Monday, January 2, 2017

LET THE LORD EXALT YOU

Luke 14:11: ‘For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted’.

Introduction
One of the themes of the Bible is humility. It is a very important ingredient to the growth and development of the Christian. Humility in our relation with God and persons is an important part of dying to self and imitating Christ through his death. Bible says that Christ humbled Himself ‘till death on the cross. Although He could have called 1000’s of angels to battle for Him, HE did not, in order to fulfill that greatest love of salvation for mankind.
In fact, Humility is the mark of being a true disciple of Jesus Christ.

What is the concept of Christian Humility?
To humble oneself therefore means that:
       i.          To have a modest opinion of oneself
      ii.          To behave in an unassuming manner although you have the ability, resources or position.
Infact, humility is the opposite of Pride or arrogance. Therefore to understand humility, we need to also take a look at Pride.

What is Pride then?
Pride is the attitude that oneself is superior to others, even to the extent of regarding others with contempt -as if they were unworthy of any relation or interaction with them. Pride shows the basic thinking "I am better than you are!" Other Biblical synonyms for pride are arrogance, insolence, boastful, self-importance or over-confidence.

What are the causes of Pride?
One of the worst factors destroying Christians today is spiritual pride. In fact Pride is one of the main doors through which the devil comes into the heart of those who are zealous for the advancement of Christianity. Pride is much more difficult to be discerned than any other corruption because of its nature. It affects our communication, how we carry ourselves and relate to people.
Pride can be identified in these:
       i.          the way we talk to people and even walk, there can be pride in there. The way we down-play peoples decisions because we are educated or are leaders, calls for concern.
      ii.          The way we even dress to spite people
    iii.          The way we allow ourselves to be pampered and begged to exercise our God-given talents, is sour
    iv.          As youth we have become insolent to our elders because we are of age
      v.          Because of the small financial assistance you give people you allow yourself to be worshipped. Remember, what do you have that you were not given? 
Causes of Pride can be:
-        Educational background. Bible says knowledge puffs. Dr, Professor, Masters, etc. Has the world being better with these degrees?
-        Trust in wealth. Money answers everything syndrome.
-        Association one belongs to. Like old school, political party, etc.
-        By birth into a particular family or tribe
-        Popularity  e.g. John Lenon, who bragged their band was more popular than Jesus Christ and was shot to death.
-        Preoccupied by self. “I’ and not ‘them’. Everything is centered on you and you only. It is pride. Christ, who was in the very nature God humbled himself ‘till death on the cross. He did not see Himself as the son of God but a sacrifice for sinful man.

Why should we be humble?
1.      Humility is a condition of God’s saving grace.
(1 Peter 5:5-6) says, “… God will exalt you in due season, if you humble yourself. In order for a person to be saved, he must humble himself, confess himself a sinner and like a poor beggar, ask the Lord to forgive him and save his soul.  (Matthew 18:3) also talks about how you will enter into the kingdom of God if you become like a little child. (Luke 18:13-14) compares the humble prayer of a tax collector and the proud/ arrogant prayer of a Pharisee. Bible says that the humble tax collector went home justified. Brethren, if you need God’s grace, be humble!
2.   Humility is a condition for answered prayer. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Brethren, our prayers are not being answered because we are not humbling ourselves before God. Pride has hindered our fellowship with God almighty.  Lying prostrate on the floor, kneeling or bowing the head, all convey the Bible instruction that, answers to prayer come to those who are humble before God.
3.   Humility is a condition of God’s conscious presence. Isaiah 57:15 and Psalm 34:18 confirm that the Lord is closer to the humble.

John Bunyan wrote, “He that is down, need fear no fall; he that is low, no pride; He that is humble ever shall have God to be his guide.” (MHB 514)
4.    Humility is a condition for exaltation. Matthew 23:12, James 4:10 and Luke 14:11 advice that anyone     who exalts       himself shall be made low but if you humble yourself, it is a condition for God to exalt you.          This is the word of      God! But, remember that being humble in this present world will not be easy.

- Martin Luther said, “God created the world out of nothing, and so long as we are nothing, He can make something out of us.”

How can we cultivate the character of humility?
1.   By learning from situations or life occurrences: An examination of life suggests that many circumstances and situations come to create humility. Daniel 4:37 presents the conclusion of King Nebuchadnezzar after a humbling experience. When you experience failure in life or tragedy, you become humble. Eg 1. Paul’s experience in 2Co:12:7: ‘And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure’ .Eg 2. Peter and his colleagues when they caught no fish and Jesus asked them to go again, their net broke with fish, which gave them a humbling experience b‘cos they trusted their skills so much.
2.   By revelations of God. Several Scriptures record God’s revelation of His majesty, holiness and awesome presence to individuals. In each case, God’s overpowering presence produced humility. This is the case with Isaiah in chapter 6:1-7(vs. 5). This is also the case with John on Patmos in Revelation 1:12-17(in vs. 17). In humility, he fell at his feet as dead. These experiences should cast serious question on the proud and arrogant. Some of us claim we know and have experienced God; it has become a reason for us to show arrogance and pride. Brethren, when we poor mortals experience the full reality of the awesome God, there is only one reaction — humility.
3.     By self- evaluation. In Romans 12:3, the Apostle Paul says, “… to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”
A realistic look at ourselves will reveal the following things. We are “dust” (Genesis 3:19). We are sinners who have come woefully short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Psalm 8:4: What is man, that thou art mindful of him?
4.    By understanding scripture. The word of God is for our training and build-up in goodness (2Tim. 3:15-16). From scripture we can ask ourselves these three profoundly humbling questions as in 1 Corinthians 4:7, “For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” These questions provoke the realization that all we have, all we possess and all we are, have been given to us as gifts from our loving God and Heavenly Father (see James 1:17 also). This should stir feelings of true humility. The more we meditate on the fact that “… we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (1 Timothy 6:7), the more we will realize that anything we are or have or do is very little indeed. See also Philippians 2:3–5.
(i)Luke 14:7–11: when you are invited to a banquet don’t go sit at the highest table but the lowest else your position will be changed. You can do this if you have humility. (ii)Luke 18:9–14: Talks about the prayer time of an arrogant Pharisee and a humble tax collector. At the end the humble collector went home justified. (iii) Luke 22:24–27: Talks about how the greatest should learn to serve rather than be served as the world prefers. Church leader, do you serve or you are served? (iv) John 13:12–17: talks about how Jesus washed the disciples’ feet to show sign of humility, a job left for slaves to do. You can only do this when you are humble. To be great in the kingdom, you need to be a humble
5.     By decision. Brethren, we can understand that humility is a personal decision. Humility is a decision of the heart. It is the surrender of pride. It is the take-over of the Spirit of God in our lives. It is said of Christ in Philippians 2:8 (read). We can decide to humble ourselves now, or wait for the day when every created being will become humble. Philippians 2:9-10 also how God exalted Jesus because of humility. Let us possess the virtue of humility now by our conscious decision and allow God to develop this essential virtue throughout our lives. Humility must be a special desire and made a part of our character through prayer, faith, study, fasting and discipline. Pride is a terrible inner force with a satanic origin. We must depend on the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit to acquire humility.

Conclusion
How does the Lord exalt you in life and make you enjoy His goodness? When we are humble under the mighty hand of God, the Lord will exalt us that the world will be awe of.


Brethren, Let us humble ourselves, so that the Lord will exalt us. Amen!

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