One Sunday morning following the divine worship, the pastor greeted his parishioners at the door and accepted comments on his sermon. He had preached a searching sermon on the sin of pride. One particular woman had obviously hung back in order to confess her sin. When all the others had left, she told him that because of his sermon she realized what a sin she had committed during the past week. The minister asked her what the sin was. She replied, "My sin is pride. I sat in front of the mirror for one hour the day before yesterday and admired my beauty." "Oh," responded the pastor, "that isn't a sin of pride, that is the sin of imagination."

All of us realize that both conditions exist in the minds and lives of people. Jesus knew the paralyzing effect of pride and the terrible damage it …