The Poison of Pride in the Pursuit of Justice

Many of us who see ourselves as poverty fighters, social justice activists, Christian community development workers, or urban ministry practitioners—whatever name we go by—have made Micah 6:8 our personal mission statement:

He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

For us, that verse isn’t just a verse—it’s a calling. We’ve seen poverty up close. We’ve studied systemic injustice. We’ve fought for affordable housing and racial justice, and we’ve walked alongside the poor as they break the cycle of poverty.

But of those three divine commands—to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly—the last one is by far the most difficult.

The Temptation of the Prophet

In our world, people who speak boldly for justice in the Church are often labeled “prophets.” The title feels noble, even biblical. We speak truth to power, call out hypocrisy, and challenge systems that oppress the vulnerable. But if we’re not careful, the passion that drives us can be quietly poisoned by pride.

We begin to believe that we see what others don’t. That we are awake “(Woke)” while others sleep. That those with opposing viewpoints from our own on social issues are the only ones with blind spots. That our cause makes us righteous. Pride hides well behind righteous anger.

Yet the prophets of Scripture didn’t strut into power; they trembled before it. Jeremiah wept. Isaiah confessed, “I am a man of unclean lips.” The closer they were in relationship with God, the more humble they became. Real prophets cry or lament before they confront.

While the Conservative House Burns…

Many of us in justice circles have rightly called out the hypocrisy we see among certain stripes of conservative Christians—their silence or ignorance on racism, their idolatry of politics, their defense of the indefensible “ends justifying the means” that we’ve seen in the past decade. We’ve seen lawlessness excused in the name of “law and order.” We’ve watched power defended more fiercely than people.

Let’s be honest—there is a fire burning in that House.

But here’s the problem: while we’ve been so busy watching and reprimanding them for allowing their House to burn, many of today’s “prophets” miss the smoke and flames rising from the far-left House.

…The Progressive House Is on Fire Too

Progressive Politics and Christianity have their own blaze—and for those of us who promote social justice, pride keeps us from noticing it.

Trading Biblical conviction for cultural approval.

Redefining compassion and empathy by cutting it loose from truth (No, I’m not claiming that empathy is a sin)

Turning mercy into moral relativism and calling it love.

Embracing cancel culture and luxury beliefs to publicly shame others who hold differing views on sexuality, race, political affiliation, economics, and religion.

And while some have pointed fingers at conservative hypocrisy, the temptation for those who fight for justice is to ignore the progressive leaders pouring gasoline and lighting a match on the foundations God built in His original design for humanity—especially the family.

Draconian laws that justify the murder of the unborn up until birth have denied tens of millions of unborn babies their lives over the past 50 years.

Some progressive elites in power have used their cultural capital to relegate fatherhood to an optional role within the nuclear family. They celebrate new alternative family structures and the gradual dismantling of the traditional marriage between a man and woman, as well as the traditional family, in the name of progress and fighting against “heteronormativity” rather than rebuilding what’s broken—strengthening the traditional Mom and Dad home, restoring the indispensability of fathers.

While we see the flames of Christian nationalism and ethical compromise with political power in the conservative House, we’ve ignored or minimized the fire of moral confusion and decay, and a culture of pre-born death engulfing the progressive House.

When Pride Turns Truth into a Weapon

When I speak truth to my conservative brothers and sisters—challenging, for example, the Church’s silence on ICE’s lawlessness and the lack of due process in fixing our immigration system—I try to do it out of love and Biblical conviction. Justice and mercy aren’t just “political issues.” They’re Biblical issues because I am called to reflect the character of God, a God of justice and mercy.

But I’ve watched something troubling happen. A handful of progressives take my words—my articles, my Biblical convictions—and use them like clubs to beat their conservative adversaries with. What began as a call to re-evaluate one’s positions becomes a weapon of pride.

Their refusal to “walk humbly with God” keeps them from “loving mercy”—mercy not only for the marginalized, but especially for those they vehemently oppose in the culture war. Neighborly love in Scripture isn’t only how well we love the people we agree with and fight for on the margins, but it’s also how we love our MAGA in-laws that embrace January 6th conspiracies, or our socialist-leaning young adult children that have deconstructed their faith due to hypocrisy they may see in the church. It’s love for one’s “enemies.” In Jesus’ longest sermon, he emphasized radical and practical ways of loving those we’d rather hate, such as:

Love beyond transactional: Jesus challenges the norm of loving only those who love you, noting that even tax collectors—often despised in his time—do this (Matthew 5:46). True love, he teaches, extends to enemies and those who don’t reciprocate.

Go the Extra Mile: In Matthew 5:41, Jesus says if someone forces you to go one mile (referencing Roman soldiers forcing locals to carry their loads), go two miles. This illustrates selfless love and generosity, even toward oppressors.

Bless, Don’t Curse: He instructs to bless, pray for, and do good to enemies, despite their evil actions (Matthew 5:44). This contrasts with hating enemies, which was a common cultural expectation.

Imitate God’s Love: Jesus ties this to His Father’s impartial love, as God sends rain and sun on both the just and unjust (Matthew 5:45). Loving enemies reflects divine perfection (Matthew 5:48).

To summarize, Jesus calls for a transformative love that exceeds ordinary human standards, actively showing radical kindness to adversaries and going beyond what’s required, mirroring God’s boundless love.

The late Lem Tucker once said:

He who has the greatest Truth, has the greatest Love, which is the greatest Proof.

If our truth doesn’t lead us to love more deeply—even those we consider toxic, corrupt, and on the “wrong side of history”—then maybe our truth isn’t really true. Perhaps we’re just as hypocritical as those whom we hold in contempt for their socio-political viewpoints.

Justice Without Humility Is Just Noise

We don’t need louder prophets. We need humbler ones.

We don’t need more “call-outs.” We need more repentance.

True justice always begins with self-examination. If we are shouting about others’ sins, we must also confess our own, especially the pride that pervades our hearts and minds.

Arrogance and pride blind both the right and the left, the activist and the apologist, the progressive and the conservative.

Without humility, justice becomes self-righteousness.

Without mercy, truth becomes cruelty.

And without God and His church, our causes become our idols.

A Better Way

Jesus showed us the only path that holds both justice and humility together.

He confronted the proud but wept over them.

He defended the broken but still called them to repentance.

He spoke the hard truth, but He also washed dirty feet.

He didn’t pour gasoline on the fire—As God the Son, He poured out His own blood to quench it as “an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10) and “to reconcile all things…by making peace through his blood, shed on a cross.” (Col. 1:20)

The kind of prophet our world needs again does not shout at other people’s fires but kneels, takes up a hose, and, once the fire’s been put out, helps rebuild what’s been lost.

Conclusion: Start with the Last One

Micah 6:8 still calls us—to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.

But maybe, before we fight to do justice or talk about mercy, we need to learn again what it means to walk humbly.

Because when humility dies, even the most righteous causes become corrupt.

When mercy fades, truth becomes a hammer.

And when pride takes hold of our culture like it has through the power of social media, the fire spreads to every House—including ours.

If we want to be God’s vessel to fix what’s broken in the Church, in our cities, and in our nation, we must start with lower, pliable hearts turned towards God, not louder voices.

Do justice. Love mercy.

But first and foremost—walk humbly with your God.