Pride and Algebra
For years, I watched my kids play various sports. And when they won or just played really well, there was this feeling that welled up inside. It was warm and happy, and we call it pride. But is it?
“Pride is something to be avoided at all costs.”
It’s important that we know, because the Bible gives us several warnings about pride. James 4:6 says, “God opposes the proud,” and Proverbs 16:5 cautions, “The Lord detests the proud of heart. They will not go unpunished.” These are serious warnings, and cannot be ignored. Pride is something to be avoided at all costs. What we’re asked to avoid in the Bible is destructive self-glorification.
I don’t think that the warm feeling I felt watching my kids win at sports is really an example of what the Bible calls pride. That’s being “well-pleased”. God even had that feeling. When Jesus was baptized, the heavens were opened and God’s voice proclaimed, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) We know God cannot be proud and detest the proud at the same time. So pride must be something else.
As a retired math teacher, I have several stories about students. Some are funny, others are sad, but this story was probably the most baffling of my career. It was over 20 years ago, but it’s one of the best illustrations of human pride I’ve ever encountered.
TRIGGER WARNING: THIS BLOG CONTAINS REFERENCES TO ALGEBRA AND MAY BE UPSETTING FOR SOME READERS!
I was teaching a repeater Algebra 1 class, so every student in the class had previously failed Algebra 1. This one student was still failing, and after every test and quiz, we had variations on the same conversation.
Me (pointing at the error he’s made every single time): you cannot combine these two together.
Him: But I think you can.
Me: No, x and x2 are not alike, so they cannot be combined.
Him: They both have an x, so they’re alike. I can combine them.
So I explain why they are not alike (AGAIN), and he replies: I still think they’re alike. And I know he’s going to do the same thing on the next quiz or test, and eventually it’s going to cause him to fail the class - again.
To be clear:
● He realized I knew much more about math than he did.
● He knew what he was doing was wrong. I had explained it several times.
● He knew that I was the person who determined whether he would pass or fail that class.
And yet, he continued to do the same thing, every time.
Seems ridiculous, right? How much more ridiculous is it when we do the same thing with the Almighty Creator of the Universe? This is the nature of pride, that we continue to act as if we know more than God, that we continue in our sin, and that we think we can forge our own path without his guidance.
Are you struggling with pride? Do you want to escape this spiral of destruction? The only cure for pride is humility, which is accurately recognizing one’s place in relation to God and others. Humility begins with recognizing our place in God’s big universe. And in spite of our place, God loved us enough to send his own Son (John 3:16) to be crucified for our sins (1 Peter 2:24) and revealed his power by raising Jesus Christ from the dead (Galatians 1:1). The only reasonable response is to submit ourselves to Him, to humble ourselves before him. And when we do, Proverbs 22:4 says, “The reward for humility and fear of the LORD is riches and honor and life.”
-written by Christy Poe, Redeemer Church member