Roto-Rooter Theology #4: Ick, Slick, & Hard to Kick

Romans 12:3

Grease is like pride for three reasons:
1.) It is surprisingly nasty.
2.) It is sneaky.
3.) It is resilient.
All kind of like Gollum, now that I think about it. But unlike Gollum, there is no forgiveness for pride. It is like the ring itself and must be destroyed.

1. Surprisingly Nasty

Some of the grossest jobs I’ve been on have been working with a grease trap at a restaurant. The smell is the worst part. Hard to describe, really. The man who trained me thinks grease smells worse than poop. I’d say that’s true most of the time, though there have been some turds that have tried to compete. But maybe that’s because whoever deposited them had been eating a lot of grease.

Anyway, pride is also surprisingly nasty because whenever it shows up it brings with it this foreign aspect that can make one’s stomach turn. Having stinky poop is one thing, but thinking your poop doesn’t stink is quite another. It is a stench that falls into a separate category, but a stench nonetheless.

2. Sneaky

When snaking a grease-clogged line, I can snake right through the problem and it won’t clear. It closes back up on itself. I might go way past it and not know it because it gives no resistance, all the while still blocking the line.

Is not pride the same way? Pride can mask resistance like nothing else. It is behind acting like nothing is wrong. Because it is shameless it will morph into any shape to avoid being confronted. All the while keeping things from moving forward.

3. Resilient

Grease is resilient because even after you clear a greasy line, the grease blob might lodge somewhere farther down the line. The drains I have to snake more than once are usually grease-clogged lines.

Pride is also resilient. If someone is humiliated by the truth coming out, pride can regroup and find a new thing to be stubborn over in no time.