Shelby Road Baptist Church · Shelby Road Baptist Church

Exiles In Babylon, Week Four: The Pride Problem (Pastor Steve Lister)

September 2, 2025·37 min·2 clips

1 Peter 5:5 states that God opposes the proud — meaning whatever plans a prideful person is trying to put into motion, God himself is working against them.

The morning starts on familiar roads. The pastor asks how someone would drive from Shelby to Muskegon, Ludington, or Traverse City, and the room gets the point before the sermon gets heavy: direction matters. Then comes a goofy little detour, a wedding ring on a pinky, the kind of aside that makes the message feel lived in instead of polished up for church. Pride is the word on the table. King Nebuchadnezzar is the easy example, loud enough that nobody has to squint. He can stand above everybody else and talk as if his greatness explains itself. Fine. Most people can spot that kind of pride from across the room. The sermon gets more uncomfortable when the pastor says pride is everybody's problem. Most people are not bragging from rooftops, so pride has to be found in quieter places. It shows up when other people become easy to ignore. It shows up when selfishness feels normal, when getting what you want matters more than loving the people around you. Then comes fault finding, which may sting even more. Pride can sound like a running commentary on what is wrong with everyone else. The pastor keeps tightening the circle until Nebuchadnezzar is no longer the only one under inspection. Ordinary church people can carry the same root quietly. The call is submission, humility, and a life back under God's authority before God does the humbling himself. The line is plain: the way up is down. God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble. The prayer asks Jesus for help, grace upon grace, and the humility to remember that God is God.

As heard by us

A plainspoken message on pride that turns everyday directions into a call for self-examination.

The piece starts with a simple road map from Shelby to Muskegon, Ludington, and Traverse City, using it to show how spiritual direction can seem clear until pride gets in the way.

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Why you'd press play

If pride hides in plain sight for you, this sermon names it.

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