THE POTENT POISON OF PRIDE
According to the National
Geographic website (their kids' version), the Pufferfish can inflate into a
ball shape to evade predators. Also known as blowfish, these clumsy swimmers
fill their elastic stomachs with massive amounts of water (and sometimes air)
and blow themselves up to several times their standard size. But these blow-up
fishes aren't just cute.
Most Pufferfish contain a toxic
substance that makes them foul tasting and potentially deadly to other fish.
The toxin is harmful to humans—1,200 times more deadly than cyanide. There is
enough poison in one Pufferfish to kill 30 adult humans, and there is no known
antidote.
Like Pufferfish, human beings can
blow themselves up with pride and arrogance to make themselves look bigger than
they are. And this pride can become the potent poison to a marriage, a family,
a church, or a friendship. No wonder the late Bible scholar John Stott once
said, "Pride is your greatest enemy; humility is your greatest friend."[1]
Last week we saw how Paul and
Apollos lived out exemplary lives as God's stewards, the importance of believing
only God's evaluation of us and not making judgments about anyone ahead of
time. Not making judgments does not mean lacking discernment in making personal
judgments on day-to-day concerns of life. We have to evaluate and make a sound
judgment on certain delipidating sinful habits. We may have to give up on toxic
relationships.
In the passage from I Corinthians
4:6-13, Paul returns to addressing a reoccurring toxic problem of pride and
arrogance in the Corinthian Church. He shows the importance of humility and how
God made them a public spectacle for the world to see. Paul uses sarcasm, irony,
and contrast to make his points of hard work and enduring mistreatment for the gospel's
sake. The BIG idea is "The Potent Poison of Pride." Let me
unpack some minor themes first.
I.
IRONY, SARCASM, AND CONTRAST
Vs. 8, 10, "You think you
already have everything you need. You think you are already rich. You have
begun to reign in God's kingdom without us! I wish you really were reigning
already, for then we would be reigning with you…Vs.10 "Our dedication to
Christ makes us look like fools, but you claim to be so wise in Christ! We are
weak, but you are so powerful! You are honored, but we are ridiculed."
In verse eight, the Corinthians
thought they have all they need; they were rich, reigned like kings, and had
reached full maturity even without any help from Paul, rather than walking in
humility. Paul uses subtle Irony and Sarcasm, and Contrast to get them to see
how poor and miserable they were because of their spiritual immaturity compared
to the Apostles.
Paul heaps on false praise in a
severe rebuke, sarcastically suggesting that the Corinthians who were
self-satisfied had already achieved spiritual greatness. In a way, they were no
different than the Laodiceans in Rev 3:17, "You say, 'I am rich. I have
everything I want. I don't need a thing!' And you don't realize that you are
wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked." On the contrary, the
Apostle Paul had a sober judgment on his spiritual status.
Philippians 3:12, "I don't mean
to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached
perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus
first possessed me." When we think we have reached spiritual perfection,
we don't need God, Church, or anyone else to teach us; we are walking on
slippery ground. Be careful; lest we fall.
In verse 10, Paul makes a series of
contrasts between the proud Corinthians and the "dishonored" apostles.
The apostles were mistreated, looked foolish, weak, and were dishonored for the
sake of Christ, whereas; the Corinthians thought they were wise, strong, and
honored in their own eyes. Let us look at how Paul perceived their standing as
the apostles in the world.
II.
THE PUBLIC DISPLAY
Vs.9, "Instead, I sometimes
think God has put us, apostles, on display, like prisoners of war at the end of
a victor's parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire
world to people and angels alike." The imagery the Apostle Paul uses here
was nothing glorious.
Imagine the Gladiator scene, where Maximus
(Russell Crow) and his fellow gladiators enter the arena to fight in the
Gladiator games. The condemned prisoners/slaves brought into a Roman arena to
fight and die; the last ones brought out for slaughter were the grand finale.
In His sovereign wisdom and for His
ultimate glory, God chose to display the apostles figuratively before men and
angels during the present age as just such worthless and condemned spectacles. Like
doomed gladiators, they were ridiculed, spit on, imprisoned, and beaten; yet,
God glorified His name through them as He used them to build His kingdom.
What does this mean for us today? God
has placed his people worldwide, in all walks of life, on public display. When
people see that we are different and have different values, they may mock,
ridicule, threaten to kill, and even kill us because of our faith in Christ.
Is that any surprise? Jesus
predicted that would happen to his followers. Matthew 5:11-13, "God
blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say
all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy
about it!
Be very glad! For a great reward
awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the
same way." In verses 11-13, we see the hardships Paul encountered for the
sake of Christ. He worked hard as a tentmaker to support his ministry.
The Greeks considered such labor
below their dignity. Paul described himself as "the world's garbage, like
everybody's trash." What a rebuke
it was to the proud Corinthians who saw themselves at the top, while the humble
Apostle considered himself at the bottom.
III.
THE POTENT POISON OF PRIDE
Vs. 6, "Dear brothers and
sisters, I have used Apollos and myself to illustrate what I've been saying. If
you pay attention to what I have quoted from the Scriptures, you won't be proud
of one of your leaders at the expense of another." Let me unpack
the word pride.
I am not talking about the phrase we
often use, saying, "I am proud of you." I am talking about the Potent
Poison Of Pride. Pride in its various forms appears several times in the two
letters to the Corinthians. Paul addressed
this toxic problem of pride in the Corinthian Church, which is affecting many
relationships. Is this problem only limited to the Corinthians?
The origin of pride goes back to way
before the creation of the world. It became the downfall of a holy angel. Ezekiel
28:12-14 describes Satan as a created cherub, full of wisdom and perfect in
beauty. He was the highest-created angel. He became arrogant and decided to sit
on a throne above God. How did God handle one of his proud and arrogant angels?
Ezekiel 28:17, "Your heart was
filled with pride because of all your beauty. Your wisdom was corrupted by your
love of splendor. So, I threw you to the ground and exposed you to the curious
gaze of kings." Because of his sin, God permanently removed Satan from his
exalted position. Since that time, Satan has used pride to turn people away
from God and one another. How easy it is for us to become attached to a
spiritual leader or a political leader.
Paul warns against having pride in
our favorite leaders that could cause divisions in the Church. We see it play
out in our country. Depending on your political party, we tend to lift our party
leader to god status and reduce the other party's leader to a devil status.
What does the Bible say about this
potent poison of pride? How can we shield ourselves, our families, our
churches, and our country from the deadly effect of pride? Consider these
scriptures: Proverbs 16:18, "Pride goes before destruction, and
haughtiness before a fall."
Pro 11:2, "Pride leads to
disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom." Pro 13:10, "Pride leads to
conflict." Pride cuts us off from God and others, Lk 18:9-14. How can we
recognize pride in ourselves and others? Pride manifests through our boastful
words and arrogant acts.
It reflects through our eyes when we
are haughty because of our beauty or success. It puffs up through our
knowledge. It lifts its ugly head through narcissism. Pride makes us think of
ourselves as invincible, all-powerful, and not needing anyone's help.
What is God's attitude towards pride?
He hates it! In Proverbs 6:16-19, pride is the number one on the list of seven
deadly sins. No wonder St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A.D.) wrote, "Pride
is the commencement of all sin." How can we overcome pride?
The Apostle Paul gave two remedies
to the Corinthians in how to deal with pride. Firstly, in verse 6b, by paying
attention to what is written in the scripture or learning not go beyond what is
written." Remaining within the boundaries of God's truth keeps us from
becoming proud.
The second remedy is in Vs. 7,
"For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have
that God hasn't given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as
though it were not a gift? One of the problems that modern men face is
"self-reliance."
We think all we have in life is what
we have earned and achieved by our wit and wisdom. But did we? Do we ever
realize how we got to the place of success or accomplishment? Who gave us
knowledge, strength, skills even life to achieve all we did? That was what the Apostle was trying to make
the puffed-up Corinthian believers understand. Don't we need the same
understanding today as well? One of the ways to deal with pride is when we
realize nothing we have is our own; everything, including our very life, belongs
to God. Amen.
[1]
Source: "Pufferfish," National Geographic Kids
https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2017/september/7090417.html
