In Proverbs 16:18, God’s Word says something famous. I recall it most easily in the old King James version in which it first came to my attention: “Pride goeth before a fall.” Or in more contemparary language (ESV), “Pride goes before destruction.”
There are certainly some people who will not want to listen or read any more of what I have to say because this verse (1) is from the Bible, and (2) perhaps even more damning, is critical of “pride.” If that’s you, I’ll ask you to be patient and keep reading. You may have been told to interpret criticism of “pride” as a form of hatred, but that’s an overly simplistic and foolish view. Should we encourage someone like Heinrich Himmler to be proud of his chosen life?
The sin of pride may sound familiar to some, and not only because it is highlighted publicly throughout the month of June. Those who have read a bit about it may recall that at one point, Christians identified 7 “deadly” sins. For Lutherans, this title is almost meaningless, since all sin is generally a form of death or separation from God, and no sins are more or less damning than others. For Lutherans, the question more important than “How have I sinned?” is “Have I truly repented of my sins before God?” Following what God says himself, Lutherans love sinners and want them to be rescued from impenitence by the forgiveness that God provides freely by substituting the death of His eternal Son for the punishment our sins deserve. Notice God’s emphasis in Ezekiel 18 on “turning” from sins. That’s repentance.
The passage from Proverbs 16:18 has a context. Some might say that Proverbs is a more or less random collection of wisdom statements, but there are actually threads of connection between them. Consider Proverbs 16:18-25 (ESV).
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud.
Whoever gives thought to the word will discover good, and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord.
The wise of heart is called discerning, and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.
Good sense is a fountain of life to him who has it, but the instruction of fools is folly.
The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips.
Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
This context tells us what is meant by the kind of pride that “goes before destruction.” It’s a “haughty spirit.” The opposite is a “lowly spirit,” willing to be poor rather than collect treasures obtained by the proud.
I suggest that the next few verses also pertain to the theme of pride. Giving thought to the authoritative Word of God requires humility. This opposition to haughty pride in oneself wisely discerns correct and healthy priorities. It also allows “sweetness of speech” and trust in the Lord even when a person is being insulted or devalued. This kind of humility is called “good sense” and a “fountain of life.” Its opposite, haughty pride, is not wisdom but foolishness.
Healthy humility permits a person to speak in a judicious or controlled manner and lends a sensibility and respect that can be persuasive to others. Gracious words reflect the character of God’s grace, which returns good for evil and blessings for curses. Pride would prevent that. The “way that seem s right to a man” but ends in death is the way of pride.
The kind of pride that some like to celebrate publicly in June is a pride that says, “I get to define my own most important characteristics based on my own will, which is determined by my own feelings.” This is what “Pride” celebrates in the month of June. I sympathize with those who can’t see it any other way, because our culture has been teaching this for decades in various ways. Until recently, such teachings were an unachievable ideal, and people had to keep their more contradictory eccentricities private because they clearly contradicted nature itself. Only in the last decade or so have many prominent people begun to say that one’s feelings and will should have greater weight in evaluating truth than physical reality. One cannot describe this development without it sounding absurd, because it’s absurd. But the spirit of our times is such that things don’t need to make sense. They only need to agree with the way a person feels. This is where the present-day notion of “pride” comes to the rescue. This kind of pride is a defiance of reality. Nothing could be more haughty or more intentionally rebellious against our Creator.
Does this make God mad? Should it make Christians mad? In a sense, I suppose you could say yes. All sin is an affront to God. But the more important question is: Will the sinners repent or remain stubbornly committed to their sin? Pride itself is a sin in the sense it is described here, and it can get in the way of repentance. For this reason, Christians who are Christians by faith in God’s Word rather than Christians in name only cannot approve of these celebrations of “pride.” They are celebrations of sin — even when we only consider the idea of “pride.”
We could go further. Many (not all) celebrations of “pride” also feature sins against the 6th commandment (that our lives should be chaste and decent in word and deed) and the 4th commandment (that we should respect our parents and superiors) and the 5th commandment (that we should not harm others). You could also apply the 8th commandment (that we should not lie about others), and for some the 7th, 9th, and 10th (that we should not take what rightfully belongs to others or even make deceitful plans to get it legally — as in using the coercive power of government taxation to make Christians pay for morally wicked public celebrations).
Of course, the first three commandments also apply. Pride replaces the one true God with one’s own feelings and will. Pride presumes to say that God approves of words and behavior that God clearly finds repugnant, a claim that breaks the second commandment. Pride also stops the ears of sinners to the Word of God every day of the week and breaks the third commandment by treating the holy and true Word as an example of “hate.”
If you have celebrated “pride” in a way that has turned out to be shameful, take heart! God forgives all who repent. This is what He wants for you: repentance and forgiveness. He gets to be God (what else could He be?), and you get to be forgiven. Part of our repentence of every sin is also that we turn completely away from it and toward a life that pleases God. With such repentance, you will surely see the blessings mentioned in those verses from Proverbs.
Lakewood Lutheran does not celebrate “pride,” because “pride” is against the Christian faith. We invite others to discuss this respectfully. That means we will respect your identity as a creature like us: made by God in both body and soul, but also corrupted to the deepest part in the sinful state we have inherited. We will respect your right to your own opinions, but will stand on the principle that reason built on the Word of God is able to discern the difference between what is true and what is not. We will hold to the idea that true things are true for all people, even when they may be applied or used differently. We will happily discuss these things with you as long as you reciprocate with respect for us as creatures of God and for our faith based on His Word (the Bible).