Classes of People

(Psalms 119:78 KJV) Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt perversely with me without a cause: but I will meditate in thy precepts. 

False pride produces a look of personal ‘god-ship’ which is extremely distasteful. I believe it was the same look that was on Satan’s face when he attempted to promote himself to be equal with God. One would be naïve to believe that somehow Satan’s look of pride vanished somewhere along the way when mankind seems to have inherited every other personality trait of his.

Satan’s ‘proud look’ is easily identified on the faces of the powerful who look down on those they consider to be inferior to themselves. What is even more appalling is when those who were once looked down on now turn and look down on others with the same ‘proud look’.

For some reason the spirit of pride seems to be the nastiest of all of Satan’s personality traits. The result of the ‘proud look’ actually demoralizes others while establishing a class difference at the same time.

This was certainly the case according to what I learned while visiting one of the large beautiful estates in England a few days ago. This large breathtaking home that was built in 1704 once employed twenty-six maids plus numerous gardeners, grounds keepers, stable boys and horse trainers in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

This particular home had a tunnel running from the house to the garden area behind a fence so the maids would not be seen going to the garden to get fresh vegetables for the family. As a matter of fact, if a maid was seen on the grounds by a family member or guest she would be immediately dismissed.

Another rule was if a member of the family or a guest came into a room where a maid was cleaning, the maid was to immediately turn and face the wall and stand still until the family member or guest left the room.

The upper class was expected to have a ‘proud look’ and apparently they were more than willing to carry out this assignment. Since there was no middle class in those days—but only the upper and lower classes—the difference between the two was huge.

It has been a long time since the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and even though a middle class of people has been added…the ‘proud look’ still remains.  It is not difficult to see a class difference even among those who are supposed to be of the same class. Having more money, power or education does not necessarily mean a class promotion. I think it is interesting that to further separate ourselves from one another we have even divided the middle class into two groups. We now have the upper middle class and the lower middle class. Wow, what will pride think of next?

I have spent a lifetime studying people and I have come to the conclusion that pride will probably be the last enemy to be defeated. My point in saying this is that all of us should make a practice of taking the lower road, even though the higher road may seem like a more desirable path.

Father,

It was You who made man in Your own image. Lord help us to understand that by judging Your image (our fellowman), we are in fact judging You. Help us to see that our brothers and sisters are fearfully and wonderfully made in Your precious image regardless of what they may or may not have.

Amen