LOVE DOES NOT BOAST

“The proud and arrogant man – ‘Mocker’ is his name; he behaves with overweening pride.”  Proverbs 21:24.  “A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor.”  Proverbs 29:23.

Pride is quite a critter.  People run around pointing fingers at people and saying, “You should not be proud”.  Yet most of those pointing their fingers are very proud of the fact that they are pointing the finger in order to humble the one they think to be proud.  Hmmmmmm.

You see, the Bible talks about good pride and bad pride.  Paul talks about being proud of his “great confidence in you”.  2 Corinthians 7:4.  Nothing wrong with an honest, Christ-like pride in something good.  What God, and most humans hate, is the pride that is built on stupidity, falsehoods and lies.  You know what I mean, the person who thinks he is something when he really isn’t.  That is why we are not to compare ourselves among ourselves.  Churches are so prideful.

Paul tells the Galatians that instead of comparing ourselves among ourselves or by ourselves, the true person will “test his own actions.  Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else.”  Galatians 6:4.  The concept being, true pride is actually humbling.  If we look into the Law of God’s Ten Commandments and see that we are obeying them, that is something to be proud of, yet at the same time it will be very humbling.  Be proud of all the good you can do.  Be proud of being a Christian.  If you are being a Christian, you will be humbling yourself to help your needy brother and sister.