Podcast Summary

Podcast: Social Dallas Podcast
Episode: "God Hates _______. | Haughty Eyes | Robert Madu | Social Dallas"
Date: October 19, 2025
Host: Pastor Robert Madu (Social Dallas Church)

Overview: Main Theme and Purpose

In this kick-off episode of a new sermon series entitled "God Hates _______", Pastor Robert Madu challenges listeners and the Social Dallas community to confront difficult truths found in Scripture. The episode centers on Proverbs 6, where the Bible lists seven things God hates, focusing specifically on "haughty eyes" (pride). Pastor Robert unpacks why pride is so dangerous to spiritual growth, how it is the root of many sins, and the profound biblical truth that while God is love, there are certain things He passionately opposes for our good. The episode is designed to stretch, mature, and confront listeners in their faith journey, emphasizing the necessity of humility as the antidote to pride.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Challenge of the Series (00:46–03:49)

• Series Intent: Not a "feel good" or "fluffy" series, but one meant to "stretch, mature, and confront" (02:07).
• Transformation is Uncomfortable: Real growth is rarely comfortable; the Word of God comforts and confronts simultaneously.

The Word of the Year: "Planted" (00:00–00:46)

• Consistent declaration of Psalm 92:13-15—being "planted" in the house of the Lord is foundational to the community.

The Confronting Nature of God's Word (03:52–05:33)

• Analogy: The Word cuts "like a scalpel in the hand of a skilled surgeon," not to destroy but to heal us (04:06–05:33).
  • "A skilled surgeon with a scalpel and a serial killer with a knife both cut. The only difference is their intention. The surgeon cuts to heal." — Robert Madu (04:07)

The Paradox: God is Love, Yet Hates (05:33–11:08)

• Tension in reconciling God’s love with His hate as shown in Proverbs 6:16.
  • "How in the world can God hate something?... Hate is not the opposite of love. Apathy is." — Robert Madu (09:24)
• God hates things that harm what He loves; His hate is a reflection of His protective love.

Understanding What God Hates (11:08–14:48)

• Lying, shedding innocent blood, sowing discord, and—top of the list—haughty eyes (pride).
• "I want to hate the things that God hates." — Robert Madu (14:48)

The Literary Device in Proverbs 6 (14:07–16:39)

• "Six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable..." is a Hebrew literary technique called "numerical evaluation."
• This attention device elevates the importance of the list.

The First on the List: Haughty Eyes (16:39–20:38)

• What are haughty eyes?
  • "Lofty, lifted eyes—eyes that elevate themselves above others, eyes that refuse to look up and acknowledge God's authority, so they look down on others."
  • Equated with pride, arrogance, a proud look.
• Importance of 'first mentioned' — pride is the root of all the other items on the list.

The Dangers and Faces of Pride (19:02–21:38)

• "God hates pride. He cannot stand pride... Notice he don't even like a proud look because he knows a proud look started with a proud heart." (19:02–19:16)
• Pride makes people unteachable, blocks repentance, enables prejudice, and is the root of many social sins.
• “Pride is what turned an angel into the devil.” (20:55)

Scriptural Examples & The Silent Nature of Pride (20:50–24:25)

• Lucifer’s pride in Isaiah 14.
• James 4:7: God resists the proud, gives grace to the humble.
• "Pride is the silent killer. Pride is the thing that blocks my ability to receive what God has for me." (21:38)
• Pride is subtle and hard to detect in ourselves, but easy to spot in others.

Detecting Pride: The "Pride Detector" Illustration (24:46–29:07)

• A comedic object lesson with a mock "pride detector" involving church staff, showing how we’re quick to see pride in others but blind to our own.
  • "It is easy to detect the pride and the haughty eyes in everybody else. It's hard to detect the pride that's in you." — Robert Madu (29:07)

How to Recognize Haughty Eyes / Pride (29:21–34:00)

• Pride often hides in our reactions:
  • Criticism: How do you handle being corrected?
  • Rejection: Does rejection devastate you or expose your dependence on people's approval?
  • Advice: Are you unteachable or dismissive of wise counsel?
  • Praise: Do compliments go to your head, feeding false humility or pride?
  • Suffering (C.R.A.P.): In pain, do you shake your fist at God or trust Him?
• Memorable acronym for self-examination:
  • Criticism
  • Rejection
  • Advice
  • Praise

The Antidote to Pride: Humility (34:00–36:15)

• “Humility is the antidote to haughty eyes. God hates haughty eyes, but God loves a humble heart.” (34:00)
• “Pride is a deadbolt that will shut the heavens to you, but humility is the hinge that the heavens open up.” (35:00)

Connecting to Baptism & Jesus’ Example (36:15–38:24)

• Baptism as a public act of humility and surrender—participants must be baptized by someone else.
• Jesus' own baptism modeled perfect humility.
• Story of John the Baptist: He deflects envy and comparison, says, “He must increase, I must decrease” (John 3:30) — a rallying cry for humility.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Word’s Dual Nature:
  “It has a unique ability not just to encourage you, but also to expose you... to soothe your soul, but it will also stab you in your heart in the best way possible.” (02:55)

• On God’s love and hate:
  “His hate is not opposing His love. His hate proves His love.” (09:24)
  “The reason He hates lies is because He is the truth... He hates the things that harm what He loves.” (11:22–12:02)

• On Pride:
  “Pride is the silent killer... blocks my ability to receive what God has for me.” (21:38)
  “Pride is what turned an angel into the devil.” (20:55)

• On Humility:
  “God hates haughty eyes, but God loves a humble heart.” (34:00)
  “Humility is the antidote to haughty eyes.” (34:00)

• On Baptism’s Symbolism:
  "None of them will baptize themselves... They will humble themselves, step in the water, and say, 'the old me is about to die and the new me is coming up to follow Christ.'" (35:00–36:15)

• John the Baptist's Example:
  "He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 3:30 quoted at 38:24)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–00:46: Opening, Word of the Year ("planted"), Psalm 92 declaration
• 00:46–03:49: Series introduction: why it’s a “stretching,” not “fluffy,” experience
• 03:49–05:33: The Word of God as scalpel versus knife – analogy
• 05:33–11:08: The paradox of God’s love and hate; why God’s hate matters
• 11:08–14:48: Introduction to Proverbs 6 and the listed things God hates
• 14:07–16:39: Literary device—“six things... seven things”—and its purpose
• 16:39–20:38: Haughty eyes explained; pride unpacked as the root sin
• 19:02–21:38: Real-life examples/impacts of pride, connection to spiritual downfall
• 24:46–29:07: “Pride detector” object lesson—humorous but revealing
• 29:21–34:00: Four reactions that reveal pride—Criticism, Rejection, Advice, Praise (+ suffering)
• 34:00–36:15: Humility as the antidote and gateway to God’s blessing
• 36:15–38:24: Baptism as humility in action; Jesus’ model; John the Baptist’s humility
• 38:24–49:29: Final call to humility, altar call, and salvation prayer
• 49:29–end: Closing prayer of surrender and celebration

Tone & Delivery

Pastor Robert speaks with humor, warmth, vulnerability, and urgency. There's a conversational, energetic style, with interactive moments (talking to “neighbors,” staging object lessons, spontaneous responses), frequent rhetorical and scriptural references, and practical challenges. The use of relatable illustrations (the “pride detector,” parent/child analogies, “C.R.A.P.” checklist) ensure difficult truths are accessible and memorable.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Examine your own heart for pride, not just others’.
• Humility is the “open door” to God’s presence and transformation.
• God’s hate always reflects His passionate opposition to what’s destroying His children—not His children themselves.
• If you sense pride is keeping you from breakthrough, take steps of humility—through repentance, seeking feedback, genuinely receiving criticism, and publicly surrendering (like in baptism).
• A life that increases in Christ and decreases in self is a life "planted" and set up for real spiritual flourishing.

For Further Reflection

• Are there reactions in your life—criticism, rejection, advice, or praise—that reveal hidden pride?
• What practical steps can you take this week to practice humility?
• How can you be more open to the “cutting” of God’s Word for deeper healing?

Closing Thought

"God hates haughty eyes, but He loves humility. Let pride die, so that Christ can live fully in you." (Theme woven throughout; altar call at 42:23–47:10)