It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” John 13:1-8
In my last post we were able to see how damaging pride is to the health of the soul. In this post we will explore some of the specific signs that reveal pride’s presence. For unless we know we have a problem with pride, we will not recognize the need nor be willing to take strong action against it.
To help us, we will examine the seven signs of pride as identified by Jonathan Edwards. Edwards was a 16th century preacher/theologian and leader of the 1st Great awakening in colonial America. Later he would become the third president of Princeton University. Due to the strong Puritan influence on his life, some of his views may seem a bit strident by modern standards. Nevertheless, he understood the human soul and especially how pride is seen.
So according to Edwards, here are the seven signs of the presence of pride in the soul.
- Fault-Finding
While pride causes us to filter out the evil we see in ourselves, it also causes us to filter out God’s goodness in others. Thus the prideful are quick to point out the flaws in others even if those same flaws are evident within themselves. - A Harsh Spirit
Those who have the sickness of pride in their hearts speak of other’ sins with contempt, irritation, frustration, or judgment. It has no sense of one’s own struggles with sins and thus feels permission to be condemnatory toward others who struggle. - Superficiality
When pride lives in our hearts, we’re far more concerned with others’ perceptions of us instead of the reality of our hearts. Essentially, we are focused on image management rather than a true inner transformation. - Defensiveness
When pride is unchecked within, we will tend to resist any corrections or rebukes rather than to prayerfully consider them. This is the primary means by which we manage the image we want to project toward others. - Presumption Before God
Pride causes us to believe that God owes us for believing in Him. We no longer have a sense of reverent respect. It’s a spiritual form of entitlement. - Desperation for Attention
Pride is hungry for attention, respect, and worship in all its forms, because the prideful person feels superior towards others at least outwardly. Sadly, like a narcotic, pride craves consistent doses in order to feel properly appreciated. - Neglecting Others
Pride prefers some people over others. It honors those who are deemed by the world as being worthy of honor, giving more weight to their words, their wants, and their needs. Prideful people are especially attentive toward those who can reciprocate in some fashion.
I would encourage you to sit with this list for awhile and allow the Holy Spirit to help you see how much of these things are in your own soul. The more you see them, the greater the level of pride within. It then becomes a wake up call that something needs to be done.
We will explore how to deal with pride in my next post. But for now, we need to pay attention to it’s presence within so that we can get to the place where we own the pride we have and are desperate to have it removed.