A God Who Exalts the Humble -- By Grace
(Deut. 8:1-3; 9:4-7 and Luke 14:7-24)
1. I was watching "Chopped" on Food Network. It was down to two chefs. Chef A had prepared the best appetizer and entrée. Now it was time for dessert -- his dish did not get plated quite on time.
2. One of the judges asked his competitor, Chef B, if they could taste his dessert pancake that was still in the pan. This would violate the rules, so it could only be done with the competitors permission. Chef B said, "No." Rules were rules.
3. I really think that if Chef B had let the judges taste Chef A’s pancakes, Chef B would have won. As it was, the judges liked Chef A’s first two courses so much that they gave him the award. But I really think the lack of graciousness on the part of Chef B affected the decision.
4. You see, when we are out to be fair and gracious and take a servant’s attitude, we are often blessed in the process. We are all about ourselves and our status, it often works in reverse.
5. Jesus taught massive amounts of material, hour after hour, day after did. He did and taught so much that only hyperbole could make the point. That’s why John writes, "Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written" (John 21:25).
Main Idea: God loves to exalt the humble and humble the exalted; He loves to be gracious to the undeserving, but has little room for the arrogant.
I. God Worked in the LIVES of the Hebrew People to Prepare Them (Deuteronomy 8:1-3; 9:4-7)
A. He purposefully HUMBLES people He wants to exalt (8:1-3)
Isaiah 61:1-2, "This is what the LORD says: ’Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be?
Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?’ declares the LORD. ’This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.’"
B. Those He exalts do not MERIT His blessing (9:4-7)
1. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people (6)
2. This was a motley, unlikely crew; a nation of slaves and whiners.
3. God wants the glory. A.W. Tozer once wrote an article called "Humility True and False" and concluded: "I have met two classes of Christians: the proud who imagine they are humble, and the humble who are afraid they are proud. There should be another class: the self-forgetful who leave the whole thing in the hands of Christ, and refuse to waste any time trying to make themselves good. They will reach the goal far ahead of the rest". [source: jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/2267.htm]
C. Yet God JUDGES those who refused to repent (9:4-7)
1. God does not just give land to the Hebrews; He takes it away from the Canaanites
2. In this text, the justification for this transaction is the unresponsiveness of the Canaanites
3. Genesis 15:16, "In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."
God loves to exalt the humble and humble the exalted; He loves to be gracious to the undeserving, but has little room for the arrogant.
II. God Works in INDIVIDUAL Lives To Prepare Us (Luke 14:7-24)
A. Since God values humility, we should HUMBLE ourselves (7-11)
• Jesus’ axiom is a summary of the concept: Those who humble themselves God will EXALT (11)
• The Talmud contains a similar statement, ""He who humbles himself, him will God elevate; he who elevates himself, him will God humiliate. He who runs after greatness, from him greatness will flee; he who flees from greatness, him will greatness follow" (’Er. 13a). [Jewish Encyclopedia]
• Hillel said: "Remove from thy place two or three rows of seats and wait until they call thee back" (Lev. R. i.). [Jewish Encyclopedia]
• The reverse is true: those who exalt themselves will be humbled.
1. The parable of seating yourself at a wedding feast
2. Better to underestimate your importance than overestimate
A small western college was struggling financially. The buildings were shabby, and staff salaries were meager.
A stranger visited the campus one day and asked a man who was washing a wall where he could find the president. "I think you can see him at his house at noon," was the reply.
The visitor went as directed and met the president, whom he recognized as the same man who was scrubbing a wall earlier in the day, though he was now in different clothes.
Later that same week, a letter came with a gift of $50,000 for the college. The spirit of service on the part of the president had made a positive impression on the visitor. Because the benefactor saw a man who was not too proud to help where needed, even though it involved what some might term a menial task, he was moved to contribute generously to the school.
B. Those He exalts do not MERIT His blessing (12-23)
1. To understand this, you need to understand the concept of the first and second call. All these guests had already been invited, and had essentially RSVPed.
2. But, when everything was ready at the agreed time, they made excuses.
3. The Talmud records a similar parable by Rabbi Johanan b. Zakkai - b. Shabbat 153a* [It is like] a king who invited his servants to a feast and did not appoint them a time. The wise among them adorned themselves and sat down by the door of the palace, for they said: Is anything lacking in a palace? The foolish among them went to their work, for they said: Is a feast ever given without preparation? Suddenly the king summoned his servants. The wise among them went in before him adorned as they were, and the foolish went in before him in their working clothes. The king rejoiced to see the wise and was angry to see the foolish, and said: These who adorned themselves for the feast shall sit down and eat and drink; but those who did not adorn themselves for the feast shall stand and look on.
[source: http://www.crossmarks.com/parable/5supper.htm]
C. Yet God REJECTS those who refuse the invitation (24)
God’s graciousness, however, does not excuse those who reject Him. Just as the Canaanites were cleaned out of Canaan to make room for the Israelites, so those who reject the Lord’s invitation are cleared out for those unlikely people who respond.
Isaiah 25:6-9, "On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever.
"The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.
"In that day they will say, ’Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.’"
God loves to exalt the humble and humble the exalted; He loves to be gracious to the undeserving, but has little room for the arrogant.
CONCLUDING APPLICATIONS
1. Humility is, among other things, a habit. What courtesies have I developed to embrace humility? Humility means adapting myself to others! It doesn’t mean I pretend to be who I am not, but I don’t take a "take or leave it" attitude, either. I respect others.
2. Am I teaching my children humility? Begins with manners: please, thank you, excuse me. Continues with hospitality: have a seat, can I get you something to drink? Includes sharing, being thankful, and learning to put oneself in another’s shoes.
3. Humility is simply adjusting to reality; we learn to accept that God is holy and we are not. We begin to accept the limitation of human nature and our own limitations. We accept the reality of our own vulnerability, our need to depend upon the mercy and grace of God, and our need to sometimes depend upon the mercy and grace of others. And, we believe, if we are merciful to others, God and others will be specially merciful to us.
4. False humility is worse than outright arrogance. It is one thing to not deny one’s strong points or areas of special ability, it is another to think that others do not have theirs. A humble person prefers to compete with himself.
5. Besides being a habit, humility is an attitude. Humble people do not go to great efforts to come across as humble. It is ingrained into their mind and attitude. They are humble in marriage; humble as parents; humble at work; humble at church. They know they do not know it all, but they also know they know something (or that would be false humility).
