Walking with the Wise #103: Helping Others

“The people curse him who holds back grain,

but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.”
—Proverbs 11:26

Hoarders aren’t helpers. God has blessed us so that we might bless others and so that others might see Christ in us. When we keep, hoard, or hide what God has blessed us with, we show that we are selfish and proud. C.S. Lewis called pride the “Great Sin,” and noted that it was at the root of all others. Read his penetrating description of pride and ask whether or not you see yourself within it:

“According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.

Does this seem to you exaggerated? If so, think it over. I pointed out a moment ago that the more pride one had the more one disliked pride in others. In fact, if you want to find out how proud you are the easiest way is to ask yourself, ‘How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or shove their oar in, or patronize me or show off?’

The point is that each person’s pride is in competition with every one else’s pride. It is because I wanted to be the big noise at the party that I am so annoyed at someone else being the big noise. Two of a trade never agree. Now what you want to get clear is that Pride is essentially competitive—is competitive by its very nature—while the other vices are competitive only, so to speak, by accident. Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looing, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better-looking than others. If every one else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone”—C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, p. 95.

Pride keeps things like grain for oneself, and refuses to give it to others. Pride operates out of fear too, because pride fears being usurped or losing. Not so with love. Love is kind and gives to others, caring not what will be received in return. Love cares more for the needs of others than it does for the needs of oneself. As the proverb states, “The people curse him who holds back grain, but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.” God blesses those who look to the needs of others, and today’s proverb teaches that blessing is on the head of him who sells grain. He looked not only to his own need, but to the needs of the greater community. He wanted to help others, spur along the economy and share the wealth, and he was blessed because of it.

Are you helping others? Or are you in your pride withholding help from others so that you may not lack for any period of time? Are you so proud that your image is greater than your faith? If so, be in fear! Image cannot ever trump faith. Image is at its root pride about what others think about you, but not so with faith. Faith looks not to what others think, but to what the Savior thinks. He is the ultimate one we are accountable to, and He is the one to whom we must give an account. Amen.