Never let a little success go to your head, whether it’s athletic recognition, a big win, a stellar performance, or a profitable career. Success is sensational, but pride is poisonous. Just like a disease, it’s difficult to pinpoint pride within ourselves. It’s not as black-and-white as lying, cheating, murder, or not returning your shopping cart. Pride is remarkably subtle but terribly destructive. We often rebrand our prideful tendencies to justify them. We call them confidence, success, or empowerment. Regardless of what you call it, pride comes before destruction (Proverbs 16:18).
READ: Daniel 4:1-36
This story twists and turns like an afternoon soap opera. The Babylonian king had another string of daunting dreams, so he again asked Daniel to interpret for him. The prophet explained to Nebuchadnezzar that pride was going to be the disease that lead to his downfall. Daniel warned that he would be driven out of his country and forced to live outdoors like a wild animal. Nebuchadnezzar was unsettled by the interpretation, but the warning didn’t change his behavior. While walking around his kingdom one afternoon, the king praised himself saying, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” This seems innocent enough, doesn’t it? He was just celebrating his success. The guy was a world ruler after all. However, his outward celebration was evidence of his inward arrogance— which ultimately led to his downfall.
The dream came true. He was thrust out of his kingdom and transformed into a savage in the wild. In this passage, pride morphed a world leader into a wild animal.
When you trace it backwards, pride is the root of all sins. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, pride coaxed them into thinking their way was better than God’s. Every time Nebuchadnezzar tried to control the people around him, pride was at play. When Cain killed Abel, pride made him take vengeance into his own hands. When you witness a family fractured by sin, pride is often the drive behind the cheating, lying, or manipulation. Pride can imprison you without you even knowing it because it’s a sneaky sin. Pride can hide.
You must identify how you hide your pride. Do you hide it behind perfectionism? You claim you want things to be perfect, but really, you just want things to go your way. Do you hide it behind sarcasm? You are quick and witty, but this is also a subtle way of showing off your intelligence. Do you play the martyr? This is when you throw yourself under the bus by saying things like, “I am awful! I am terrible” in order to manufacture sympathy.
All of these things are like a disguise for your pride. Ultimately, this will push people away. Just like when Nebuchadnezzar lost his kingdom, you may lose friends, your reputation, your influence, or even your future when you let pride hide within you. When you are full of yourself, there is no room for anyone else.
Here is what you need to do. Drop the defenses. Take off the disguise. Invite other people into your life, especially the messy and imperfect parts. Take the emphasis off of yourself and put it on others. Your life will radically change.
Pride builds barriers; humility builds bridges. One keeps others out, and the other invites others in.