Galatians 6:3-4

If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else,

(v3-4, NIV)

I think the statement is very straightforward. We deceive ourselves if we think that we are something when we are in fact nothing. How does this happen? This may happen when we try to restore others who are caught in sin and try to carry each other's burdens. We may be tempted to fall into their sin, but we may also be tempted to fall into the sin of pride. When we help someone else, we look at them and their sin and think we are much better than them because we are helping them in their sin. However, we know that we all sin and we all fall short of the glory of God. In our comparison to others, we may think ourselves to be something, but we may be deceiving ourselves. This is why we should test our own actions. We should take pride in ourselves without comparing ourselves to someone else. Now, this seems in direct contrast to the teaching of boasting found in the bible.

Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

(1 Corinthians 1:31, NIV)

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

(2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV)

If we are to boast, we should boast in the Lord. God is so much greater than me or anybody else. Why would I boast in those if God is greater than all those. We should boast in the Lord. The other thing worthy of boasting in is our weakness. Our weakness allows Christ's power to rest on us. The result is Christ and his power and he gets the glory.

So, when it says to take pride in ourselves in Galatians 6, it seems a bit odd. I think the focus is not on pride in us but the avoidance of pride in others. First thing that comes to mind is the judgment day. When we stand before God, it's not something our friends did or something someone else did that will save us. We can't use the salvation of others as reason for us to be saved. Rather, it's only if we are saved that we are saved, not someone else. Now, we may become saved because of someone else. But being saved because of someone else means we are saved ourselves.

Comparing ourselves to others produces pride. It also causes us to think sin is okay. We start to compromise thinking it is okay to sin because we see someone else doing something worse. Really, we should be comparing to God. In that we will see our sinfulness and realize how imperfect we really are. We will see our sin for what it really is.