Hard To Be Humble Series

The sermon series we’re preaching this month… is called “ONE THING”. We’re looking at ONE word that points to something important for us Christians. Scott began with the word GRACE; last week I preached on “UNITY”; and todays word is “HUMILITY.”

HUMILITY - Back in the 1980s a singer named Mac Davis wrote a song that became an international favorite, and the chorus started out with these words: “Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way. I can’t wait to look in the mirror, cause I get better looking each day.”

And everybody who heard that song smiled (they may even have sung along). But the reason everyone smiled was: If someone tells me how humble they are… they probably aren’t .

God LOVES humble people… but He despises the proud. James 4:6 says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." In fact, God tells us: Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

So, if I want to please God I’ll need to learn how to be humble; and I’ll need to learn how NOT to be proud. This morning we’re going to start out by learning how to avoid being proud.

Isaiah 2:17 tells us that “… the lofty pride of men shall be brought low, and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.” LOFTY PRIDE! That’s a pride that says – I have power and authority; and I can do what I want! And you can’t stop me.

ILLUS: Several yrs ago, the Governor of Massachusetts was running for reelection. One of the events that he went to was a barbecue, but he’d arrived late and had had no breakfast or lunch, and he was famished. So, as he moved down the serving line, he held out his plate and received ONLY one piece of chicken. The governor said to the serving lady, “Excuse me, do you mind if I get another piece of chicken? I’m very hungry.” “Sorry" the lady said, "I’m only supposed to give one piece to each person,” “But I’m starved,” he repeated. And again she replied: “Only one to a customer.” Now, they say that this governor was normally a modest man, but he decided this was a time… to use the weight of his office, and said, “Madam, do you know who I am? I am the governor of this state.” And she looked him right in the eyes, she replied: “Do you know who I am? I’m the lady in charge of chicken. Now, move along, mister.” (Preaching, March-April, 1986 speaking of Governor Christian Herter)

Now, obviously that’s didn’t work out real well for him. He had used “LOFTY PRIDE” to try to get his way.

There’s a much more serious example of this kind of pride from the Bible. In 2 Chronicles 26:4 we read about a King by the name of Uzziah. King Uzziah “did what was right in the eyes of the LORD…”. Uzziah was a faithful king;, and God rewarded him for his faithfulness… BUT THEN: 2 Chronicles 26:16 says that “when he was strong, he grew PROUD, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the LORD his God and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.”

Uzziah had become a powerful man, and (in his LOFTY pride) he tried to use his power to do something he shouldn’t have done. 2 Chronicles 26:17-21 continues by telling us that “Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the LORD who were men of valor, and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the LORD God.” Then Uzziah was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests in the house of the LORD, by the altar of incense. And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they rushed him out quickly, and he himself hurried to go out, because the LORD had struck him. And King Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death…”

LOFTY PRIDE is a pride that says – I have power and authority and I can do what I want! And you can’t stop me. But it never works out real well. I’ve seen preachers who’ve done this, and I’ve seen who’ve Elders done this, and I’ve seen church members who had money or influence who’ve done it. And it never ends well.