Text: Proverbs 6:16-19
It reads; There are 7 things God hates
1. A Proud Look,
2. A lying tongue,
3. Hands that shed innocent blood,
4. A heart that crafts wicked plans,
5. Feet's that run swiftly to do mischief,
6. A false witness that tells lies to incriminate the innocent,
7. A person who sows discord among brothers

In this message, we'll be looking at the first one

A PROUD LOOK.
What is a proud look?
Is it when you put on some nice clothes from the best fashion designers and you look so good that the way you walk exudes a lot of garden fresh confidence? Is it when you're cruising in the latest model of a Mercedes Benz, or Chrysler Jeep and you feel so refreshed that it shows in your mien and countenance?
That's absolutely not what it is.

A Proud look is the act of looking at life and the issues of life from the perspective of PRIDE and arrogance (PRIDE especially).
Is pride limited only to those who dress well and look good?
No, in fact I've seen people who are all dressed up and down and all around in rags and tatters and they have so much pride and you'd be so amazed at how much pride they have all on top of and all upon penury.
Now I'm not just talking about wretched economic poverty or wretched and tattered clothes here, I'm also talking about the pride people derive from righteous works.
God said such acts or carnal efforts to be righteous appear like a person who clothes himself in filthy rags in his own sight (God's Sight).

A typical example of a proud look is Judas Iscariot's perspective of the sacrifice of the woman with the alabaster box. Read Matthew 26:6-13
Now an alabaster box is a fragile box that contains a very expensive brand of oil perfume. The kind of perfume the rich, wealthy and aristocratic folks use as fragrance back in those days.
The comparative estimated cost of an alabaster oil plus the box that contains it runs into thousands or millions of dollars or pounds (if conversions of the currency then is converted to present day currencies).
She broke the very expensive alabaster oil and rubbed the oil on Jesus feet.
The fragrance of the perfume filled the whole room and Judas exclaimed

"What a waste of money! That could have been sold and used to take care of the poor"
Matthew 26:8

The statement Judas made sounds good to the ears of the ordinary member of the masses. In the ears of any average Joe who heard what Judas said "Judas Iscariot was a good guy, a hero who cared about the masses and the welfare of the people (especially the poor)."
However, Jesus wasn't having any of all that nonsense. Why?

But is it not the same Jesus that said " whatsoever you do to the least of my brethren, that you do to me" ? Matthew 25:40
Why is he rebuking Judas Iscariot for talking in the same line of his recommendations?

Judas was not genuine. Just as many public shows of benevolence and care for the poor by many folks who give to the poor on public camera are what they are but not what they seem to look like or not really what they appear like.
I'm not saying that there are no genuine acts of altruism in existence (even on public camera) but Jesus was attacking the motive behind Judas Iscariot's remark.
Judas was only looking at how much that alabaster oil was worth and how padded the treasury he was stealing from would have been in such a way that he'd have stolen from the treasury and no one would notice he was helping himself with the parochial proceeds. Well of course except Jesus Christ.
That's why Jesus rebuked him immediately.

Now a proud look is the way you look at the sacrifices righteous people make for the work of God.
Of what use are the billions of dollars you collect and all that and all that, when there are poor and hungry people all around you? What you call a waste of money, God calls it a pleasant smelling sacrifice of love, faith and identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
While Judas was looking at the woman's sacrifice from the perspective of a wastage of resources by a woman who doesn't know how to best use the sweet scented oil in an alabaster box, Jesus was looking at it from the perspective of her gratitude to be part of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ Jesus.

Now I'm not in anyway shooting down the importance of looking out for the poor amongst us. No not at all.
I'm saying that the way you look at such grandiose acts of gratitude by grateful individuals to God can be a reflection of the state of your heart.
Judas Iscariot was proud, and his poor perspective of the sacrifice of the woman with the alabaster box was done with the observation of a proud person.
God wants us to change the settings from within us.
A hardened heart, is the outcome of pride and from the heart it affects the eyes and it affects the way we look at life's issues.
This interpretation goes beyond the woman and the alabaster box, it touches all the fingers dipped in the palm oil.*

Author: Apostle Constance C. Friday Anichukwu

Published by the Real Life Gospel Media © RC 7434943

*African Proverb it means it affects all and every areas or aspects of life.

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