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Elisabeth Elliot
Elisabeth Elliot (1926–2015). Born Elisabeth Howard on December 21, 1926, in Brussels, Belgium, to missionary parents, Elisabeth Elliot was an American missionary, author, and speaker known for her writings on faith and suffering. Raised in a devout family, she moved to the U.S. as a child and graduated from Wheaton College in 1948 with a degree in Greek. In 1952, she went to Ecuador as a missionary, where she met and married Jim Elliot in 1953. After Jim and four others were killed by Waorani tribesmen in 1956, Elisabeth continued ministering to the Waorani, living among them with her daughter, Valerie, for two years, leading to many conversions. She returned to the U.S. in 1963, becoming a prolific author and speaker, penning Through Gates of Splendor (1957), Shadow of the Almighty (1958), Passion and Purity (1984), and Let Me Be a Woman (1976), emphasizing obedience to God. Elliot hosted the radio program Gateway to Joy from 1988 to 2001, reaching a global audience. Married three times—to Jim Elliot, Addison Leitch (1969–1973, until his death), and Lars Gren (1977–2015)—she died of dementia on June 15, 2015, in Magnolia, Massachusetts. Elliot said, “The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian makes me a different kind of woman.”
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Elisabeth Elliot delves into the root of sin, identifying pride as the basis for all sins, tracing back to Adam and Eve's disobedience. She highlights the danger of the pride of privilege, where individuals forget that their positions are given and not earned. God's provision against pride is found in His instruction to appoint a king who must keep and read the law (Word) daily to learn to fear the Lord and stay humble. Attempting to keep the commandments reveals our inability to do so, leading us to the realization that salvation is through faith, not works, which humbles us and diminishes pride.
An Antidote for Pride
The basis of all sin of whatever kind is pride. This was what inspired the disobedience of Adam and Eve, and it is always with us. One very common form it takes is the pride of privilege. When a man is given a special position, he forgets that it was given. He becomes proud, as though "his own arm" had gotten him the victory. God knows well the heart and made provision for this sin of pride when He instructed the Israelites about appointing a king. He was to make a copy of the law. This would be the antidote, necessary for him and likewise for all of us (for "law" read "Word"). "He shall keep it by him and read from it all his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and keep all the words of this law and observe these statutes. In this way he shall not become prouder than his fellow countrymen nor shall he turn from these commandments to right or left" (Dt 17:19, 20 NEB). The attempt itself to keep the commandments, one by one and day after day, will be sufficient to humble us, for the "straightedge of the law" (Rom 3:20 JBP) will only show us, as Paul found, how crooked we are. We will find, in fact, that we cannot keep it. "The whole matter is on a different plane--believing instead of achieving" (Rom 3:27 JBP). Pride won't find much foothold on that plane.
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Elisabeth Elliot (1926–2015). Born Elisabeth Howard on December 21, 1926, in Brussels, Belgium, to missionary parents, Elisabeth Elliot was an American missionary, author, and speaker known for her writings on faith and suffering. Raised in a devout family, she moved to the U.S. as a child and graduated from Wheaton College in 1948 with a degree in Greek. In 1952, she went to Ecuador as a missionary, where she met and married Jim Elliot in 1953. After Jim and four others were killed by Waorani tribesmen in 1956, Elisabeth continued ministering to the Waorani, living among them with her daughter, Valerie, for two years, leading to many conversions. She returned to the U.S. in 1963, becoming a prolific author and speaker, penning Through Gates of Splendor (1957), Shadow of the Almighty (1958), Passion and Purity (1984), and Let Me Be a Woman (1976), emphasizing obedience to God. Elliot hosted the radio program Gateway to Joy from 1988 to 2001, reaching a global audience. Married three times—to Jim Elliot, Addison Leitch (1969–1973, until his death), and Lars Gren (1977–2015)—she died of dementia on June 15, 2015, in Magnolia, Massachusetts. Elliot said, “The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian makes me a different kind of woman.”