Series: Believe – Be Like Jesus
Message: Humility
June 19, 2016
Luke 14:1-11
[slide 1] This morning we’re wrapping up our message series called Believe. We’ve talked
about the 10 core beliefs of Christianity, 10 core disciplines of Christianity, and the 10 core
behaviors of Christianity. We’ve learned how to think like Jesus, act like Jesus, and be like Jesus.
And if you’ve missed any of these messages, you can watch them on our website at
barbertonfcoc.org.
In a certain pond there were two ducks and a frog that were neighbors and the best of friends.
They played together all day long during the summer time. But as the temperatures began to drop
with the approach of autumn, the ducks realized that they would have to move. This would be easy
for the ducks, but what about their friend, Mr. Frog?
Finally, it was decided that they would put a stick in the bill of each duck and the frog would
hang onto the stick with his mouth and fly Mr. Frog with them to another pond. And that’s what
they did.
Just then a farmer looked up and said to his wife, “What a great idea! I wonder who thought of
that?”
Proudly, the frog said, “I did!”
Proverbs 16:18 says,
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Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
Pride may be the one thing that gets us into trouble the most. One day Jesus is eating with a
Pharisee and a bunch of guests arrive, and Jesus notices something – how the pride of these guests
got in the way. As the guests were showing up, they were picking the most prominent places at the
table as if they were entitled to them. So Jesus tells a parable.
[slide 2] Luke 14:8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor,
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for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of
you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the
least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host
comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the
presence of all your fellow guests. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who
humbles himself will be exalted.”
Once again Jesus turns our thinking upside down. In our world today if you want to climb
higher and be somebody, then you’ve got to push, fight, claw, kick, and work your way to the top.
You’ve got to pad your resume, brown nose the boss, and get noticed in everything you do. The
way up is up. But Jesus says, “The way up is down. And if you try to promote yourself and pump
yourself with pride, then you’ll end up humbled and humiliated.”
James 4:10 says,
[slide 3] 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
So let’s talk about the two problems with pride for a moment. [slide 4] It wasn’t just a problem
in Jesus’ day. Pride is what helps us save face. Pride is what keeps us from exhibiting the fruit of
the Spirit. It’s pride that keeps us from demonstrating love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
And the first problem with pride is that it’s [slide 5] difficult to RECOGNIZE it in
YOURSELF.
Someone once said that pride is the only disease that makes everyone sick except the one who
has it. In the Catholic list of the seven deadly sins, pride used to be called vanity. The Dutch
painter, Bosch, depicted vanity as a woman looking at her face in a mirror held by the devil. We
can see pride and vanity in others, but oftentimes we are usually blind to it in our own lives.
How many of you remember the song by Carly Simon, “You’re So Vain”? She never revealed
about whom she was talking when she wrote the lyrics, but she dated Warren Beatty – the man who
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dumped her. When he heard the song for the first time, Warren called her up and thanked her for
writing it about him. Listen to the lyrics:
You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht
Your hat strategically dipped below one eye; your scarf it was apricot
You had one eye in the mirror as you watched yourself gavotte [French for a dancer that
prances around]
And all the girls dreamed that they’d be your partner
They’d be your partner and
You’re so vain, you probably think this song is about you
Some of you are so vain you probably think this message is about you. And if you don’t think
it’s about you, it probably is.
The problem with pride is that it’s difficult to recognize it within yourself, so I’ve given you an
assessment that you can take—a Pride Quotient test. Take a look in your message notes. All you
have to do is check the box that describes you.
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I enjoy being the center of attention.
I think I deserve the best.
Much of my conversation is filled with “I.”
I find it difficult to admit that I’m wrong.
I seldom pass a mirror without looking at myself.
I’m stubborn; I don’t like to be corrected, and I don’t like to change.
My feelings are easily hurt.
I am impatient with other people’s mistakes.
I don’t get enough appreciation for all that I do.
I’m offended if I render a service and don’t receive a thank you.
I seldom ask for help, because I can do the job better myself.
I feel pretty good that I didn’t circle “yes” to every question.
The second problem with pride is that [slide 6] it LEADS to RUIN.
Again, Proverbs 16:18 says,
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Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
You don’t have to look very far to see how damaging pride can be. Before the creation of the
world, an angel named Lucifer had it all. He was more gorgeous than the latest GQ model, and next
to God, he was the greatest leader in the entire universe. But his pride led to his destruction. Listen
to Isaiah 14.
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[slide 7] 12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been
cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend
to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of
assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the
clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” 15 But you are brought down to the grave, to the
depths of the pit.
Isn’t this what led to the downfall of Adam and Eve? They wanted to be like God so they ate
the fruit from the forbidden tree. As a result, they lost their place in the Garden and were banished
from the presence of God.
Satan said, “I’m moving on up.” God said, “No, Satan, you’re going down.” So God kicked
Satan out of heaven, and he’s been going down ever since. And one day he’ll be cast into the lake
of fire. The way down is up, and the way up is down.
You don’t find a lot of people asking, “How can I become more humble?” In today’s world it’s
all about how I can become more successful, more prosperous, more noticed, and more prominent.
Yet the Bible speaks over and over about this behavior of humility. In fact, the Bible speaks of
humility as a wonderful honor. Proverbs 29:23 says,
[slide 8] 23 A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor.
So what does it look like to have humility in our lives? Let’s look at three characteristics.
First, true humility [slide 9] SEES yourself as God SEES you.
Humility is all about finding your proper identity. You might think you’re worthless because of
how society evaluates you. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again. Don’t let society define who
you are. You may be divorced, but that’s not your identity. You may be an addict, but that’s not
your identity. Your shrink may have given you a label, but that’s not your identity. You may be
poor or rich, an alcoholic or sober, ignorant or intelligent, but these are not your identity. God says
that he is your father, and you are his child.
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Humility is not having a poor self-image or thinking that you are worthless wimp. On one hand,
we were at one time sinners deserving death and hell. But now, as followers of Jesus, we are
children of God.
Paul writes in Romans chapter 7 about how he is such a wretched creature because he just
cannot refrain from sin. He wants to do good, but finds himself doing bad things instead. He’s a
failure. But then in Romans 8 Paul says,
[slide 10]…there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through
Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. And because of
this, 17 we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.
Stop letting the world define who you are. Start living as a child of God and rightful heirs of his
eternal kingdom. Someone once said, “God has wisely designed the human body so that you can
neither pat yourself on the back nor kick yourself in the seat.” A.W Tozer wrote, “A humble man is
not a human mouse afflicted with a sense of his own inferiority. He has accepted God’s estimate of
his own life. He knows he is weak and helpless as God declared him to be, but paradoxically, he
knows at the same time he is in the sight of God of more importance than the angels. In himself,
nothing, in God, everything.”
Here’s the second one. True humility is [slide 11] revealed by HOW I TREAT OTHERS.
So how do you treat other people? Pride rushes you to get the best seats at the table. Pride
rushes you to the front of the line so you can eat before anyone else. Pride walks all over people in
order that your preferences win. Pride keeps “I” at the center of the universe and is constantly
looking out for number one.
Humility replaces “I” with “Christ.” Look at Philippians chapter 2.
[slide 12] 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others
better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the
interests of others.
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Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
It’s the old formula, the acrostic J.O.Y. – Jesus…Others…Yourself.
The night Jesus was arrested, he humbled himself and took on the nature of a servant. He got up
from the table, picked up a towel and a water basin, and washed his disciples’ dirty, smelly feet.
Later, Jesus humbled himself and became obedient to a criminal’s death on a cross. Jesus kept
going down and down. What did God do?
[slide 13] 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above
every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under
the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
The way down is up, and the way up is down. This is not to say that if you serve others as Jesus
served others that God is going to raise you up to be somebody that everyone worships. But he will
guarantee you a place in heaven.
Martin Luther tells a story of seeing two goats meeting on a path on a mountain ledge. Instead
of butting one another, one of them lay down and allowed the other one to pass over him. He says
that we all need goat sense – the ability to lie down so that others may be served well. How are you
treating other people?
Here’s the last characteristic of humility. True humility is [slide 14] REFINED through
ADVERSITY.
Job learned true humility and recognized God’s power through his trials. Peter said that even if
he had to die for him, he would never leave Jesus’ side. Then he learned true humility when he
denied his best friend three times. Thomas refused to believe Jesus had risen from the dead unless
he saw him for himself, and learned true humility as he touched his wounds and ate with him. The
Apostle Paul defended his Old Testament ways and put Christians to death until he learned true
humility when Jesus blinded him on his way to Damascus.
Jesus said in Luke 14:11, 11 “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled.”
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Paul knew that quite well. He knew how privileged he when God transported him to the third
heaven and showed him some amazing things – things too wonderful to even talk about. Then he
writes in 2 Corinthians 12,
[slide 15] 7 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great
revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.
God allowed Paul to suffer some kind of ailment in order to keep him humble. I believe that
God still does that today.
[slide 16] Jim Henry of First Baptist Church in Orlando tells a story about his college inviting
him to receive an award for outstanding alumnus. Dressed in his finest black suit, Jim attended the
graduation ceremony and sat outside on a stage at Georgetown College in Kentucky. Just before he
was called up to receive his award he began to think about how important he had become. He
recalled how in college nobody really knew who he was. He washed dishes in the cafeteria to pay
his way and couldn’t get involved in many activities. Then he thought, “Now look at me. They
know who I am today.”
As he started to feel pretty good about himself, a bird flew overhead and splat. That bird
covered him with droppings all over his shoulder and ruined his finest black suit. For a moment he
became horrified. “Now look at me!” Then he began to laugh as he realized his pride had gotten
the best of him. To this day he still thinks that God sent that bird to give him a little humility.
Maybe God has been sending birds your way. You feel like the whole world has taken a dump
on your shoulders. Adversity and struggles come at you day in and day out. Perhaps God is trying
to teach you some humility. When troubles come some people raise their fists toward heaven and
become bitter. Others bow their knees before God and become better. Which one are you?
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