We Aren't Teachable When We Are Proud

“Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.” (Proverbs 9:9)
It is difficult for men to accept help and instruction from other men because of pride. At the root of pride are selfishness and a desire for independence. Pride prevents one man from asking for help and another man from offering it. C. S. Lewis says this about pride: “The more pride one has, the more one dislikes the pride in others. In fact, if you want to find out how proud you are – the easiest way is to ask yourself, `How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or patronize me, or show off?` The point is that each person’s pride is in competition with everyone else’s pride. Pride is competitive by nature. The godly man must lay his pride at the cross of Jesus. Paul testified that the things that were gain to him, he counted as dung, that he might win Christ. (Philippians 3:7, 8) If anyone had a reason to be prideful, it was Paul, (See II Corinthians 11:16-12:10) but he chose to place no confidence in the flesh. (Philippians 3:3) The flesh prevents us from receiving instruction and godly teaching from mature men in the faith. A godly man will “Apply [his] heart unto instruction, and [his] ears to the words of knowledge.” (Proverbs 23:12) If we are wise and just men, we will lay down our pride and allow elder men to disciple us in the faith. We will also be willing to share our knowledge with others, so that they can benefit from the wisdom we have obtained.