Tim Keller, in his book The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness, talks about his high school days when his mother kept telling him, “You know, honey, you ought to join the chess club.”
He would say, “Mom, I hate chess.”
“Yes, I know,” she would say, “but it will look so good on your college application.” She would try again. “Don't they feed the homeless and hungry downtown, every Saturday morning? Why don't you volunteer for that?”
“Mom,” Tim would say, “I hate that kind of thing.”
He would get the same response, “I know, honey, but it will look so good on your college application.” So, at school, Tim said he did all kinds of things that he had absolutely no interest in doing. He was simply putting together a résumé. (Tim Keller, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness, 10 Publishing, 2012, pp. 19-20; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s the way a lot of people live their lives, perhaps some of you. They do all kinds of things they don’t really enjoy to impress people they don’t really like. They try to make themselves look better than others, simply putting together a resume to fill their sense of inadequacy and emptiness. As a result, they live busy, boring lives with a lot of stress.
Here’s the good news. Even though a lot of people live that way, you don’t have to! 2,000 years ago, Jesus gave us a better way to live! He was speaking to an audience living under the stress of trying to impress others. Their leaders had all kinds of rules to follow, but Jesus was a different kind of leader. In a message on a hillside beside the sea of Galilee, He outlined the principles of living under His lead, and it was unlike anything they had ever heard before. If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Matthew 5, Matthew 5, where Jesus describes a better, more fulfilling way to live under His lead.
Matthew 5:1-3 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (ESV)
O how happy are the spiritually poor. This must have shocked Jesus’ original audience, because their leaders kept telling them, “O how happy are the spiritually rich,” i.e., those who try to keep all the rules and live their lives according to the law.
Here, in stark contrast to that, Jesus says, “O how happy are the spiritually poor,” i.e., those who KNOW they cannot keep all the rules, those who KNOW they are morally bankrupt. These are the ones that are truly blessed. These are the ones that are truly fortunate as the privileged recipients of God’s favor. These are the ones who experience a fullness of life.
Do you want to be truly happy? Then stop trying to impress people and simply express your need for God’s intervention. That is to say, “Be poor in spirit.”
BE HUMBLE IN YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS YOURSELF.
Realize that you are morally and spiritually bankrupt without Christ. Acknowledge that you cannot keep the rules. Confess your sinfulness before God and your desperate need of His grace.
I like the way Dane Ortlund put it in his book Defiant Grace. He writes, “The ancient Greeks told us to be moderate by knowing our inclinations. The Romans told us to be strong by ordering our lives. Buddhism tells us to be disillusioned by annihilating our consciousness. Hinduism tells us to be absorbed by merging our souls. Islam tells us to be submissive by subjecting our wills. Agnosticism tells us to be at peace by ignoring our doubts. Moralism tells us to be good by discharging our obligations. Only the gospel tells us to be free by acknowledging our failure. Christianity is the un-religion, because it is the one faith whose founder tells us to bring not our doing, but our need.” (Dane Ortlund, Defiant Grace, EP Books, 2011, p. 38; www.PreachingToday.com)
Oh, my dear friends, just bring your need to God, and stop trying to impress Him with all that you’ve done.
In his book What Good Is God, Philip Yancey writes about speaking at a conference on ministry to women in prostitution. During one of the sessions, Yancey asked the women, “Did you know that Jesus referred to your profession? Let me read you what he said: ‘I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.’ He was speaking to the religious authorities of his day. What do you think Jesus meant? Why did he single out prostitutes?”
After several minutes of silence, a young woman from Eastern Europe spoke up in her broken English. “Everyone, she has someone to look down on. Not us. We are at the low. Our families, they feel shame for us. No mother nowhere looks at her little girl and says, ‘Honey, when you grow up I want you be good prostitute.’ Most places, we are breaking the law. Believe me, we know how people feel about us. People call us names: whore, slut, hooker, harlot. We feel it too. We are the bottom. And sometimes when you are at the low, you cry for help. So when Jesus comes, we respond. Maybe Jesus meant that.” (Philip Yanvry, What Good Is God?, p. 75; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s exactly what Jesus meant. Those who realize their sinfulness turn to Him for help and find grace and favor from Him. Do you want to be truly happy? Then give up the illusion that you are good enough to be perfect, don’t be afraid to admit your own weakness.
Jesus said, these people are happy, because “theirs IS the kingdom of heaven.” Notice, it is in the present tense. That’s significant, because in the next six beatitudes the reward is in the future tense. Verse 4 – For they SHALL be comforted. Verse 5 – For they SHALL inherit the earth. Verse 6 – For they SHALL be satisfied. Verse 7 – For they SHALL receive mercy. Verse 8 – For they SHALL see God. Verse 9 – For they SHALL be called sons of God. But here and in verse 10, the reward is in the present tense – For theirs IS the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of heaven is a present reality for those who are poor in spirit (vs.3), and for those who are persecuted (vs.10).
Now, the kingdom of heaven in Matthew is any place where God rules. You see it in the Lord’s Prayer – Thy Kingdom come, Thy what? Thy will be done. The Kingdom of God is any place where God’s will is being done and people are enjoying the blessing of Christ’s reign in their own lives.
Is that what you want? Do you want the blessing of Christ’s reign in your own life, even here on earth, right now in the present tense? Then be poor in spirit. Acknowledge your own spiritual bankruptcy before God, and admit that you are utterly dependent on the Lord. Be humble in your attitude towards yourself. Then 2nd…
BE HUMBLE IN YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS SIN.
Let the sin in your own life break your heart. Grieve over the loss of any purity when it happens to you. Jesus said...
Matthew 5:4 Blessed [oh how happy] are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted [parakaleo]. (ESV)
It is the same word used of the Holy Spirit in John 14. He is the comforter, lit., the one called along side to help. When we grieve over the sin that is in our own lives, God sends his Holy Spirit to come along side us and help us. He puts his arm around us, and He guides us away from that sin.
The world says, “Minimize your sin. Call it a ‘mistake,’ a ‘lapse in judgment,’ an ‘imperfection,’ but whatever you do, don’t let guilt ruin your life.” That’s what the world says. But Jesus says, “Mourn over your sin. Let the guilt and pain of sin bring tears to your eyes.” James 4:9 says, “Mourn and wail” over the stuff that’s not right in your life.
Please, don’t take sin lightly. It is a serious matter in the life of a believer, and it should break your heart. For then, and only then, do you find God’s help in removing that sin.
I talked with a lady some time ago, who for a time was unable to have children. Then God did a miracle and allowed her to conceive. Only that baby didn’t survive.
Soon after that, she found herself sitting next to a pregnant woman at a church dinner. She thought she was over the loss of her child, but all of the sudden she experienced feelings of resentment welling up within her toward the pregnant woman sitting next to her.
Now, most of us can understand her feelings and might even excuse them. But this lady made no excuse for the bitterness in her own heart. Immediately, she excused herself from the table, ran to the bathroom, and in tears begged God to take the resentment away.
Do you know He did! God came into that room right there beside her, and He replaced the resentment with His peace and love and joy.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Do you want to be truly happy? Then be humble in your attitude towards yourself. Be humble in your attitude towards sin. And 3rd…
BE HUMBLE IN YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS OTHERS.
Be gentle in your dealings with people. Be lenient. Don’t demand your own rights, but be considerate of others.
Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. (ESV)
Now, don’t confuse meekness with weakness. Moses was meek (Numbers 12:3), yet he judged a nation and led them through the desert. Jesus was meek (Matthew 11:29), yet he drove the money-changers from the temple. Meekness is NOT weakness; it is strength under control.
The word was used in Bible times of taming a wild animal, of bringing the animal’s strength under control, so it could serve the needs of others, and that’s what God calls you to do in all your relationships. Take what strength you have and use it to serve others. Don’t demand your own way. Don’t assert your own rights. Instead, treat others as more important than yourself, and make sure THEIR needs are met. Make sure THEIR rights are not violated.
There was once a bicycle race in India where the object of the race was to go the shortest distance possible within a specified time. At the start of the race, everyone got in line; and when the gun sounded, all the cyclists, as best they could, stayed put. Racers were disqualified if they tipped over or one of their feet touched the ground. And so they would inch forward just enough to keep the bike balanced. When the time was up and another gun sounded, the person who had gone the farthest was the loser and the person closest to the starting line was the winner.
Now, imagine getting into that race and not understanding how it works. When the race starts, you pedal as hard and fast as you possibly can. You're out of breath. You're sweating. You're delighted because the other racers are back there at the starting line. You're going to break the record. You think, “This is fantastic. Don't let up. Push harder and faster and longer and stronger.”
At last you hear the gun that ends the race, and you are delighted because you are unquestionably the winner. Except you are unquestionably the loser because you misunderstood how the race is run. (Leith Anderson, author and pastor of Wooddale Church in Eden Prairie, Minnesota; from sermon “The Height of Humility”, 9-12-99; www.PreachingToday.com)
Please, don’t misunderstand how the race of life is run. Jesus Himself said on many occasions, “The last will be first, and the first last” (Matthew 19:30; 20:16; Mark 9:35). So don’t push harder and faster and longer and stronger to get ahead of everybody else. That just leaves you exhausted. Instead, let others go first and don’t push to the front. Serve them and not yourself, and give without the expectation of getting in return. That’s Jesus’ way, and it is a whole lot more fulfilling than living your life trying to impress people.
Taylor University is a Christian college in Indiana. Years ago, they were pleased to learn that an African student, Sam, was going to be enrolling in their school. This was before the days when it was common for international students to come to the U.S. to study. Sam was a bright young man with great promise, and the school felt honored to have him. When he arrived on campus, the President of the University took him on a tour, showing him all the dorms. When the tour was over, the President asked Sam where he would like to live. The young man replied, “If there is a room that no one wants, give that room to me.” The President turned away in tears. Over the years he had welcomed thousands of Christian men and women to the campus, and none had ever made such a request. (Bryan Wilkerson, in his sermon “In God We Trust, Though We'd Rather Pay Cash,” www.preachingtoday.com)
Sam was not there to impress; he was there to serve and learn. But ironically, that made an impression like no one else! Sam earned the respect of the president not by demanding the best, but by requesting the worst.
You see, only the meek inherit the earth. Only the meek have any real influence, over time. The harsh and unyielding end up with nothing. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Do you want to be truly happy? Then 1st, Be humble in your attitude towards yourself. 2nd, Be humble in your attitude towards sin. 3rd, Be humble in your attitude towards others. And 4th…
BE HUMBLE IN YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS GOD.
Cultivate a true spiritual passion. Develop an insatiable desire to know God intimately and to model His ways personally.
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. (ESV)
A young man approached an old monk wanting to know where he could find God. The monk said, “Follow me. I’ll show you.” So the young man followed the monk to a river where they both waded in. Then all of a sudden, the monk grabbed the young man and forced him under the water. The old man was much stronger than he looked, and he held the young man under for a long time. The young man was flailing, desperate for air, and about to give up the struggle, when the monk finally let him go. Then he said to the young man, “When you want God as bad as you wanted air, then you will find Him.”
How badly do you want God? I’m afraid that too many people are satisfied with only a little bit of God on a Sunday morning and nothing more. But only when you want Him more than food or water, only when you want Him more than the air you breathe, only when you want Him more than life itself, will you ever be truly satisfied. Otherwise, you’ll just go on living in your mediocrity.
The world says, “Don’t be too overzealous in your faith. Just get enough religion to be comfortable, but not too much to make you a religious nut case.”
Wilbur Reese put it this way: I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of Him to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want the warmth of the womb not a new birth. I want about a pound of the eternal in a paper sack. I'd like to buy $3 worth of God, please. (Wilbur Reese)
That’s all the world wants – just enough of God to be comfortable. But Jesus says, “Hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Want it more than anything else. For then, and only then, will you be satisfied.
Do you want to be truly happy and blessed? Then be humble in your attitude towards yourself. Be humble in your attitude towards sin. Be humble in your attitude towards others, and be humble in your attitude towards God. In a sentence: Be humble and be happy.
It seems backwards, doesn’t it? If our contemporary society were writing a set of Beatitudes for the 21st Century, it might go something like this: Blessed are the rich and famous, because they can always get a seat at the best restaurants. Blessed are those who party, for they know how to have fun. Blessed are the movers and shakers, for they shall make a name for themselves. Blessed are those who demand their rights, for they shall not be overlooked. (Bryan Wilkerson, in his sermon, The Heartbreak Gospel, www.preachingtoday.com)
Jesus offers us a better way: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. It’s a whole lot less exhausting way to live!
As a young man, Benjamin Franklin once visited the Puritan preacher Cotton Mather and learned a very important lesson. Franklin recalled:
Mather was showing Franklin out of the house, and there was a very low beam near the doorway. Franklin was still talking when Mather began shouting, “Stoop! Stoop!”
Franklin didn't understand what Mather meant and banged his head on the beam. “You're young,” Mather said, “and have the world before you. Stoop as you go through it, and you will avoid many hard thumps.”
Years later, Franklin commented: “That advice has been very useful to me. I avoided many misfortunes by not carrying my head too high in pride.” (“Benjamin Franklin,” PBS, November 2002; www.PreachingToday.com)
My dear friends, happy are the humble.
