Chan Gailey, who at various times coached for the Pittsburg Steelers, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Kansas City Chiefs told a story some time ago about the time he was head coach of Alabama’s Troy State and they were playing for the National Championship. The week before the big game, he was headed to the practice field when a secretary called him back to take a phone call.
Somewhat irritated, Gailey told her to take a message because he was on his way to practice.
She responded, “But it's Sports Illustrated.”
“I'll be right there,” he said.
As he made his way to the building, he began to think about the upcoming article. It would be great publicity for a small school like Troy State to be in Sports Illustrated. As he got closer, he realized that a three-page article would not be sufficient to tell the whole story. Coming even closer to his office, he started thinking that he might be on the cover. “Should I pose or go with an action shot,” he wondered. His head was spinning with all of the possibilities.
When he picked up the phone and said hello, the person asked, “Is this Chan Gailey?”
“Yes, it is,” he replied confidently.
“This is Sports Illustrated, and we're calling to let you know that your subscription is running out. Are you interested in renewing?”
Coach Gailey concluded the story by saying, “You are either humble or you will be humbled” (Chan Gailey speaking at a dinner in Dalton, Georgia, 4-20-04; www.PreachingToday.com).
Coach Gailey had visions of glory, but then reality set in. And that’s often the way it is with life. We get visions of glory, but reality gets in the way and we’re humbled in the process.
So how then do you find true glory? What is the way to true honor even when you have been humbled? What is the way to real respect even if you have to go through pain? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to 1 Peter 5, 1 Peter 5, where God’s Word shows the way to glory.
1 Peter 5:5 Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (ESV)
If you want to receive God’s favor, then humble yourselves before each other. “Be subject” to those who are older. Literally, rank ourselves under them. And no matter what your age, tie on the apron of a slave and serve each other.
That’s what it means when it says, “Clothe yourselves with humility.” The noun form of the verb “clothe” was the apron of a slave in Bible days. And that’s the way we’re to relate to each other – all of us! We’re to behave like slaves for each other; otherwise, God Himself will stand in opposition to us.
“God opposes the proud,” verse 5 says. Literally, He sets himself in battle against those who appear like they’re above others. Now, that’s not a place you want to be – facing God like an army at war against you. So humble yourselves before each other and experience His grace. It’s the way to true glory and dignity whether you’re down and out or high and mighty.
In late 2000, Indra Nooyi was working late at PepsiCo. At around 9:30 pm her office phone rang. On the other line was a member of the corporate board who informed her that she would be the next president of the company. Nooyi was one of the first women to break this level of the corporate glass ceiling.
Nooyi went home to tell her family that she was going to be president of PepsiCo, and her mom opens the door. Nooyi’s mom was living with her at that time. Nooyi said, “Mum, I have got news for you,” and her mom said, “Before the news, go get some milk.” Nooyi said, “It’s ten o’clock in the night. Why should I get milk?”
But her mom would not take “no” for an answer, so Nooyi went and got the milk, came back, sort of banged it on the countertop, and said, “I had big news for you. I have just been appointed president of PepsiCo, and all that you care about is the milk.”
Her mom just looked at her and said, “What are you talking about? When you walk in that door, just leave that crown in the garage, because you are the wife, the daughter, the daughter-in-law, and the mother of the kids, and that’s all I want to talk about. Anything else, just leave it in the garage” (David M. Rubenstein, How to Lead: Wisdom from the World's Greatest CEOs, Founders, and Game Changers, Simon & Schuster, 2020, p. 189; www.PreachingToday.com).
That mother taught her daughter a very important lesson. True greatness comes from service, not from title after your name. So, if you want to find the way to true glory, humble yourselves before each other.
But to do that, you must first humble yourself before God. For you will not “tie on the apron of a slave” and serve each other until you learn to make yourself low before Almighty God Himself.
1 Peter 5:6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you... (ESV)
When you make yourself low before God, in time, He makes you high before others. In time, He honors you before your peers.
So then how do you humble yourself under God’s mighty hand? You do it, verse 7, by...
1 Peter 5:7 ...casting all your anxieties on him because he cares for you. (ESV)
True humility means you stop depending on yourself and start depending on God to take care of you. Proud people thinks they can handle all of life’s distractions, cares and worries. Humble people knows they cannot, so they throws all their worries on God Himself. Just like throwing a bundle on a donkey’s back (Luke 19:35), humble people throw all their burdens on God’s back, letting God carry the load, because they know that God really cares.
Jan, who was a young mother in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, several years ago tells a remarkable story from that time in her life. In a note to her pastor, she wrote:
It was the end. I knew it. I could no longer fight. I sat here emotionless. I was totally alone. Others had tried to help – doctors, nurses, parents, husband, children. But they were gone. Hours earlier I had come into the hospital on an emergency basis. I had back pain so severe that at times, it dropped me to my knees. This was not my first hospital stay. I had been sick for a long time it seemed I sat in the bathroom. It was the middle of the night. No people, no “miracle” medicine, no strength left. I was too tired to fight. I sat there – four walls surrounding me. And a bleak, monotonous “bleep” from my battery-operated IV filled the silence. I couldn't stop the sound of that miserable machine, anymore than I could control my own miserable life. So I sat there – dull, miserable, in pain, with no hope.
[Then I heard] something else. I didn't hear it with my ears – but I did in my spirit. I heard someone crying. And I immediately knew that it was Jesus crying for me. I was shocked – totally surprised. I didn't think he would do that for me.
This experience did not leave me emotionally elated. Nor did I feel a physical touch. Life was the same, except I now knew I really was not in this battle alone. Jesus cared in a way my wildest imagination would never have hoped for or expected.
Slowly I got up and shuffled back to bed, my IV still “bleeping” in my ears. Life was the same but different entirely… When there was absolutely no one else that would help me, he cried for me… (Lee Eclov, Where the Battle Is Fought, www. PreachingToday.com)
And Jesus cries for you. He really does care, so cast all your worries on Him and let Him carry them for a while. Stop depending on yourself and start depending on the Lord. Humble yourself before God in this way and find honor in the end. Humble yourself before God so you can humble yourself before one another and experience His grace. It’s the only way to glory even in your pain. Just...
HUMBLE YOURSELF before God and others. Then...
HARDEN YOURSELF AGAINST THE DEVIL.
If you want to find the way to true glory, then in dependence upon God, be alert to Satan’s ways and stand against Him.
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (ESV)
This may be a veiled reference to Nero’s persecution of Christians in the Roman Coliseum. There, lions mauled and devoured Christians. Well, in the same way, Satan wants to tear apart the believer’s testimony.
Dear friends, Satan is not your friend by any stretch of the imagination. He may promise you pleasure and power if you give into his ways, but know this: He is your enemy, who will destroy your life if you give him even the slightest opportunity, so be sober and alert. Be aware of his destructive ways.
Two boys were walking home from Sunday school after hearing a strong sermon on the devil. One said to the other, “What do you think about all this Satan stuff?”
The other boy replied, “Well, you know how Santa Claus turned out. It's probably just your dad.” (Dale W. Decker, Mount Washington, Kentucky; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s the problem with too many people. They think Satan is just a myth like Santa Clause and the tooth fairy. They don’t realize how real he is and how destructive he can be. As a result, he destroys their lives before they even know what hit them. Please, don’t let that happen to you. Be aware of Satan’s presence.
Then stand against him. In dependence upon God, resist the devil’s attempts to get you to sin and so destroy your life.
1 Peter 5:9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. (ESV)
You are not alone in your pain, so don’t give in to the devil. Stand against him by standing firm in your faith. Resist him by depending wholly on Christ.
Did you know that in the United States, mountain lions are the number one predator of human beings? So says author and naturalist, Craig Childs. On one occasion, he was doing research on the lions in Arizona's Blue Range Wilderness. As he approached a water hole from downwind, he spotted a mountain lion drinking water, but the lion did not know he was there. When it finished drinking, it walked slowly away into a cluster of junipers.
After a few minutes, Childs walked to the water hole to identify tracks in the mud and record notes. Just before he bent down to look closer, he scanned the perimeter, and there among the shadows of the junipers, 30 feet away, he saw a pair of eyes. He expected the lion to run away, but it walked into the sunlight toward him. Childs pulled his knife and stared into the eyes of the lion. He knew what he had to do. More importantly, he also knew what he must not do. He writes:
Mountain lions are known to take down animals six, seven, and eight times their size. Their method: attack from behind, clamp onto the spine at the base of the prey's skull, snap the spine. The top few vertebrae are the target, housing respiratory and motor skills that cease instantly when the cord is cut… Mountain lions have stalked people for miles. One woman survived an attack and escaped by foot on a road. he lion shortcut the road several miles farther and killed her from behind…
About the incident in Arizona’s Blue Ranger Wilderness, Childs says, “I hold firm to my ground and do not even intimate that I will back off. If I run, it is certain. I will have a mountain lion all over me. If I give it my back, I will only briefly feel its weight on me against the ground. The canine teeth will open my vertebrae without breaking a single bone…
“The mountain lion begins to move to my left, and I turn, keeping my face on it, my knife at my right side. It paces to my right, trying to get around on my other side, to get behind me. I turn right, staring at it… My stare is about the only defense I have.”
The amazing thing is Childs actually maintained that defense as the mountain lion continued to try to provoke him to run, turning left, then right, back and forth again and again, until it came to just ten feet away. Finally, the standoff ended. The lion turned and walked away – defeated by a man who knew what never to do in its presence (Craig Childs, The Animal Dialogues, New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2007; www.PreachingToday.com).
Never take your eyes off a mountain lion. Always be absolutely aware and stand your ground against him. And do the same with Satan. Stay alert and stand your ground. James 4 says, “Resist the devil, and he WILL flee from you” (James 4:7).
It’s the only way to glory even in times of pain. 1st humble yourself. 2nd, harden ourselves against the devil. And finally…
KEEP YOUR HOPE IN GOD.
Continue to remain confident in the Lord. Maintain the assurance you have as a believer in Christ.
1 Peter 5:10-11 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen. (ESV
This is a promise from God: After the pain there will be power. God himself will restore you, confirm you, strengthen you, and establish you. The Greek words here picture a skilled fisherman mending broken nets (Mark 4:21) and a wise master builder laying a strong foundation (Hebrews 1:10).
After life has broken you up some, God Himself will fix you up better than ever. After the pain there WILL be power. It’s God’s promise to you and you can count on it, so keep your hope in God.
Hope in God because of His grace – He is “the God of all grace.” Hope in God because of the glory ahead – “He called you to his eternal glory.” Hope in God because your pain is but for “a little while,” but His power is “forever and ever.”
Michael Gerson, a former presidential speechwriter, spoke at the Washington National Cathedral and talked about being hospitalized for depression:
Like nearly one in 10 Americans — and like many of you — I live with this insidious, chronic disease. Depression is a malfunction in the instrument we use to determine reality. The brain experiences a chemical imbalance and wraps a narrative around it. So, the lack of serotonin, in the mind’s alchemy, becomes something like, “Everybody hates me.” Over time, despair can grow inside you like a tumor.
But then you reach your breaking point — and do not break. With patience and the right medicine, the fog in your brain begins to thin… Over time, you begin to see hints and glimmers of a larger world outside the prison of your sadness.
I think this medical condition works as a metaphor for the human condition. All of us — whatever our natural serotonin level — look around us and see plenty of reason for doubt, anger and sadness. A child dies, a woman is abused, a schoolyard becomes a killing field, a typhoon sweeps away the innocent. If we knew or felt the whole of human suffering, we would drown in despair.
The answer to the temptation of [despair] is not an argument — though philosophy can clear away a lot of intellectual foolishness. It is the experience of transcendence we cannot explain or explain away… there is this difference for a Christian believer: At the end of all our striving and longing we find, not a force, but a face... God’s promise is somewhat different: That even when strength fails, there is perseverance. And even when perseverance fails, there is hope. And even when hope fails, there is love. And love never fails (Michael Gerson, “I was hospitalized for depression. Faith helped me remember how to live,” The Washington Post, 2-18-19; www.PreachingToday.com).
In your pain, don’t look for a reason; look for a face; look for God’s face of love, and know that He will keep every promise He made to you. Dear friends, that’s the way to glory even in your pain.
Humble yourself before God and one another. Harden yourself against the devil. And by God’s grace, keep your hope in God.
Star Wars creator George Lucas first hired Harrison Ford, then a carpenter, to build a door in the casting offices. Harrison impressed the director with his woodworking skills and more. Despite hundreds of people competing for the role of Han Solo, Lucas decided Harrison was actually the best person for the part.
Legendary producer Fred Roos said, “Harrison had done a lot of carpentry for me. He needed money, he had kids, he wasn't a big movie star yet. The day he was doing it, George happened to be there. It was serendipitous.”
And this serendipity launched one of the greatest movie careers in history. Harrison Ford not only stared in Star Wars, but also as Indiana Jones in several movies and as the Blade Runner in two movies (Debadrita Sur, “The remarkable story of how Harrison Ford landed his role in 'Star Wars'”, Far Out Magazine, January, 2020; Johnell Gipson, “Star Wars’: Harrison Ford Was Working as a Carpenter in Francis Ford Coppola’s Office When George Lucas Cast Him as Han Solo,” Showbiz Cheatsheet, 11/12/20; www.PreachingToday.com).
The road to greatness often starts with just doing the work God puts before you. Think of Jesus. His hands, which flung stars into space, washed some pretty dirty feet at His last supper with His disciples.
Don’t miss the opportunities to serve, just because you are waiting for the big important roles. Just “humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time HE may exalt you.”
