Pride Refuses the Diagnosis
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." — 1 Corinthians 3:16–17
The Real Obstacle
After years of this work, one conclusion stands out:
Pride is the number one stumbling block to Christians being willing to admit the possibility that something might be afflicting or inhabiting them.
Not theology. Not lack of evidence. Pride.
We can discuss the question at length, cite verses on both sides, and remain entirely willing to consider it in the abstract — right up until the moment it becomes personal. Then the resistance arrives, and it does not feel like pride. It feels like conviction, like sound doctrine, like defending the faith.
The Question Pride Cannot Answer
Scripture plainly states that we can allow the temple of God — which is us — to be defiled.
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." (1 Corinthians 3:16–17)
That warning would be incoherent if defilement were impossible.
So here is the question pride cannot answer: if we allow such defilement or sin in our lives, why then should we expect God to protect us from the presence of demons?
We want the protection without the holiness. We want the hedge intact while we make openings in it.
The Advantage of Being a Believer
There is genuine encouragement in this, and it is worth stating clearly.
When you deal with something afflicting a Christian, you are in a much stronger position to command it to leave — because it is a trespasser on holy ground.
It has no right to stay in a believer unless that person is engaged in active sin. You are not negotiating with a tenant. You are evicting an intruder from property that has been legally purchased.
"For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:20)
What Humility Looks Like Here
Humility in this area is not assuming the worst about yourself. It is simply being willing to ask and willing to hear the answer.
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23–24)
David prayed that. He was not being morbid. He was being available.
A believer who cannot bear to ask the question is protecting something — and it is usually his image of himself.
Point to Ponder
The resistance does not feel like pride. It feels like conviction, like sound doctrine, like defending the faith.
Verse to Remember
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me." — Psalm 139:23–24
Question to Consider
How did I feel when this subject became personal rather than theoretical?
Today's Practice
Examine your own reaction, which is the actual subject of this lesson.
When you read the previous lesson and this one, what happened in you? Interest? Discomfort? An urge to argue? A wish to move on to a different topic?
Write down your honest reaction, and then ask what it is protecting.
Then pray Psalm 139:23–24 as it stands — slowly, out loud, and mean every clause:
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Then be quiet and write down whatever He brings.
And note this: if He shows you something, it is good news. It means an intruder has been identified on ground that has been legally purchased for you — and intruders can be evicted. What cannot be evicted is what is never identified.
Prayer
Father, my resistance to this subject has not been discernment. It has been pride, and I have dressed it in theology.
I have been willing to consider it in general and unwilling to consider it about myself. I have wanted to be the kind of Christian this could not happen to.
Take that from me. I would rather be free than impressive.
Search me. Know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
And where You show me something, let me be glad rather than ashamed — because an intruder identified is an intruder that can be removed, and this ground was bought with the blood of Your Son.
I am Yours. Body and spirit. Clean the temple. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
What cannot be evicted is what is never identified. That is what pride actually costs you.