Arrogance or pride (which often leads to bragging) cannot co-exist with love. Arrogance is having or showing an exaggerated opinion of one’s own importance, merit, ability, accomplishments, etc. It is being conceited. It leads to having and demonstrating contempt for others.
Jesus stated that the two most important commandments is to fully love the Lord and to love one’s neighbor as one’s self. Arrogance scoffs at, yea, repudiates those commandments.
1. Arrogance Vs. Love of God
True love for the Lord consists of a desire to please Him. 1 John 5:3, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” When our obedience is motivated by love, John says we will not view the Lord’s commandments as being a heavy burden but as a pleasure.
Arrogance, on the other hand, oft times says, ‘No one is going to tell me what to do! No one is going to tell me how to run my life!’ Thus, it is arrogance that leads one to reject the Lord and rebel against His Will.
Psalm 10:4, “The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, does not seek Him.” GNT: “The wicked do not care about the Lord; in their pride they think that God doesn’t matter.”
Job 21:14-15, "They say to God, `Depart from us! We do not even desire the knowledge of Your ways. `Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, and what would we gain if we entreat Him?’
Nehemiah reflected upon the association between arrogance and the rebellion of the Israelites in their history. Nehemiah 9:16, 29, “But they, our fathers, acted arrogantly; They became stubborn and would not listen to Your commandments…Yet they acted arrogantly and did not listen to Your commandments but sinned against Your ordinances, By which if a man observes them he shall live. And they turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck, and would not listen.”
No wonder one person has stated that arrogance is ‘the ultimate anti-God state of mind.’
2. Arrogance Vs. Love of Neighbor
Not only does arrogance stand in the way of loving the Lord, it prevents loving our fellow neighbor. True love is humble. Love leads us to regard and treat others with dignity and respect; recognizing that we all are created equally in the image of God. Proverbs 14:21, “He who despises (Hebrew Buwz: to despise, hold in contempt, hold as insignificant) his neighbor sins.” Thus, Paul commands, in Romans 12:3, “I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment.”
Paul hits the key in that verse - a person who is arrogant toward his neighbor is not using sound judgment. How utterly foolish we are to measure ourselves with others on the basis of things which we are not even responsible for! How can we rightly become arrogant and brag about that which we have only from God? Paul asks the same question in 1 Corinthians 4:7, “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?”
Let us consider what we often become arrogant about and consider how foolish we can be.
A. Talents and Abilities.
Many people seem to think and act as though they alone possess any gift or talent. Or, they believe and brag that their gift or talent is more important than that of others. Such thinking ignores what is said in 1 Peter 4:10, “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” Every gift is “special” and is no more ‘special’ and no less ’special’ than that granted to any other. Romans 12:6, “Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly.” Rather than comparing gifts and measuring people’s importance based on what gifts they possess, we are to be busy using what we have in humbly serving one another and encourage others to do the same.
B. Intellect and Knowledge.
Paul states an unfortunate truth in 1 Corinthians 8:1, “Knowledge makes arrogant.” Have you noticed that it seems that many of those who have acquired knowledge and education have a tendency to look down upon those who are less knowledgeable and less educated?
I knew a brother in the Church who was almost obsessed with getting his doctorate in college because he craved the day when he could be addressed as “doctor” so and so. He thought that his having a “Phd” would make him more important. It would elevate him above others. Sadly, there are many who feel the same way and they do so love to flaunt their knowledge and education.
Like anything else, our capacity to acquire knowledge is not anything from ourselves but is an ability granted by God. Job 38:36, "Who has put wisdom in the innermost being or given understanding to the mind?” Daniel 2:20-22, “Daniel said, "Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him. It is He who…. gives wisdom to wise men and knowledge to men of understanding. It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things.”
We must be very careful that we do not think any less of a person should they not seem as intelligent or brainy or bright or sharp as we think ourselves to be. We must never think of such people in terms of being ’idiots’, ’morons’ and ’retards’ and have it in our hearts that such people are undeserving of our respect. To hold others in such a contemptuous way is hold their Creator in contempt.
C. Physical Beauty and Athleticism.
Just as it is wrong to measure people on the basis of intellectual qualities and traits and treat them accordingly so it is foolish to measure and treat people on the basis of their physical qualities and traits. As David says in Psalm 100:3, “Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves.”
Yet, our culture - which is not unlike others cultures of the past - worships physical beauty and athleticism. For confirmation of this, just compare the paychecks of models and professional athletes with those of teachers, cooks, farmers, store clerks, mechanics, nurses, carpenters, etc.
Our society elevates the physically attractive and physically fit above those who are deemed less attractive and less physically fit. No doubt, that is why cosmetic surgery has boomed in this Country as well as fitness centers and diet programs.
We might be surprised to find that even we, ourselves, treat attractive people and physically fit people a bit different than we do others. We must not measure the worth of others and determine how we will treat others on such a superficial basis.
We ought to imitate God. 1 Samuel 16:7, “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” We are all made by God and should be considered masterpieces. Isaiah 64:8, “But now, O Lord, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our Potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand.”
Let us even realize that physical disabilities are of God and have purpose. Exodus 4:10-11, “Then Moses said to the Lord, ‘Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.’ The Lord said to him, ‘Who has made man’s mouth? Or Who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?’”
D. Material Wealth.
There has always been a tendency for wealth to warp a person’s perspective on a number of things. It is not uncommon for those who have to look down upon those who have not. It is also common for the rich to brag about and flaunt their wealth. How foolish this is when we realize that whether one is rich or poor is determined by God. 1 Samuel 1:7, “The Lord makes poor and rich.” Proverbs 22:2, “The rich and the poor have a common bond, The Lord is the Maker of them all.”
It is also arrogant for even the poor to show favoritism and deference toward the wealthy over their poor neighbor. James 2:1-4, 8-9, “My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,’ have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?…If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF,’ you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin.”
E. Power and Prestige.
I have had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time around those who have held positions of great political power and influence. I have witnessed firsthand how power and prestige can and often does go to one’s head and for arrogance to creep into their heart and heads. They start out “of the people…for the people” but end up thinking they are ‘above the people’ and acting ‘for themselves’.
But, this is not only true in the world of politics. It is true in other spheres of society. For example, consider the police officer. A person wants to become a police officer to help people. However, over time the power that comes with the badge has a tendency to make the person think of themselves as having greater importance than others.
Look at any company or business. A person who is promoted to manager or supervisor seems to slowly go through a transformation. They are not just a fellow worker, now they are part of ‘management’ and they treat those they used to work with differently. Arrogance has crept in.
Again, any position of prominence, power and prestige comes not from ourselves but is of the Lord. We have no reason to think of ourselves as more important, more special and others as less so. 1 Samuel 1:7-8, "The Lord….brings low, He also exalts. He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with nobles, and inherit a seat of honor.”
Attaining a position of power and prominence should bring greater humility rather than arrogance as that position brings greater responsibility before God to use the such for His glory and to serve the needs of others.
F. Spiritual Qualities and Accomplishments.
The worst arrogance, in my opinion, are those who believe that they have attained some spiritual status and look down on others who have not reached the same level of spiritual growth and maturity. Equally disgusting are those who constantly boast about their spiritual accomplishments and brag about all their good deeds.
This, actually, was the circumstances at Corinth that caused Paul to write this section on love. The brethren at Corinth had become spiritual show-offs, parading their spiritual gifts before others in a conspicuous manner. Each tried to do his own thing as prominently as possible. Each were claiming that their gifts and ministries were more important than others or indicated they were more spiritual than others.
Every Christian must always have the godly attitude of Paul, which he humbly expressed in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “by the grace of God I am what I am.”
Truly, you and I cannot develop one virtue or accomplish one good deed without Christ. John 15:8, 4-5, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples….Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”
As we close our remarks, today, I want to read just a few Scriptures that capsulate how we are to manifest the humility of true love.
Romans 12:16, 10, “Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor.”
Philippians 2:3, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.” Rather than bragging,
Proverbs 27:2, “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.”
