Hubris is the soft spot, the point of vulnerability in us all! Last night a man we never heard of before won a Senate seat in Massachusetts. Scott Brown capitalized on the hubris of his opponent and her party. Coakley and company were so sure that they had the election won that she went on a week’s vacation just three weeks before the election! While she rested, he ran hard. He won the election pulling away. Hubris caused the American people to turn against the Republicans a little over a year ago. Hubris lost a major election for the Democrats last night. What’s hubris? “Excessive pride or self-confidence, arrogance,” is the definition!
I’ve seen marriages crumble because partners’ hubris cause them to take advantage of their spouses for too long. I’ve seen ministers fail morally because hubris blinded them to their own weakness. Hubris that develops in leaders when they find success is the reason behind the destruction of governments, corporations, and even churches. Here’s God’s warning: "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!" (1 Corinthians 10:12, NIV)
Humility is a character trait that must be cultivated. Disciple we must remember that pride makes us an enemy of God, who will not share His glory or authority! “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5, NIV) The Lord Himself, though full of magnificence, is also humble. God, humble? Yes! "The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this: “I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts." (Isaiah 57:15, NLT) A prideful person will not voluntarily associate with those who are weak, failing, or rejected. A humble man lifts them up.
Accomplishment or recognition will not bring on hubris in anyone who realizes that he is who he is only because of the grace of God. When we feel ourselves becoming impressed with by ourselves, this question needs to come to the forefront of our minds: “Who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit,” Paul wrote, “but in humility consider others better than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3)
“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 18:3-4, NIV)
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