Chapter 8: The Great Sin

I. The vice of pride
    A. We despise it in others.
    B. We are unconscious of it in ourselves.
    C. It is the complete anti-God mind-set.
    D. Pride is inherently competitive.
        1. Pride is only satisfied in being above others.
        2. Pride acts for its own sake, not for the sake of acquiring.
        3. The actions of pride are about power.
II. Consequences of pride
    A. Pride results in enmity; pride is enmity.
    B. The proud cannot know God.
    C. Pride and religion
        1. The worship of the proud is to an imaginary God.
        2. The proud believe they have God’s approval.
        3. Consequently, they think they are better than others.
        4. The spiritual sin of pride can enter into the heart of religious life.
        5. One should watch for the attitude of superiority in oneself, an indicator of pride.
III. Pride and other vices
    A. Pride can be used to defeat other vices, but to terrible effect.
    B. Pride is spiritual cancer.
IV. Four possible misunderstandings of pride
    A. Pleasure in being praised is not necessarily pride.
    B. Pride in another’s accomplishments is not necessarily pride.
    C. Humility is a doorway to knowing God.
    D. A truly humble person is not self-deprecating.

Discussion Questions: (pp. 121-128)
    1. Identify the role of pride and the lesson to be obtained from the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican in Luke 18:10-14. (p. 124-125)
    2. Why does Martin Luther write, “I am more afraid of my own heart than of the pope and all his cardinals. I have within me the great pope, Self“? (pp. 122,124)
    3. How can pride be defeated? (p. 128)

Note: “Two of a trade never agree.” A proverb dating back to the 16th century. Meaning: two people in the same business will always disagree about the proper service to offer the customer, each regarding his own opinion as superior to the other. (p. 122)