Pride

Of all sins, there is none against which we have such need to watch and pray as pride. It is a pestilence which walks in darkness, and a sickness which destroys at noonday. No sin is so deeply rooted in our nature as pride. It cleaves to us like our skin. Its roots never entirely die. They are ready at any moment to spring up and exhibit a most pernicious vitality.

At the same time, no sin is so senseless and deceitful. It can wear the garb of humility itself. It can lurk in the hearts of the ignorant, the ungifted, and the poor, as well as in the minds of the great, the learned, and the rich. It is a quaint and homely saying but only too true – that no pope has ever received such honor as “Pope Self”!

—J.C. Ryle, 'Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke'