Seven Deadly Sins: Pride

Teaching text

Matthew 6:1-6

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

Sermon recap

This Sunday, Pastor Ralph Castillo continued our Lenten series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on pride. Pride runs rampant in our culture, in the Church, in our homes, and in our hearts, often without us noticing. Our current culture has a way of turning vices into virtues and praising disordered loves. This can make it difficult to identify pride, especially in religious spaces, and can result in practicing righteousness as a way of being seen and honored by others.

In Matthew 6:1-6, Jesus compares the way of pride to the way of humility through the practices of giving and prayer. With giving, the way of pride says to announce your generosity to others so that they will be impressed with you, but the way of humility says to give in secret. With prayer, the way of pride says to pray publicly as a way of being seen by others, but the way of humility says to pray in your room with the door closed. Jesus also teaches that those who practice the way of pride will receive their reward in full, albeit a temporary, shallow, and lesser reward. However, those who practice the way of humility will receive an eternal reward directly from the Father.

When we choose the way of humility, and practice our righteousness in secret, we receive the better reward because the Father Himself is rewarding us. In Philippians 2:1-8, we see Jesus as the perfect example of humility, showing us how, in God’s Kingdom, the way up is down. Jesus practiced the way of humility with His whole life, choosing to go lower and lower, even to death on a cross, and eventually received the Father’s full, eternal reward.

Pastor Ralph left us with five practices to help us war against pride and cultivate humility. First, we’re invited to practice our righteousness in private; second, we’re encouraged to practice apprenticeship by accepting Jesus’ invitation to rest from the exhausting way of pride; third, we can practice gratitude and recognize that the gifts we have been given are for humble service; fourth, we’re invited to practice self-awareness by asking the Holy Spirit to search us; and fifth, we can practice prioritizing others with our time, talent, and treasure. In John 3:30, John the Baptist declares that, “He (Jesus) must increase, I must decrease.” May we embrace the better way, the way of humility, and be set free from the deadly sin of pride.

Discussion questions

Connect

1. What are your plans for celebrating Easter this year, and who can you invite to join you?

Character

Ask someone to read Matthew 6:1-6 aloud. Then, ask the following questions:

1. What words, phrases, or images in this passage stood out to you?

2. From these verses, what do we learn about what God values most?

Consider

1. What are some examples of things we might do in front of others to receive recognition? What is our reward?

2. Pastor Ralph says pride makes us turn not downward, but inward. What does that mean?

3. Why is it important to give in secret? What are some ways that you can practice giving or serving anonymously?

4. How was Jesus the “supreme example of humility”? What can we learn from His humility?

Cover

Allow the Holy Spirit to search your hearts and reveal areas of hidden pride. Spend time confessing to one another, if there is space for this. Pray and ask Jesus to help you decrease so He may increase, to help you give and serve with true humility, secrecy, and love.