Good Spiritual Pride is Indispensable

7/2/2021

Every now and then some grudging, small-minded commenter visits my blog and inevitably accuses me of spiritual pride.

These kinds of accusations tend to focus on my perceived egotism, pretension, hubris, and smugness, with the general implication that I view and present myself as someone who has his proverbial spiritual act together and vaingloriously advertises this lofty spiritual act to the world for purely self-serving reasons.

Allegations of spiritual pride lobbed against yours truly also address my apparent spiritual conceit and disdain, which is readily discernible in my sneering and supercilious criticisms of the misguided spirituality or absent spirituality of others.

To commenters who make such accusations, I offer the following response - have you ever stopped to consider that accusing another Christian of spiritual pride could also be categorized as an act of spiritual pride?

Conversely, has it ever occurred to you that excessive humility, spiritual self-debasement, passivity and meekness you espouse and promote also qualify as forms of spiritual pride? That our servile, suicidal societies, which are currently enslaving us all, might just be the creations of such servile, suicidal souls?

Don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to deflect the issue. If I have transgressed, I shall ponder the matter with God and if need be, repent.

Having said that, I do not believe spiritual pride is a purely negative phenomenon. Though it sounds paradoxical, pride does play a role in my belief in God.

I am proud of my belief in God. I am proud of my belief in Jesus Christ. I am proud of my ongoing mission to follow Christ to everlasting life. I am proud that I recognize God as the prime source of freedom and independence from the corrupting and entropic power of the given world. I am proud of the divine that is within me.

I am also proud of my attempts to adhere to the primacy of the spiritual, in my indisposition to worship anyone or anything except God.

This pride provides me with the inner strength needed to spiritually resist the power of society and the world, to not consent to spiritually prostrate myself before the world, society, and people, especially not before those who are actively, willingly, and blatantly opposed to God.

I am proud to know God exists because His existence enriches my own existence and the existence of the whole world.

I am proud to comprehend that God is a person and that this person has as much love and faith in me as I have in Him, and that he extends this personal offer of love and faith to all of his children.

I am proud of God's patience, fortitude, and forgiveness. I am proud that God has granted me - all of us - the possibility of adding something to Creation that He alone cannot. I am proud of the fact that God desires that we all become more like Him.

And I am proud of my attempts to discuss these matters on these pages.

16 Comments

S.K. Orr link

7/2/2021 21:16:59

I believe the constant scrambling to claim the title of Most Self-Abased Groveler is one of the more repellant things about modern Christianity. These little purity spirals absolutely guarantee that men will continue to leave or stay away from the church. Males might stay, but men will instinctively get as far away from the screeching of "You're prideful!" as we can. It's a natural instinct of a son of God to look away from something shameful.

Francis Berger

7/3/2021 06:27:53

@ S.K. - I agree. The effeminacy behind such screeching accusations is quite off-putting. The older I get, the less I am able to tolerate it.

bruce charlton

7/2/2021 22:02:19

Maybe its the expression on your face in that photo? ;-)

I've always felt that the word pride as commonly used now does a rather poor job of describing the sin. I tend to use resentment - it isn't exactly right either, but it seems closer to what is sinful.

Think of Satan - his fall seems more likely to be from resentment against God, than from being too 'proud' - which makes it seem he really thought he was better than God.

7/3/2021 06:43:42

@ Bruce - Ha! Perhaps I should revert to my cold-eyed, bad cop photo instead?

When I think of spiritual pride, I think of the rebellious, Luciferic form of pride you mention - the kind of pride that declares it is better than God, or has no need of God, or rejects God out of some misguided understanding of freedom and independence.

But this is not the kind of spiritual pride of which I am occasionally accused. My apparent spiritual sin centers around the smugness I project and espouse when I point out or criticize the wrong spiritual choices of others, especially of those who have clearly and actively chosen to be on the wrong side.

7/3/2021 19:58:32

@Frank - Be warned: Whatever photo you choose - I will find something about it to tease you with.

mobius link

7/3/2021 00:18:12

Just pride is a slap in the face to those who make poorer choices. You have sinned against equality.

7/3/2021 06:44:50

@ mobius - "You have sinned against equality."

Good! That's one "sin" I will never repent. And I say that with pride!

William James Tychonievich link

7/3/2021 02:59:54

Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:

But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.

(Jeremiah 9:23-24)

7/3/2021 06:49:25

@ Wm - "Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:"

Aw, come on! I was just about to write a few posts bragging about how wise, powerful, and wealthy I am.

David Llewellyn Dodds

7/3/2021 23:42:02

I went looking in Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, and found the verb here used in the Septuagint version of Jeremiah, kauchaomai, described as used both "of vainglorying" and "of valid glorying".

In Cassell's New Compact Latin-English, English-Latin Dictionary (1973) of classical Latin up to A.D. 100, 'pride' was glossed "superbia, insolentia, adrogantia; source of - , decus (-oris)" with 'decus' glossed "distinction, honour, glory, grace; moral dignity, virtue; of persons pride, glory; plur[al] decora, distinguished acts." The famous Proverbs 18:16 has "superbia" in the Vulgate, while it is interesting to browse the Vulgate for uses of 'decor' - such as Psalm 92:1, "Dominus regnavit, decorem indutus est" - 'The Lord reigns, He is clothed with "decorem"'.

This might also be a good context in which to note the discussion of love in the recent Warrenton Declaration on Medical Mandates, Biblical Ethics, & Authority.

7/4/2021 11:43:26

@ David - That's illuminating. Thanks!

William Wildblood

7/3/2021 12:51:50

Don't worry, Francis. I have been accused of arrogance because I have the temerity to behave as though I actually believe what I say I believe.

7/3/2021 17:20:41

@ William - Yes, that's pretty much it, isn't it?

Lottie Caron

7/3/2021 14:17:07

Good morning Francis. This isn't a comment but a request. I read your blog on a daily basis and it brings myself and my family some small resemblance of hope in these terrifying days. Can you PLEASE discuss how this is the first time in human history that we've become so completely godless. We're living in unprecedented times. Even during great falls and collapses, we as humans still had faith in God/God's. I am a very grateful Christian and I am proud to be the daughter of our lord. As a Christian and human being I have watched the massive changes to our world, especially since the birdemic and I can't help see/feel that we are on the cusp of something extremely Satanic or even end of days. I don't say this lightly!!! I have watched everything around me fall apart from my own granddaughter being completely brainwashed regarding her own sexuality to the absolute madness, inverted faith/belief in the globalists. I WON'T sit here in my fears and feed the dark one but I would really like to know your thoughts on this and if you or any of the guys ( Bruce Charlton or William Wild blood) are picking up on this. Thank you so much for faith and writing in these very dark days.

7/3/2021 17:40:01

@ Lottie - Thank you for the kind words.

"I have watched the massive changes to our world, especially since the birdemic and I can't help see/feel that we are on the cusp of something extremely Satanic or even end of days."

Yes, but I get the sense that the cusp of something extremely Satanic is already behind us and we are firmly in the grips of it.

Both Bruce and William have blogged extensively about the end of days and end times over the past 16 months - I suggest word searching Bruce's blog and William's blog for "end times", "litmus tests", and "things coming to a point" to revisit some of the key points of our post-birdemic world.

Your sense that we are living in unprecedented times is spot on as far as I'm concerned. Bruce and William have both stressed the deep level of our current Godlessness on their blogs. The average person and most faithful Christians do not appear cognizant of this fact, which helps explain why most continue to look to history to draw parallels and comparisons to our current times - but these parallels and comparisons are misleading. As you noted, there has never been any situation in the past during which the vast majority of people were strict non-believers.

I will certainly consider exploring this theme in greater detail on my own blog.

7/3/2021 21:41:42

@ Bruce - Warning noted! Luckily, my pride does not extend to my physical appearance. A mug like mine seemingly demands teasing.

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Good Spiritual Pride is Indispensable

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