OVERCOMING PRIDE AND GREED

10, 11. (a) How can pride show itself? (b) What lesson do we learn from the bad course of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram?

¹⁰ We must recognize that our heart can lead us astray. What power our sinful tendencies exert on us! Take, for example, pride and greed. Consider how each of these traits can interfere with our listening to the voice of Jehovah and can lead us to take a disastrous course. A proud person has an exaggerated opinion of himself. He may feel that he has the right to do whatever he wants and that no one can tell him what to do. So he may feel that he is above the direction and counsel of fellow Christians, the elders, or even God’s organization. For such a person, the sound of Jehovah’s voice becomes very faint.

¹¹ During Israel’s wilderness trek, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram rebelled against the authority of Moses and Aaron. Because of pride, the rebels made independent arrangements to worship Jehovah. How did Jehovah respond? He executed them. (Num. 26:8-10) What a crucial lesson this historical account teaches us! Rebellion against Jehovah leads to disaster. Let us also remember that “pride is before a crash.”​—Prov. 16:18; Isa. 13:11.

14. What should we do if we notice in ourselves tendencies toward pride and greed?

¹⁴ Both pride and greed can lead to disaster. Reflection on the outcome of pursuing a wrong course will help us not to allow such inclinations to drown out the voice of Jehovah. (Deut. 32:29) In the Bible, the true God not only tells us what the right course is but also explains the benefits of walking in it as well as the consequences of going the wrong way. If our heart moves us to contemplate doing something that is motivated by pride or greed, how wise it would be to think about the consequences! We should consider how wrongdoing would affect us, our loved ones, and especially our relationship with Jehovah.