In the Middle Ages, the church composed a list of wrongful attitudes and practices that was labeled the seven deadly sins. The sins were: pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed and sloth.
Notice that first on the list was pride. By pride, the church meant excessive egotism, being so self-centered that one had no room in his or her spirit for God. If one's ego became too puffed up, if "self" became too prideful, one might ignore God altogether. Therefore, inordinate pride is very dangerous to one's spiritual health. Greatly dangerous!
Martin Luther put it wisely. He said, "Before God, everyone is compelled to lower his plumes." Human peacocks strutting about trying to impress everyone, including God, don't get far in terms of having spiritual health
The poor in spirit
Now Jesus saw such inflated pride was displayed blatantly in many sickened souls. In King Herod, the powerful ruler, for example. Also, in crooked but rich tax collectors who bled the people on behalf of Rome and themselves.
What upset Jesus even more, however, was the prideful way religious authorities arrogantly paraded themselves about Jerusalem. Some scribes and Pharisees so enjoyed their special clothes and the religious items they wore. Oh, how they swelled pridefully when they were swarmed over in the market place or given special attention at public gatherings. They relished putting burdensome demands on the Jewish people. Such power fed their egos. But spiritually speaking, it was
