigh them in their own scales. Imagine God saying “I'm merely judging you with the same severity that you judged others.” In the last days the book of Revelation describes the great whore of Babylon being drunk off the blood of the saints. But she will be forced to drink of thE cup of God's wrath. This is illustrating that while many Christians will be martyred in the last days, the one doing the killing will be killed.
God's justice is perfect. When Haman went to hang Mordecai, it was Haman that was hanged on his own gallows. When Daniels accusers had him thrown in the lions den it was they, not Daniel that were eaten by the lions, When the servants of the enemy had Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego thrown into the fire it was those who threw them in that burned to death not the servants of the almighty God.
Transition: Finally the wisest question to be asked about pride is what is the cure for it? How can we escape the consequences of it?
The cure for Pride
We read in several places in the Bible that “. . . God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
God resists those who trust in themselves only, he opposes those who believe they are more holy than everyone else, they are proud of their gifts, they are proud of their enjoyments, they are proud of their external righteousness, their goods and think they need nothing and God pushes them away. But he gives grace to those who are sensible to their own unworthiness. As John Gill put it “they think the meanest of themselves and the best of others.” They don't envy the gifts, blessings, and graces of others they rejoice with them. The humble quickly see their deficiencies and confess them to God.
Judgement is like scales. When we overestimate our value we underestimate the value of everyone else. If love for our self rises then love for Jesus falls down. Spurgeon said “whenever we prize ourselves highly we are sure to esteem our Lord less.”
If God opposes the proud then we should also oppose pride so that he doesn't oppose us. Ironically, humble people find it easier to see pride in their life (when there is little there) than proud men do in theirs (when there is an offensive abundance of it). But if you even have the least bit of conviction for it admit it at once to God and ask forgiveness for it and make every effort not to undervalue others and over value yourself.
I like what Dr. David Jeremiah said about humility: “Humility is not thinking less of yourselves, it is thinking of yourself less.” It is not wrong to look out for our interests in life, but it is wrong to look out for our interests above and beyond the interests of others.
Conclusion: As we look ahead to the new year, be aware that nothing will change the fact that terrible, perilously sinful times are ahead. We will see many troubling things in the world, But Jesus said “take heart for I have overcome the world.” As Adrian Rogers once said “We live in gloriously dark times.” The darkness of the times should make men faint but for those who have Christ the dark times simply remind us that all of our labor is about to be over with and all our work will soon be done.
Moody once said “God sends no one away empty, except those who are full of themselves.”
I think I speak for all of us: we don't want Jesus to send us away empty, so let's make sure that we are not full of our own selves.
Remember Grace is the only gift that men can not give to themselves. And God gives it freely to those who are humble.
[Stand and pray]
