I’ve been thinking a lot about “pride” lately.  Christians and pastors talk about it a lot in a negative way and usually with the term, “prideful”.  It’s also said to be the worst of the ’seven deadly sins’ (which isn’t Biblical but came from Pope Gregory I in 590 AD among others who got the ball rolling).  I think it’s another case of Christian semantics and the English language screwing up a good thing.

There are two types of pride.  One type of pride, the bad type, is when you feel superior or like you’re better than others – whether it’s just in your head or acted out.  This is the type of pride that is proud of winning a football game or battle of the bands because you love that the others lost or were inferior – you feel you were better than them.  It could also be the type of pride that shows you think you’re better than someone else because you can quote Scripture or know more about the Bible than someone else.

The other type of pride – the good type – is what many refer to as a “healthy sense of self” – healthy meaning “without comparison to others”.  It’s awesome to be proud of yourself or others – because of what you or they have done – but only as long as it doesn’t involve comparing yourself to others – tearing others down.  This is the type of pride that is proud of winning a football game, winning a battle of the bands, making good grades,  or writing a killer screenplay – because you worked hard and did your best – and that is something to feel good about – or feel great about.  You can feel good about yourself without having to tear others down.

Paul talks about pride in his letter to the Galatians.  In chapter 6 verses 1-5, he says,

“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.  But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.  Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.  Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load. (NIV)”

Paul is saying we can take pride in ourselves – but only after we’ve tested our own actions – examined what we accomplished and why – and only without comparing ourselves to others.

This is a great message about teamwork too.  The Galatians were in the middle of a crisis and all sorts of ‘types’ of Christians were forming – the Jewish Christians, the rich Christians, the Romans, etc. – and they were looking down on each other feeling that they were better than the others – better because they saw the others making mistakes or stumbling.  Paul’s letter tells us how we need to help each other when we stumble – “carry each other’s burdens” – just like great teamwork.

It’s also a great message about how churches should work together as the body of Christ instead of tearing each other down – but politics and pride (the bad kind) seem to often times get in the way.  I believe Jesus wants His church to function as a top rated team – all working together and helping each other – in the battle of good vs. evil – and even wants us to be proud of what we accomplish.

It’s also just like Paul to pack way more into a few sentences.  The message is also a great description of humility.  If your buddy sins this morning, it will likely be your turn this afternoon – so be humble about it.  Paul touches on it at least twice – “restore him gently” – meaning not to get in your buddy’s face about it and tear him down, and again with “if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself” – meaning that if you think you are better than others, that is proof in and of itself that you’re not – that you’re deceiving yourself (but most likely not fooling anyone else around you).

U2’s song, Pride (In The Name Of Love) is about people who died taking risks and standing up for something in the name of love.  There are obvious references to MLK, Jr. (April 4) and Christ (betrayed with a kiss) – and not so obvious references according to some of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (one man caught on a barbed wire fence) – which is where his body was said to be found.

But I’ve always wondered why Bono chose the name “Pride” for the song.  The only place it’s used in the song is in the line, “Free at last, they took your life, they could not take your pride”.  To me, it’s at least another example of the good kind of pride – the pride of knowing you’ve done something in the name of love – in the name of serving others or putting others first – a pride that no one can take from you and that you can take with you – a pride that doesn’t involve comparing what you’ve done to what others didn’t do.

Wow. I won’t have the words to describe it here. My mind and heart were completely blown tonight at Austin Stone Community Church. The sermon was based on 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 – The Lords’ Supper.

I’ve been taking communion since I was baptized in the 6th grade. I think I’ve probably heard dozens of great preachers tell me all about the Lord’s Supper and what it means – not to mention the thousands of times they’ve reviewed it right before serving “the elements”. But no, not this time. Matt Carter brought it home. I will never ever experience communion the same way again.

In 1 Corinthians 11:17-34, Paul is talking to the Corinthian Church about The Lord’s Supper. First of all, Matt made it clear that there is no place in the Bible where it says how often or how we are to take communion – but that it does command us to take it – and that we are supposed to examine our hearts before we come. It’s funny how some denominations take it once a quarter, some once a month, and some every Sunday. I always wondered about that.

Paul talks about how taking communion with an unworthy heart is a really big deal – and will result in discipline from God on the same level of big deal as Jesus dying on the cross. Not condemnation but discipline – loving discipline. Paul says in verse 30, “That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.” Matt Carter explained how the original greek for “asleep” is used in other verses in the Bible to mean death. I don’t believe he was telling us that God would make us sick or die if we didn’t do communion right. But I believe whole heartedly that it is a really really big deal.

Jesus’ command was to “..do this in remembrance of me”. Matt explained how “remembrance” was just remembering like we use the term in English – remember the facts. The original meaning was more about re-capturing the significance of the event. Matt went on to explain it with a story about losing his mom. He could stand there and tell us the facts about her death and not be moved by it. But if he were to really think back to that day when he and his dad and sister watched their mom and wife die right in front of them, and the whaling of his dad, and the blank look of hopelessness on his sister’s face, that there is no way he could do so without feeling the full impact of the event and weeping. This is what Jesus meant when he instructed us to “..do this in remembrance of me.”

Paul is talking about how the people of Corinth were showing up to steal the bread and eat it before anyone else could, or how others were getting drunk off of the wine. He told them “..whoever eats the bread and drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” We might argue that we don’t steal the bread or get drunk off of the grape juice, so this doesn’t apply to us. But it does. We simply cannot come to the Lord’s table without examining our hearts first and recognizing the significance of the event – taking ourselves back to that last day – to the gruesome death that Christ suffered just for us – just for us to be able to be forgiven once and for all. We do this and we ball like babies in awe and thankfulness until He comes back again.

Again, my words here don’t even come anywhere close to the experience I had tonight. Even if you listen to the sermon online, I doubt you will get a fraction of the intensity in that room. I wish everyone could have been there. I mean everyone. It wasn’t there yet as I wrote this, but you can check here to find and listen to the mp3 of the sermon once it is available.