I. Conceit

    A. The Daughters of Zion are Haughty

        1. the people of Jerusalem afflicted themselves with the same kind of arrogance that swept over our nation as the stock market roared above 14,000 points a couple years back; so many began to feel prosperous and untouchable, free to explore their appetites with the confidence that comes from the imaginary certainty that things cannot change, and then they did (Isaiah 3:16-26)

        2. it is not just the conceit that offends God, but the sinfulness that always results when people become puffed up because of physical strength or attractiveness, prosperity and promotions, past laurels, great victories, exceptional intellect or a so-called run of good luck

            a. people tend to forget that God is the giver of true gifts, they become complacent about spiritual things, and they begin looking down on those who are not yet as blessed; “Claiming to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:22)

            b. conceit causes a person to take a blessing and warp it into a curse as surely as the market fell and beautiful women turn old and gray

        3. the daughters of Zion were as haughty then as any preening Queen Bee is today, not content to have the silky hair and unblemished face, but driven to mock any who doesn’t, but mockery has a way of returning on itself


    B. Pride

        1. many are the sources of human pride and it is likely that everybody has at least one area in his life where he is tempted to feel superior (Jeremiah 9:23-26)

            a. the uncircumcision of the heart should not be an obscure term because the implication is that the Christian who becomes swollen with conceit – even religious conceit – is not quite as converted, redeemed or morally superior as he thinks (Romans 2:28-29)

            b. Stephen dramatically announced that his esteemed accusers from the Sanhedrin were “uncircumcised in heart and ears” and thus did always “resist the Holy Spirit” (Acts 7:51)

        2. circumcision of the heart means that all boasting is forbidden because of the law of faith (see Romans 3:27)

            a. “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).

            b. when the chest swells with pride and a perky nose goes up in the haughty air, a fall is probably not far behind

        3. and sometimes this pride is even because of imagined religious superiority (Luke 18:9-14)


II. Cause of Swelling

    A. Beauty, Popularity and Prosperity

        1. our very superficial society has raised the importance of physical beauty to ridiculous levels – beautiful girls can become millionaires simply by starving themselves and posing for provocative photographs

        2. like the daughters of Zion, there is a false pride in one’s appearance that practically begs somebody prettier or meaner to tear it down somehow

        3. beauty and popularity and prosperity inflate their owners with pride until it is no longer good enough to be such, but everyone else must know it and acknowledge it and confess their inferiority by wallowing in melancholy envy

            a. and from just that, you begin to see how such a person, regardless of blessing, is not much converted to Christ, “had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him” (Isaiah 53:2)

            b. the yearning to make others stew in the juices of envy is treating them like enemies, yet the Holy Spirit teaches, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; is not arrogant or rude” (First Corinthians 13:4).

        4. provoking others to acknowledge and envy your blessings is the surest way to turn them into curses and to distance yourself from good people

            a. “Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another” (Galatians 5:26)

            b. “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited” (Romans 12:16).


    B. Wise in Their Own Conceit

        1. Job’s friend, Elihu, said, “The Almighty – we cannot find him; he is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate. Therefore men fear him; he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit” (Job 37:24).

        2. convinced of one’s own intellect or wisdom, people will make all sorts of mistakes, committing acts of immorality and inviting chaos into their lives because they are convinced the answers are inside of them

            a. Paul warned the Roman Christians, “Lest you be wise in your own conceits, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” (11:25).

            b. he saw that some of them thought they had it figured out and that it didn’t include the Jews, but they were wrong

        3. “Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him” (Proverbs 26:12).

            a. this is why Paul forbade Timothy to appoint novices to the eldership, reasoning, “he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil” (First Timothy 3:6)

                1. arrogance in a bishop will prevent him from admitting his own mistakes, seeking the advice of others and shepherding the church in a way that benefits the flock rather than his own pride

                2. this kind of elder, whether novice or not, is the one most likely to lord himself over the congregation, ruling by compulsion rather than example

            b. even preachers, whom we expect to have more excellent insight, are prone to swelling with conceit over that insight, or their abilities, or occasional praise (First Timothy 6:3-5)

                1. an eloquent preacher like Apollos could easily be puffed up by his ability and accolades

                2. post-graduate degrees, large audiences, even years of experience often serve to swell the preacher to a point at which he is willing to trust his instincts more than Scripture and to set others aside who are not as blessed (Proverbs 3:5-7)


    C. Selfish Ambition

        1. conceitedness invites chaos into a person’s life and into the communities where he frequents – the home, school, workplace, even the church of course

        2. “perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder” (Second Corinthians 12:20)

        3. they all go together when one person provokes others by showing off and making fun of those less gifted (Philippians 2:1-4)

        4. an arrogant person might attend every worship service, sing like a nightingale, pray like an apostle, give ‘til it hurts and weep during the Supper, but his self-righteousness makes it all suspect and potentially worthless (Second Timothy 4:1-5)


Conclusion

It might be time for some of us to get over ourselves. We’re probably not as smart, pretty, strong or successful as we think anyway and even if we are, it is most likely due more to the goodness of God than anything we did without him. Arrogance turns a blessing into a curse, even if that blessing happens to be membership in the body of Christ.


Questions For Review

  1. 1.What made the daughters of Zion haughty?

  2. 2.What has made people in America just as haughty?

  3. 3.Define complacency.

  4. 4.What does pride usually precede?

  5. 5.How might arrogance be a function of a feeling of religious superiority?

  6. 6.To what can excessive pride in one’s appearance provoke others?

  7. 7.What is wrong with being wise in your own eyes?

  8. 8.Which New Testament preacher was noted for his eloquence?

  9. 9.What is the ultimate worth of an arrogant person’s religion?

© 2008, Jeff S. Smith. Outlines and recordings may be used for teaching programs, individual study and review, but are copyrighted and may not be republished, especially for profit, without the author's express consent. Click here to email the author.