In Order To Be Exalted, I Need To Be Humbled

8.28.22 Proverbs 25:6–7

6 Do not honor yourself in a king’s presence. Do not stand in a place reserved for great people, 7 because it is better to be told, “Come up here,” than for you to be humiliated before a ruler.

In Order to Be Exalted, I Need to Be Humbled

Where’s my seat? You go to a wedding and look for the seating chart. Will I be served or last? Who will I be sitting with? You really don’t have much choice in the matter. Forget about the front table, the most important question is, “Who gets first in the food line?” It’s not like going to a concert or on a plane where you can pay for reserved seats. But that wasn’t the way back in Jesus day. You sat where you thought you belonged, up front or in the back. Then they might make adjustments after that.

This all sounds rather trivial I suppose, but there’s more to it when you put this Proverb in context. Back in the Old Testament this was dangerous business, being in the presence of a King. There was a man who went into David’s presence with Saul’s armor, claiming that he killed Saul. It was a dangerous proposition. David wasn’t impressed. Instead of commending the man or giving him a reward, he had the man put to death for his impudence. Think of Queen Esther. She was terrified of going before her own husband, King Xerxes, without permission. But an edict had been made that the Jews, her Jews, were going to be exterminated. She needed to do something, but entering into the King’s presence without an invitation could mean death. She had no choice. She had to put herself forward. Her life and her people’s lives depended on it.

Then you had Haman. He loved being in the King’s presence. He wanted to be noticed and praised by the king. He felt special and important, like a powerful big shot. All he could talk about was how tight he was with the king and how the king was going to promote him. He wanted nothing more than to be promoted to the king’s right hand. On the other hand, Ahithophel killed himself when he no longer had the trust of Absalom. His power and prestige were gone. Their lives revolved around the king.

Then we think about the shadow of truth hidden behind these Proverbs. There’s more to it than some fine advice on how to live. Jesus said these Proverbs also talk about HIM. So when we talk about how to approach a King, we also think about how to approach Jesus, our King? Think of Mt. Sinai, how scary it was when God spoke from above. Even Moses was scared, as we learned last week. How can sinners enter the presence of a holy God? On Judgment Day people will pray to the mountains and ask them to cover them just so that they don’t have to face Jesus. Why would we even THINK of trying to exalt ourselves before Him?

First of all, it’s their desire for POWER. Even though there’s power, scary power, people are willing to risk it to be one step closer to the king. Think of how many people try to get in close with Presidents or their children in order to get sweetheart business deals. Think of how many love to glom onto celebrities so that they can brag to their friends about who they party with. It makes them look important and prestigious. They want a piece of the glory and the power.

Some think of God the same way. If they get the inside track with God, they can ask God for whatever they want and God will give it to them. They can name and claim it because they are so close to the King. The closer they are to Him, the closer they are to His gifts and His glory.

The disciples had this desire too. James and John had their mom ask Jesus for the highest seats in the kingdom of heaven. The disciples were obsessed with this concept. They talked to Jesus about how they left everything to follow Him. They wanted good seats, close to the King, in heaven. But they weren’t for Jesus to give.

Secondly, they forget their own sinfulness and they forget His holiness. That’s not how God works. You’re not going to bloviate yourself to the top. He won’t be impressed.

Jesus repeats this Proverb truth in today’s Gospel. Then He lays out the Hard Truth. “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” Where? In heaven, before God. It’s a topsy turvy theology, the exact opposite of what nature would tell us. If I want to get ahead and get noticed in this world, I have to be my own publicist. I can’t wait for someone to do it for me. I have to exalt myself. Jesus says, “No, that’s not how it works, at least in heaven.” But we live in both worlds, in heaven and on earth, by faith and by sight. Yet even here on earth, the Proverb seems to say we shouldn’t promote ourselves on earth either. We shouldn’t have two different theologies, a practical theology for earth and a heavenly theology for heaven. We live in both realms. These should, in some senses, apply in both realms. That takes faith to believe and faith to live.