S4 E20 - Pride, Sickness & Sin

This past week, everyone in my family came down with Covid one by one. Everyone, that is, except me. We seemed to be on the upswing, and I prided myself in thinking I had some kind of super immune system to not get sick. I spoke a little too soon, because by the time everyone else had recovered, I was sick. 

Pride comes before a fall. Often we can pride ourselves in thinking we are above some kind of temptation or sin, but that is when we will fall prey to the very things we never thought possible in our lives. Pride is a mocker, first from our heart to others, but then back upon our own heads as we fall headlong into the same traps. Let us have humility, and know that there is no temptation that is not common to humanity. In other words - we are not above anything, if we're not careful, it can happen to us too. 

#SetYourMindAbovePodcast

Transcript

What if I told you that God could be seen in the most ordinary things every day? 

What if I told you that every day, ordinary events could teach us extraordinary eternal truths? Would you believe me? 

 Welcome back to season 4 of the Set Your Mind Above Podcast! My name is BJ Sipe, and I am a Christian, a preacher, a husband, and a father. And I’m excited to share a few moments together with you learning some important lessons from the simplest things. Thanks for tuning in! 

School is back in full swing, and you know what that means? You guessed it, it’s time for everyone to get sick again! We knew it was only a matter of time after sending our kids to school that they would bring something back to share with the rest of us, but we were not expecting it to happen so soon! It started with my wife at the end of last week. She was already dealing with some other health issues, but it seemed as though they had been heightened and exasperated. Given her fatigue, we decided to run a covid test. Sure enough, it was positive. We started dropping like flies one by one after that. Ava was next. Then Dane. Then Finley. By Monday morning, everyone in our entire family was sick…except for me! I couldn’t figure out how I had managed to avoid the Rona, but I sure wasn’t complaining. Ava felt better by Tuesday and was able to return to school, but sadly Dane missed his first day of preschool that day but was feeling well enough to go Wednesday instead. And that was it, I thought – we made it through! Everyone is healthy, everyone is back to normal, and I am in the clear and didn’t catch it! I must have some kind of superpowered immune system for me to have been in constant contact with my family for days on end and not catch it. Everyone told me I would get sick, but they were wrong, there was no stopping me! 

Well, have you ever heard the expression, “pride comes before a fall?” Yeah, it caught up to me. I actually started fooling poorly Tuesday evening, but I figured it was just fatigue from taking care of all the sickies in our house and that I just needed a good night’s sleep. But when I woke up Wednesday morning, there was no question – I was sick. The congestion was bad, the headache was worse, and the fatigue was working me over. I had Kylie bring back an at home test kit that afternoon, knowing full well what it was going to say but wanting to have the test confirmation, nonetheless. 10 minutes later, two little lines told me what I already knew. Normally in this household, two little lines on an at home test kit told us that we were expecting a baby. This time, these two little lines for a very different test told us to expect me to be the baby. This was no man cold, this was covid, and it was kicking my butt. My wife has always been the better patient of the two of us, she’s got that mom power that just pushes through even when she’s feeling miserable. She is way tougher than me, always has been. So, in my humiliation after thinking I was in the clear, I threw on my sweats, tied the hood of my hoodie tight around my face, and climbed into bed like the big baby I am. I am very thankful to say that though I am not quite out of the woods yet, I am feeling much better today than I was over the past few days. 

As much as it’s humorous to poke fun at myself and make light of us all going through a round of sickness so early in the school year, there is actually a very serious lesson for us to glean from all of this. It’s about a different kind of sickness, one that has plagued man from the very beginning – and that of course is the sickness of sin, and how it’s spread can be associated with pride. The expression we cited earlier about pride is not just a pithy saying, it is an echo of Scripture. We read in Proverbs 16:18 the following, “Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.” Pride is the foundation of our “famous last words.” Have you ever had a moment where you have prided yourself in not falling prey to some sort of temptation? Perhaps it is something you have struggled with in the past, even something you had struggled with for years, but finally started to make true progress. We can be prideful and begin to think that we have conquered over that sin, as though we would never again be susceptible to temptation. Paul would offer the following warning concerning pride, in which he would rephrase Proverbs 16:18 in his own words to the Corinthians. He writes, “So, whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall. No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it.” (1 Cor. 10:12-13) 

Perhaps it’s not even something that we have struggled with before, but it’s something that we pride ourselves in having never struggled with. Far too often in our spiritual lives, we can see others struggle around us with specific kinds of temptations, but then judge ourselves as being more spiritual because we have not fallen prey to those same temptations. You can see just how quickly pride enters the heart as one reflects and says to themselves, “I’ve never struggled with drug addiction, or alcoholism, or pornography, or a desire to steal. Wow, I must really have it together!” I’ve watched Christians in the past pride themselves in this way. The irony of it all, sadly, is that most I’ve seen possess this attitude at earlier stages in their faith would be the ones to fall headlong into these very same traps in their lives later on. Paul would warn the Galatians that those who seek to help pull others out of the trap of sin & temptation must be careful to not fall into the very same pits themselves. He would write in Galatians 6:1, “Brothers and sisters, if someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual, restore such a person with a gentle spirit, watching out for yourselves so that you also won’t be tempted.” 

It might even be as close to home as our families. We all have watched marriages fail, children fall away and reject the faith, and homes become broken. If we are not careful, we can develop a kind of attitude that truly believes these are the kinds of things that happen to other families, but it could never happen to my marriage, my children, or my family. Again, the sad irony of it all is that some of the most judgmental attitudes I’ve seen in the church towards families that have struggled and gone through hard times would be the ones to later on themselves walk away from their marriage, their children, and the Lord. While pride leads you to mock others at the start, it can come back to mock you in the end.

My friends, Satan is cunning. He knows how to work his way into our lives and deceive us in ways we never thought possible. We must be on guard against him, and one of the most important ways we can do this is by understanding what Paul wrote to the Corinthians: there is no temptation that is not common to humanity. In other words: you are not above any sin. We are all human, frail, fragile, and prone to temptation – especially when we are arrogant. A proud heart is essentially an open invitation for Satan to have his way with us. We must have a heart of humility, a sober mind, and a keen awareness of the schemes of the enemy. Don’t let sin spread, and that starts with knowing that if we are not careful, it can happen to us too. Rather than harshly judging others, lovingly lift them up all the while keeping a close watch on your own soul as you do. 

This has been the Set Your Mind Above Podcast, season 4 episode 20 – and I’m so thankful that you decided to tune in today! A new episode is dropped most Fridays, so be sure to tune in next week.  Also, if you’re able to, go ahead and like and subscribe to the podcast, as well as share it with someone else – it would help me greatly in trying to reach others. And more than anything, always remember the following: know that I love you, that God loves you, and may we all each and every day set our minds above.