Why Pride Destroys and Humility Exalts | The Life God Honours | Proverbs 18:12

[0:00] Let's go to the Word of God, Proverbs 18. Thoughts on this theme of before honour is humility.! Proverbs 18.

[0:15] It's really somewhat more of a topical message tonight. Looking at the issue of pride on the one hand and humility. Proverbs 18.

[0:29] Psalm 12 reads, Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.

[0:40] Looking at this theme of pride and humility. And God gives true honour to the humble, it tells us here. He praises humility.

[0:52] He sets a high praise on humility. And there's a really big contrast between pride on the one hand and humility on the other. Think of how our world obsesses about pride.

[1:05] It's the selfie culture, isn't it? And people put an emphasis on being a somebody. People inflate themselves and have this prideful nature.

[1:18] They love to elevate themselves and hanker after self-glory and praise and pride and position. Recognition.

[1:31] It's in all of us. It's in me. Pride. Got to recognise it. Yet the radical truth of scripture is that true honour doesn't come from man's puffed up pride or personal achievement.

[1:50] But it is through humility. Through humility. And here is the path to true greatness, truly, is humility. So I'm going to outline this contrast of pride and humility.

[2:06] Pride. Look at it. It's the root of all sin. When you consider pride, it leads to destruction. This verse tells us here. And you think of pride, really, it causes all kinds of trouble.

[2:21] There's many scriptures through Proverbs, of course, that talk about this characteristic of pride. Only by pride cometh contention. But with the well-advised is wisdom.

[2:34] Pride. It brings strife. It divides people. It damages relationships. Pride. It's the flesh, isn't it? It is the flesh. It's not wise.

[2:45] On the other hand, God flips worldly values upside down. Humility. God commands humility. Here is wisdom and lasting honour. Humility. Humility.

[2:58] And pride is what makes men think they are self-sufficient. It puts the focus on the glory of a man who is above others. But pride brings a downfall, doesn't it?

[3:10] Be humble or you'll stumble. It's a good way of putting it in the colloquial. And pride, it puts the focus on man. But that is surrendered to God.

[3:22] And before honour is humility. The Lord honours the humble who depend upon the grace of God. That's what we should seek after. Notice of pride.

[3:32] Pride. Firstly, let's look further at pride. Firstly, see the destructive nature of pride. Pride is the sin of exalting self above God and others.

[3:46] Pride makes our own desires, wisdom and glory the centre of our lives. It's the original sin, you could say, of Lucifer. We see it first in him.

[3:57] As it reads of him in Isaiah 14, in part, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be. Man tends to want to go his own way.

[4:09] All we like sheep have gone astray. Turn every man, everyone to his own way. Isaiah 53, verse 6. His own way. Pride. It's at the heart of sin.

[4:19] And we think we are self-sufficient, yet we're blinded to our need of God's grace. Let's see what the scriptures tell us then of pride. Why pride is dangerous?

[4:30] Why is it dangerous? It can be subtle. And it's socially acceptable. Hey, you're a self-made man. Good on you. Good for you. The world can actually think it's a good thing.

[4:42] Self-esteem. Self-confidence. Look at me. The world is full of pride, isn't it? And the selfie world, the social media, it's all over. Pride.

[4:53] Look at my latest picture. The Bible tells that this kind of spirit, in 2 Timothy 3, 2-4, it talks about men's lovers of their own selves.

[5:11] And boasters. Look out for number one. That's the world's view, isn't it? Look out for number one. It becomes just so. Pride and arrogance.

[5:21] It's specifically named as one of the things that he hates. In Proverbs 8, 13. Pride. Why is it dangerous? Pride blinds us. It makes us unteachable where we resist correction.

[5:35] And we see it that, you know, Obadiah 1, 3. It reads, Pride is self-deceptive, isn't it?

[5:47] We can get to a place where we think we actually don't need to listen to anybody else. We'll stop grunting. Pride puffs us up. Notice it tells in part here, Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.

[6:03] 1 Corinthians 8, verse 1. Pride has got this inflatedness about it. It's puffed up. Actually, pride is everything that love is not.

[6:17] See there? Knowledge puffeth up or pride gets prideful. I know everything. Charity edifies. It builds up others. Pride at the heart of it is a lack of love, really, isn't it?

[6:31] Because the self-love just takes over. It's all about me, me, me. Well, me, myself and I. It's a lack of love because pride is everything that love is not.

[6:45] You think of 1 Corinthians 13. Pretty much the opposite of everything love is. Pride. 1 Corinthians 13. You think of the qualities of 1 Corinthians 13.

[6:57] Pride is the opposite of all of them. Pride is jealous, resentful, boastful, arrogant, rude, disrespectful. Selfish, self-seeking, easily angered, resentful, holding grudges.

[7:13] That's pride. Isn't it? They have this inflated view of themselves. It was actually the main cause of their hypocrisy, you could say. And we know of the parable of two men praying.

[7:28] And it says he spoke the parable to those who trusted in themselves. They trusted in themselves. They were righteous and despised others.

[7:38] Pride is self-righteousness, isn't it? Because we think we're above others. And pride blinds us to our need for God's grace. Actually, pride blocks God's grace from working in our own life.

[7:52] Who is it that God gives grace to? Who is it? The humble. It says that a couple of times. James 4, 6 for one.

[8:03] But he giveth more grace. Don't you need more grace? I need more grace. More grace. Every day. More and more of his grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

[8:16] So you see there in Luke 18, 13, we find the example of the publican smiting his breast. Oh, God, have mercy. Be merciful to me. A sinner.

[8:28] You could even put it the sinner. He saw himself as the sinner. As he smote his breast. And God said, that man went home justified.

[8:40] The prideful miss that. And they end up with a works-based mentality. Because they don't even need God's grace anymore because they're so prideful. They think they can deserve God's blessing, but we cannot.

[8:56] And Peter says the same as James. It reads 1 Peter 5, verse 5. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be such, including the pastor, and be clothed with humility.

[9:08] For God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble. Friends, it's telling us here that he gives grace to the humble again. So we desperately need grace, don't we? We need grace from go to woe, from salvation to glory.

[9:23] We need grace every day. We need grace from God and we need grace in relation with others too. The doctrine or the practice. It's a foreign concept to them.

[9:35] We can get so right in our own eyes and thinking that we look down on others. How sad to block grace from working in your life. How sad it would be to miss that which is the most graceless. They're so conceited and self-centred that they miss their own need of grace.

[9:50] And God can't work in our life when we've not humbled our heart under his hand. Yet this verse calls us to clothe ourselves.

[10:05] To clothe ourselves. Notice that. I like to kind of tongue-in-cheek say this is the absolute church requirement for the dress code of this church.

[10:18] It's a must-do. Be clothed with humility. That's what we want. To have that dress code. To be clothed with humility. To do it daily. Why is pride dangerous?

[10:29] Pride isolates. It fosters envy, criticism, ungodly division. Again, pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.

[10:40] This haughty spirit. Oh, you can't tell me anything. And before you know it, crash. They're on their faces.

[10:52] Because pride goeth before destruction. Pride breeds arguments. Poisons relationships. Look at the prideful. They're arrogant and hateful. They cannot help others because they're so high and mighty.

[11:03] They might have the right doctrine even. But they've got the wrong spirit. The issue also is that pride opposes God. As we read, God resisteth the proud. James 4 verse 6.

[11:15] When we elevate ourselves, we stand in direct opposition to God's authority. God is against that. God is against that. Pride wants prominence. It has to have it. Position.

[11:27] Prominence. Preeminence. Like Diotrephes in 3 John 1 verse 9. Of Diotrephes it tells us, who loveth to have the preeminence.

[11:39] Like with the Pharisees, they had to have the best seats. And they hankered after men's praises and applause. God cannot minister to the proud because they actually see no need of him.

[11:52] When you think of it, really this is the sin of the atheist, isn't it? They are their own authority. The atheist. They cannot bow down to the rightful king and come under his authority.

[12:09] Think of the consequences of pride. Pride blocks blessings. Pride leads to destruction and disgrace. There's many scriptures we could quote through Proverbs. There's multiple.

[12:19] Pride hurts and hinders us. It weakens our prayers by our focus on self. Of course, we're not humble enough to pray. Pride prevents spiritual growth.

[12:30] Pride keeps us in this state of stagnance. Pride keeps more people from heaven than all kinds of obvious sins. We could think of obvious sins, but actually pride is at the heart of sin, isn't it?

[12:46] Of sinfulness. And pride, it convinces people they don't need a saviour. So pride is clearly dangerous. Consider, brother, sister here tonight, some of the signs of pride.

[12:59] Hey, what should we look out for so that I know, Lord, there's pride here. Deal with it. Signs of pride. Some signs of pride. Proverbs tells of some of resentfulness when correction comes.

[13:13] Resisting or resents in correction. Pride just won't listen. Blah, blah, blah. Don't tell me. Don't tell me anything. You can't tell me anything. They won't listen.

[13:25] It's Proverbs 15, 31 through 32. They're resentful when corrected. Pride. It's disappointment when we're overlooked. Pride makes people feel easily hurt.

[13:36] They want position. They want recognition. Pride. It's a self-focused heart, isn't it? Proud people get frustrated easily. It's because pride demands control.

[13:51] Pride is selfish. It reflects self-priority. Priority of self. Pride always chooses the best for oneself. I want the biggest slice of the cake.

[14:03] Pride, isn't it? Selfish. Another marker of pride is criticism or jealousy. Pride speaks evil. It speaks negatively of others. It envies the success of others.

[14:16] Pride. It's filled with defensiveness and untruthfulness. You see pride in the blame shifting that happened in the garden. We look at how Adam tried to pass the buck.

[14:31] Genesis 3. We see pride there in the man, Adam. And the man said, the woman whom thou gave us to be with me, she gave me of the tree.

[14:43] And, well, okay, I did eat it, but she gave me of the tree. The woman you gave me, God. Think of that.

[14:54] The pride of the man here. The blame shifting. Defensiveness. Untruthfulness. Adam, the buck stops with you. You wear it. Don't blame the wife that I gave you.

[15:09] Pride, isn't it? Pride is isolation from accountability. The prideful, they refuse to be accountable. Pride is what makes dictators. Pride makes narcissistic pastors.

[15:24] I like to call them nasty pasties. Pride makes narcissistic pastors and leaders of any kind. Pride, isn't it? The spirit of pride.

[15:35] Pride is what starts cults and abusive churches. It's pride. It's isolation from accountability. Another marker, refusal to admit wrong.

[15:47] Failing to confess or seek forgiveness stems from pride. Just be humble and sort it out. Pride, it brags on, the prideful is a boaster they yearn for, praise.

[16:01] They've got a self-focus. But really, Proverbs tells us, let another man praise thee and not thine own mouth, a stranger and not thine own lips. Hey, you don't have to go bragging on about yourself.

[16:12] Let somebody else praise you. But no, the prideful have got this self-focus. The prideful are angry. They react to criticism with anger or hurtful speech.

[16:22] The prideful are hard-nosed. Really, it's reflective of a pride issue, isn't it? Proverbs 12, 18. I know we touched on it recently in a sermon. There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise is hell.

[16:35] That pride will say, no, I've got to fight back and stick up for myself. Pride. It's disrespect to authority. The prideful mock and scorn. There's a rebellion there.

[16:47] They don't want to have authority over them. And it happens in the family setting. Proverbs 30, 17. It's pretty graphic on this one. The eye that mocketh at his father and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out and the young eagles shall eat it.

[17:06] The eye that mocks. Pride. It can get a subtle grip on our hearts, can't it? Look, I'm just as guilty or as vulnerable to pride as the next man.

[17:17] We need to seek God and repent of prideful ways. Brother, sister, pride is dangerous. We don't want it. I don't want it. God forbid. What do we need to do with pride?

[17:30] We need to crucify pride. Crucify it. Now that I've given you all the heavy stuff, we're going to switch lanes here and look at the opposite now.

[17:42] Hopefully, it's a bit more uplifting now, the sermon. Look at the uplifting difference that is the praiseworthy characteristic of the opposite of pride which is humility.

[17:55] Humility. Before honour is humility. Humility, it's not putting yourself down or being weak. Humility, it's not moved by love.

[18:07] Humility lets Christ be preeminent. Humility wants to magnify Jesus, the Lord. He must increase.

[18:17] We see the words of David, Psalm 34, 3, O magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together.

[18:28] It puts the magnifying glass upon the Lord as David sings out as did Mary in Luke 1, 46, and Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord.

[18:40] Humility, it magnifies the Lord, it esteems him, it honours him, it praises him, our Lord, our God. Another truth you see is that the prideful cannot minister, they haven't got the heart to give, to serve, to love.

[18:56] They cannot humble themselves and serve, that is beneath them, whereas the humble have another centred way of thinking and living. They'll think of others.

[19:07] If you want to minister, then you must actually have the heart of a servant. Something, I want to join the ministry, but they don't want to be a servant. But that's what it means.

[19:18] That is what it means. It means to be the servant of all. If you want to minister, then you must have a heart of a servant. That's what it means.

[19:31] It's not about going to Bible school and having some credit and some acknowledgement and some title, some position, some elevation. It's ministry. You can't minister if you're full of pride.

[19:44] pride. The prideful don't get it. The fact that ministry, the very word, means the very heart of a servant, the attitude of a servant. Something to contemplate.

[19:56] And humility really enables us to learn, to love, to serve, to grow. So what does humility look like then? What is it? Who's the ultimate example of the ministry?

[20:09] Who? Say it louder. The Lord Jesus Christ. He's the ultimate, he's the supreme model of humility, of him, it reads, of him who had and has the very nature of God.

[20:28] It tells of him, Philippians 2, the classic passage here from verse 5, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, no reputation, further, and became obedient unto, even unto death, even the death of the cross.

[20:53] Think of it, and what was the result? Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name, which is above every name. Do you see the divine order?

[21:05] Before honour is humility. mercy. Before glory is surrender. He humbled himself, then God the Father exalted him.

[21:17] Think of our Lord, he washed his disciples' feet. Oh, yuck. Isn't it? But think of that, that's not something that kind of appeals.

[21:29] I've been to Bible school, I've got a BTH and a DD and a whatever. No. Yeah, feet.

[21:41] Feet. And we think of our Lord, he ate with sinners. He humbled himself to welcome children. Sometimes in churches you just overlook the children.

[21:54] That's human nature, isn't it? You don't even glance at them or acknowledge them. Jesus welcomed the children. He took the trouble, he took the pains, he loved everyone, he cared about everyone.

[22:11] We adults can make that mistake where you don't even care about the children, you don't try to even know their names. I know I need to work harder to know more names of children.

[22:23] And we think of our Lord cared about the children and he submitted to the Father's will in the garden, not my will but yours Lord, yours Father, yours be done. You see his ultimate act of the cross, the ultimate act of humility, wasn't it?

[22:39] And led to his exaltation, giving him a name, the name of Jesus, Saviour, Lord, Master. Before the crown came the cross, before the glory was the garden.

[22:56] Our Lord shows us what humility looks like, he wants us to be like him. humility is the path to true greatness, isn't it? Think of our Lord, our precious Saviour.

[23:07] Here is the starting point then for you. If you want to serve God, I want to join the ministry, yeah, pick up the broom, vacuum cleaner, clean the toilets, sweep the car park.

[23:24] You know, that's ministry, isn't it? That's the starting point. Serve other people, love people. If you want to serve God somehow with your life, learn humility.

[23:38] It's Jesus' yoke. We talked about a yoke this morning, and this is the yoke that we want to have. Of course, our Lord tells us, Matthew 11, 29, take my yoke upon you and learn of me.

[23:54] For I am meek and lowly in heart, and you shall find rest unto your souls. Now, there's Christology 101, learn of me. He's the subject of the Bible school.

[24:08] He is, he's the, he's theology. Learn of me, he says. And what do we learn of him? I am meek and lowly in heart. A yoke, he offers this yoke to you, but if you're proud, you can't wear it.

[24:28] You've got to actually say, yeah, put it on me, Lord. Lay it on my shoulder, Lord. I want that yoke. He says, learn of me. To be under a yoke is about being under control or guidance of another.

[24:44] Saying, yes, Lord, I'm going to humble myself under your yoke. Lay it on my shoulder. It's a posture, isn't it, to submit to selflessness. We take Jesus' yoke.

[24:56] We surrender our prideful independence. But the prideful don't want to wear a yoke. Not his yoke. But here is where we find rest, his will, his purpose.

[25:11] We learn to be like him. Look at some of the biblical promises of humility. There's promises for you that are so minded. To be one of the humble.

[25:22] But don't get so humble that you're proud of it. I'm just going to just say, well, we can say, I'm humble now. We never really get there, I don't think, do we?

[25:33] But God helping us will be learning. It's a continual learning process. And think of some of the biblical promises of humility, grace, again. God promises grace.

[25:45] That's everything, isn't it? That we would have grace. That's everything that we truly need. What a rich promise for the humble. God resisteth the proud, but he gives grace.

[26:00] He gives grace unto the humble. And we all need grace. It's our fundamental need, isn't it? Without it, we're lost. And out of the will of God, without grace, we'll foul up every time.

[26:11] And it's humility that opens the floodgates of God's grace. Who does he give grace to, again? The humble. And God promises wisdom, along with humility, too.

[26:28] It tells us here, Proverbs 11, too. Again, you could go through Proverbs, or really a concordance at large, and see words of reference to pride, of humility, of lowly, of lowliness and such connotations.

[26:43] We see when pride cometh, then cometh shame. Pride is something that's a cause of shame. But with the lowly is wisdom. The humble are teachable, they're open to God's guidance.

[26:55] The lowly, the humble, have access to wisdom, they have it. They can acquire it. You're not going to be able to learn, you're not going to be able to be a useful Christian if you're unteachable.

[27:08] Let's not ever get to a place, God forbid, that I would ever get to a place that I can't say, hey, let me hear your point of view. Let's talk it over. That's my heart.

[27:19] That's always been my inclination. I suppose there's always some areas, well, that's too far out, but look, let's talk about it. I'm willing to hear other views, other ideas, but not to have the idea, hey, I know everything, no one can tell me anything.

[27:38] I'm qualified. Come to fellowship, come to Bible study, have a receptive heart. Wisdom will come to the humble. And another thing that we see for the humble, there's an exaltation, there's a promise here.

[27:53] If you humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, he may exalt you, it says, in due time. Mind you, it's his time. Sometimes, Lord, hurry up and exalt me.

[28:05] In due time, in due time. And God lifts the humble in his perfect timing. We see that this humility, it also causes the devil to flee.

[28:17] James 4, 7, it says, submit yourselves to God, resist the devil, and he'll flee from you. James 4, verse 7, this deliverance from spiritual attack when you are humble. Another blessing of humility is intimacy with God.

[28:30] We see James 4, verse 8, draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you. Hey, put that yoke on me, Lord. I want to be humble. I want to know more about you. I want to draw nearer to you. And he's going to reciprocate by drawing near to you.

[28:44] Humility fosters closeness with God too. Look at the blessings here. It says, for those who are humble, it says, by humility and the fear of the Lord are riches and honour and life.

[28:58] Riches, true riches, true honour, true life. It's humility. As we fear him, as we love him, as we surrender under his hand, the humility will bring a blessing, a closeness with God.

[29:15] Consider some biblical examples of humility. Here can we look at in the scriptures that are good case studies of humility. We think of these examples, scripture abounds with many examples of humility leading to honour.

[29:30] Joseph, humbled in a pit and a prison, exalted as the second in command of Egypt in Genesis 41.

[29:41] We see David, God lifted David, a humble shepherd boy, from the sheepfold to the throne to become really Israel's greatest leader.

[29:52] 1 Samuel 16, David was lifted. Mary, a humble servant, chosen to bear the Saviour, Luke 1. John the Baptist, a classic, and his motto, if you like, is a good life motto.

[30:10] This is a good one to write on your fridge. I kind of use that saying of sorts, that really it captures so much, doesn't it? What John the Baptist says, he must increase, but I must decrease.

[30:28] And here's the one, he prepared the way for the Saviour. Moses, another example, called the most humble man, the most meek man, numbers 12, 3, honoured to be God's lawgiver.

[30:41] Moses, he was called the meekest man, the most humble man. It's kind of counter cultural, isn't it? when we go voting or nations vote for leaders, they often pick the one who's the big mouth, the one who's the braggadocious, full of charisma, and full of all of the appealing things that the world would want in a man.

[31:12] But God chose Moses, think of that, the most meek, the most humble man on all the earth. God chose Moses. So don't ever think you can be too meek or humble that God can't give you something to do.

[31:29] He actually chooses you who are so minded and can lift you when you can stay low before him like Moses and like these others we talked about.

[31:40] So humility, it fits with God's purposes, it brings his blessing. How then, how then do we get there? How can we cultivate humility in this prideful world, this world full of pride?

[31:54] What are some ways we can progress to this humility that the Bible so commends? I put to you some intentional godly choices that you can make to cultivate a humble heart.

[32:11] Here's some practical things. Cultivate that humble heart through depending upon God. Acknowledge that you depend upon God. Pray, pray, keep on praying.

[32:24] John 15 5, a prayer that evokes in the sense we can't do anything without him. John 15 5, Lord I need you, Lord I need you, I can't do anything without you.

[32:36] Recognise really that every talent, every opportunity, your very brand is a gift from God. When you think about it, what have you got that you did not receive?

[32:48] 1 Corinthians 4 verse 7, what hast thou that thou didst not receive? Everything that you have is from his hand. Everything. Can't ever have the attitude I'm a self-made man, look at what I've achieved.

[33:04] What have you that you did not receive? Always have that gratefulness of heart. how can you cultivate humility? Serve others sacrificially.

[33:18] Follow the Lord's example by serving without recognition. Take the humble task. There's all kinds of odd jobs that really you could do.

[33:32] Anyone can do it. It's not that hard. Clean the church. Visit the sick. Write an encouraging note. Serve in the shadows.

[33:46] There's people, I glance at them occasionally, they're at the sink. No one asked them to do that. Do your good works in secret.

[33:59] God sees. In loneliness of mind, let each esteem other beds of them themselves. Don't ever think of yourself as above others.

[34:12] God help me not to. I'm not above any of you. I want to esteem you better than myself. That must be our heart. How do I grow in this humility?

[34:26] Accept correction with grace. Don't take it the wrong way. Receive it. The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise.

[34:39] Listen to people. Listen to one another. And thank them for their honest feedback, even if it stings.

[34:55] Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. how can we grow unless we actually listen to others? How can we grow without that?

[35:08] And honour others above yourself. We think Romans 12 10, be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love and honour, preferring one another. That's a good one another, preferring one another.

[35:21] Prefer others above yourself. And think, practice self-examination two. Am I reacting pridefully to this situation? Am I reacting with resentment, impatience, defensiveness, jealousy?

[35:39] What is it? Flesh. It's flesh. Let's confess it, resolve it. Am I seeking God's glory on my own?

[35:51] Self-examination is a good thing. Because really, only you can do it before God. Let a man examine himself. I know it's an inclination that's in me to examine others, to scrutinise others.

[36:15] Oh, what is he doing now? What did she just say? Examine yourself. There's enough problems inside of me for me to have to go picking on other people.

[36:32] And seek accountability too. We see, it tells us here, counsel and receive instruction. Seek accountability. Think, hey, how can I actually get some people to be honest with me and tell me the truth?

[36:47] I'll get home and Julie gives me all the feedback I need. And I need that. Don't we need that? People will be honest enough to tell you the truth.

[37:02] Honest feedback really helps. And so we think of these things. Avoid isolation too. And just have that willingness to listen.

[37:14] And also learn to speak with grace. Let your words build up, not tear down. Colossians 4, 6, let your speech be always with grace. And again that one, I think we referred to it before.

[37:28] Think about your words before you say them. Let there be healing in your words. Someone has called these the nine words of relationships.

[37:39] We can practice the nine words of relationships. I was wrong. I am sorry. Please forgive me. There's a lot of depth to that, isn't there?

[37:52] You think of those things. I was wrong. I am sorry. Please forgive me. Can we have the humility to say things like that?

[38:03] Rather than, oh, I'm never wrong. Why should I be sorry? Why should I ask anyone to forgive me? And pray for humility too.

[38:16] Lord, I want you to increase and meet a decrease. To clothe yourself with humility. When you go to your wardrobe in the morning, you're putting on everything, hey, get that garment.

[38:28] Clothe yourself with humility. Don't miss that one. That's an essential. And it tells us there again, put on therefore as a garment, as the elect of God, God's chosen, God's very precious people, holy, beloved, bowels of mercies, it's compassion, it's love, it's kindness, it's humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering, put it on, there's a few garments there maybe you could put on, think of all of those things, put on all of those things, as if you would, different pieces of clothing, put them on, it tells you, and always wear humility, and wear it with humility, don't wear it with pride, wear it with humility, be clothed with humility, humility, and think, another thing you can do is cultivate gratitude, pride complains, but humility give thanks, humility gives thanks, find something to thank God for, have that thankfulness, thank him for his gifts, for his salvation, for his provision, even the trials that teach you, dependence, cultivate gratitude, and again, when you think about every good thing comes from his hand, haven't you got something to be thankful for, every good gift, we could fill our prayer time thanking him for every good gift, for every perfect gift, it's from above, comes down from the father of lights, with him is no variable, there's no shadow of turning, before honour is humility, notice the promise of honour,

[40:04] God's honour, think of that, of all the honours we can receive, you know, I've received honours, but really, nothing compares to the honour of our God, before honour is humility, the honour of God, that God will honour you, all the fleeting applause of this world, all the achievements, all of our success, all the things that fill our resume, we want his approval, that's the honour that we want, and what is this honour, it's character, over position, it's having that character, a servant of God, that's the highest calling you can have, to be his servant, to be in Christ, it's not our achievements, or status, who does, he want us to be, thus saith the high and lofty one, Isaiah 57, 15, the one who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, to revive the heart of the contrite ones, this one who inhabits eternity, this one who's dwelling in the high and holy place, he dwells in the humble heart, he dwells in the humble spirit, he dwells in the one contrite, he dwells in the one who needs him, the spirit of the humble, and think of that, how can I be more like that, that he would dwell with me, think of practical things, service to others, look outside of yourself and your own circumstances and look at the others, who so need your love, they need your exaltation, they need your edification, they need your encouragement, think of others, bless others, rather than thinking of yourself and it tells them equally God in judgment, them equally teachers way, it tells here of the humble that they're going to be led by the spirit of God, he's going to guide you that are humble and the humble heart, it's free, truly free, we're not seeking self-promotion, it's not about our wanting, our competing, our elevation, temptation, it's about learning meekness, the humble heart, it's open to God's grace, he dwells with the one of that contrite, lowly spirit, and think of it for our church too, how a church can function so much sweeter, if we had that emphasis on humility, think of pride, really pride causes division doesn't it, as seen in

[42:58] Corinth, I'm of Apollos, I'm of Paul, whatever, pride, partisanship, dividing over this or that, but humility fosters unity and love, pride causes division, I've got the right doctrine, everybody else is wrong, a humble church, it's not to say we shouldn't have right doctrine, we must have right doctrine, but we don't only get prideful about it, and so we think what a contrast it is, pride and humility, I know my inclination is to be prideful, I'm ashamed about that, when I'm acting in pride, it's the world, it's the flesh in me, I don't want to be prideful, let us pray, our God and King, we thank you that we're unworthy of any of your grace,

[44:01] Lord, your mercies still are new, your faithfulness is new every morning, Lord, we know pride is something we need to crucify, and die to self, to flesh, Lord, pray each one might have a heart that says, Lord, I want you to increase, and I want me to decrease, Lord, I want to be the one with that humility of life and relationships that I can be that servant that you call me to be, Lord, pray each one here tonight might have that fresh sense of who we can be, not to elevate ourselves, but to elevate you.

[44:48] Oh, magnify the Lord, magnify the Lord with me. Lord, we thank you for that. Help us, Lord, to grow, to never get to a place where we think we have all the boxes ticked and we've arrived, but yet to always be growing, always be learning, always be humble, even when we feel like we're getting attacked and we're so right, we don't even need to defend ourselves, Lord, because it's about you.

[45:22] It's all about you. We praise you, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen.