Read Proverbs 16:18

What is it that drives us on so relentlessly? Are you ready? Take a deep breath and allow yourself to tolerate the one-word answer: 

PRIDE. 

We work and push and strive so we can prove we are worthy...we are the best...we deserve top honours. And the hidden message: I can gain righteousness all on my own, by my own effort, ingenuity, and energy. And because I can, I must! 

And why is this heretical? Because ultimately this philosophy says:

1. I really don't need divine righteousness. (After all, God helps those who help themselves, right?)
2. I will find lasting joy in my own achievement. This will bring me ultimate satisfaction.

Both are dead-end roads found on Fantasy Island.

Excerpted from Charles R. Swindoll, Wisdom for the Way (Nashville: J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2001). Copyright © 2001 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.