Opening illustration: Pastor Dale Kurtz laughed so hard that his sides ached. He was watching a frustrated squirrel trying to climb the metal pole supporting a bird feeder. The squirrel repeatedly got part way up, then slowly slid down the pole in a heap. In describing this incident, Kurtz wrote, “What the squirrel didn’t know was that I had greased the pole!”
Kurtz then pointed out that “greasing the pole” is one of Satan’s tactics to hinder Christians in their spiritual climb. The “grease” he often uses is our own pride, complacency, and self-sufficiency. How he must laugh!
Introduction: Humility preserves peace and order in all Christian churches and societies; pride disturbs them. Where God gives grace to be humble, he will give wisdom, faith, and holiness. To be humble, and subject to our reconciled God, will bring greater comfort to the soul than the gratification of pride and ambition. But it is to be in due time; not in thy fancied time, but God’s own wisely appointed time. Does he wait, and wilt not thou? What difficulties will not the firm belief of his wisdom, power, and goodness get over! Then be humble under his hand. Cast “all you care;” personal cares, family cares, cares for the present, and cares for the future, for yourselves, for others, for the church, on God. These are burdensome, and often very sinful, when they arise from unbelief and distrust, when they torture and distract the mind, unfit us for duties, and hinder our delight in the service of God. The remedy is, to cast our care upon God, and leave every event to his wise and gracious disposal. Firm belief that the Divine will and counsels are right, calms the spirit of a man. Truly the godly too often forget this, and fret themselves to no purpose. Refer all to God’s disposal. The golden mines of all spiritual comfort and good are wholly his, and the Spirit itself. Then, will he not furnish what is fit for us, if we humbly attend on him, and lay the care of providing for us, upon his wisdom and love? The whole design of Satan is to devour and destroy souls. He always is contriving whom he may ensnare to eternal ruin. Our duty plainly is, to be sober; to govern both the outward and the inward man by the rules of temperance. To be vigilant; suspicious of constant danger from this spiritual enemy, watchful and diligent to prevent his designs. Be steadfast, or solid, by faith. A man cannot fight upon a quagmire, there is no standing without firm ground to tread upon; this faith alone furnishes. It lifts the soul to the firm advanced ground of the promises, and fixes it there. The consideration of what others suffer is proper to encourage us to bear our share in any affliction; and in whatever form Satan assaults us, or by whatever means, we may know that our brethren experience the same.
What facilitates a successful spiritual climb?
1. Submission (v. 5a) Ref: Ephesians 5: 21
Both young and old can benefit from Peter’s instructions. Pride often keeps older people from trying to understand young people and keeps young people from listening to those who are older. Peter told both young and old to be humble and to serve each other. Young people should follow the leadership of older men, who should lead by example. Respect those who are older than you, listen to those younger than you, and be humble enough to admit that you can learn from each other. Stir up the members of the churches to their duty to their elders, or pastors, who had the oversight of them; and that is to "submit" themselves to them, as in Heb_13: 17, which is done by attending constantly on the word preached by them, and receiving it, so far as it agrees with the Scriptures of truth; and by joining with them in all the ordinances of Christ, and their administrations of them; by being subject to the laws of Christ’s house, as put in execution by them; by taking their counsel and advice, regarding and hearkening to their admonitions and reproofs, and taking them in good part, looking upon them, and behaving towards them, as their spiritual guides and governors.
All the members of the churches should not only submit themselves to their pastors, but to their fellow members, as in Eph_5: 21, they should submit to the superior judgments of one another, esteeming each other better than themselves, and not be tenacious of their own way of thinking and judging of things; yea, condescend to men of low estates and weaker minds, bear the infirmities of the weak, and take all admonitions and reproofs given in a friendly manner kindly; and cheerfully perform all offices of love, and by it serve one another in things temporal and spiritual; doing the meanest services for the good of each other, such as washing the feet of one another, in imitation of their Lord and master. The literal rendering is "Wrap yourselves up in humility one to another." Mutual deference must be shown, as well as mutual service.
2. Humility (v. 5b-6) Ref: Colossians 3: 12; Matthew 11: 29
To be clothed with a thing or person is a Greek mode of speech for being that thing or person with which a man is said to be clothed. Be ye truly humble; and let your outward garb and conduct be a proof of the humility of your hearts. Εγκομβωμα, from the original word εγκομβωσασθε, signifies often an outward ornamental garment, tied in different places with knots or bows, probably ornamented all over with bows or knots of different colored rib ands, silk twist, etc. But it also signifies the outward garment worn by servants, slaves, girls, and shepherds, which was rather intended to be the guard of the other garments than an ornament to those thus dressed: and I am rather inclined to take it in this sense than in the former; for as the apostle calls upon them to be subject to each other, he desires them to put on humility, as the encomboma or servant’s dress, that they may appear to be such as were ready to serve; and that he cannot refer to this article of clothing as an ornament the next words sufficiently prove: God resists the Proud, and gives grace to the Humble - the proud, with all their ornaments, God resists; while those who are clothed with the humble garment he adorns.
We often worry about our position and status, hoping to get proper recognition for what we do. But Peter advises us to remember that God’s recognition counts more than human praise. God is able and willing to bless us according to His timing. Humbly obey God regardless of present circumstances, and in His good time – either in this lifetime or in the next – He will lift you up.
Those who submit patiently to the dispensations of God’s providence he lifts up; those who lift themselves up, God thrusts down. If we humble not ourselves under God’s grace, he will humble us under his judgments. Those who patiently submit to him, he exalts in due time; if his hand be mighty to depress, it is also mighty to exalt.
Illustration: In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn’t a technology problem like radar malfunction - or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship’s presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late. Many people do not like the idea of being a servant to others because they feel that they are too good or they do not want to do the dirty work of the Kingdom, but I will tell you that without the humble servant’s attitude that Christ showed we run a great risk. Jesus is our perfect example of a humble servant.
3. Casting our cares (v. 7)
Carrying our worries, stresses, and daily struggles by yourself shows that you have not trusted God fully with your life. It takes humility, however, to recognize that God cares, to admit your need, and to let others in God’s family help you. Sometimes we think that struggles caused by our own sin and foolishness are not God’s concern. But when we turn to God in repentance, He will bear the weight even of those struggles. Letting God have your anxieties calls for action, not passively. Don’t submit to circumstance, but to the Lord who controls all circumstances.
Compare Psa_55: 22, from whence this passage was probably taken. “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee; he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” Compare, for a similar sentiment, Mat_6: 25-30. The meaning is that we are to commit our whole cause to him. If we suffer heavy trials; if we lose our friends, health, or property; if we have arduous and responsible duties to perform; if we feel that we have no strength, and are in danger of being crushed by what is laid upon us, we may go and cast all upon the Lord; that is, we may look to him for grace and strength, and feel assured that he will enable us to sustain all that is laid upon us. The relief in the case will be as real, and as full of consolation, as if he took the burden and bore it himself. He will enable us to bear with ease what we supposed we could never have done; and the burden which he lays upon us will be light, Mat_11: 30.
He who remembers the falling sparrow, and who hears the young ravens when they cry, will not be unmindful of us. “Yet the Lord thinks on me,” was the consolation of David, when he felt that he was “poor and needy,” Psa_40: 17. “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up,” Psa_27: 10. Remember that you will never be entirely neglected. Father, mother, neighbor, friend, those whom you have loved, and those to whom you have done good, may neglect you, but God never will. You may become poor, and they may pass by you; you may lose your office, and flatterers may no longer throng your path; your beauty may fade, and your admirers may leave you; you may grow old, and be infirm, and appear to be useless in the world, and no one may seem to care for you; but it is not thus with the God whom you serve. When he loves, he always loves; if he regarded you with favor when you were rich, he will not forget you when you are poor; he who watched over you with a parent’s care in the bloom of youth, will not cast you off when you are “old and grey-headed,” Psa_71: 18. If we are what we should be, we shall never be without a friend as long as there is a God.
4. Discipline (vs. 8 - 10) Ref: 1 Corinthians 5: 13
The apostle had exhorted to each of these before; see 1 Pe_1: 13 but thought fit to repeat them; sobriety and watchfulness being exceeding necessary and useful in the Christian life; and the one cannot well be without the other: unless a man is sober in body and mind, he will not be watchful, either over himself or others, or against the snares of sin, Satan, and the world; and if he is not on his watch and guard, he is liable to every sin and temptation. The Syriac version renders the words, "watch", and "be ye mindful", or "remember"; watch with diligence, care, and industry, keeping a good lookout, minding and observing everything that presents, and remembering the power and cunning of the enemy; and the Ethiopic version renders them thus, "be ye prudent, and cause your heart to understand"; referring them not to temperance of body, but sobriety of mind, and to a prudent conduct and behavior, as having a subtle as well as a malicious enemy to deal with:
Satan tempts in three forms:
1. The subtle serpent; to beguile our senses, perverts our judgment, and enchants our imagination. [Genesis 3: 1; Revelation 12: 9]
2. As an angel of light; to deceive us with false views of spiritual things, refinements in religion, and presumption on the providence and grace of God. [2 Corinthians 11: 14]
3. As a lion that attacks the sick, young or the strangled; they choose victims who are alone or not alert. Peter warns us to watch out for Satan when we are suffering or being persecuted. Feeling alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers, so focused on our troubles that we forget to watch for danger, we are especially vulnerable to Satan’s attacks. During times of suffering, seek other Christians for support. Keep your eyes upon Christ, and resist the devil. James in 4: 7 says that “he will flee from you.” [1 Peter 5: 8]
Illustration: David Livingstone went to darkest Africa as a lone missionary. After some time his missions committee wrote to him saying, "Some people would like to join you. What’s the easiest road to get where you are?" He replied, "If they’re looking for the easiest road, tell them to stay in England. I want people who will come, even if there’s no road at all!" Sometimes the pathway of the Christian life appears to change from a smooth-surfaced road to a stony track or peter out altogether.
Application: These four actions and attitudes enable us to resist Satan’s attacks (v.9) and allow God’s grace to strengthen us and cause us to be established in our faith (v.10). Satan wants to keep us from making progress in our spiritual life. With the Lord’s help, though, we can keep on climbing.
To avoid sin’s tragedy, learn Satan’s strategy.
