Evil comes at us in many different forms in this world. But somehow, there’s always one thing that lies right at the heart, at the core of evil. And that one thing is pride. Yep, pride pretty much drives most of the evil in this world.

The greatest regret of my life is the number of people I hurt over the years through my pride. Back in 1995 when Jesus came into my life, the first sin that I recall becoming acutely aware of was my pride. I mean I had an ego the size of a small planet!

Ever since then that’s something that God has been delivering me from. And can I tell you, getting to the point where you don’t really care anymore what other people think of you, is a freedom that is so piercingly sweet.

I share that background with you because these days, whenever I get to a passage in the Bible that talks about pride, it serves as a major reality check for me, as indeed it should for all of us.

Proverbs 8:13 To respect the LORD means to hate evil. I hate pride and boasting, evil lives and hurtful words.

Interesting isn’t it. The verse starts off talking about evil but almost in the same breath rolls straight into pride and boasting. That’s because, as I said, pride lies at the core of virtually every evil.

And so if we claim to follow Jesus, to “fear” the Lord, then you and I need to hate evil, to spurn evil in our own lives. Because God hates – now just stop and think about the frightening reality of an all-powerful, just God hating anything!! – He hates pride, boasting, evil lives and hurtful words.

So, major reality check. How much of those, beginning with pride, are dwelling in your heart at the moment? Get rid of them.

That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.