The truth of the matter is this: pride and love can’t coexist because love doesn’t focus on self – it is not boastful or proud. But in pride we are our own secret admirers! No wonder William Penn, the founder of the Colony of Pennsylvania, wrote, “A proud man then is a kind of glutton upon himself; for he is never satisfied with loving and admiring himself …”
Jesus is neither boastful nor proud; He is not craving for attention, approval, and applause from people and He knows the purpose of His mission and His food is to do the will of the Father who sent Him (cf. Jn. 4:34).
Here we learn the fundamental heart posture of a humble servant. The antidote to boasting and pride is to honour God in prayer and listen to what He wants us to do. So before you begin any thought, speech, or act, say this breath-prayer, “Lord, it’s not about me; Jesus, it’s all about you!”
The self is at the centre of the universe of the boastful and the proud; they are the objects of their own love and worship. Since we are created in the image of God and live as imitators of Jesus, to love in a humble way doesn’t mean we “think less of ourselves but to think of ourselves less” (cf. C.S. Lewis).
