THE ARMY OF HUMBLE
WARRIORS
MIKE CUNNINGHAM
MAY 16TH 2010
Although
the “
There
wasn’t an iota
of spiritual pride in that sinless human being. Instead, it seemed as though He
clothed Himself with a spirit of humility and His followers have been commanded
to do likewise, (1 Peter 5:5). And by humility I’m not suggesting you and I
become a laid-back bunch of silent wimps. On the contrary, in describing the
characteristics of this beautiful Christ-like virtue, R. Kent Hughes reminds
us: “This meekness/gentleness is not weakness. It is rather strength under
control. There is nothing spineless or timid about it. Jesus describes
himself with both words saying, “I am gentle [meek] and humble in heart
(Matthew 11:29). We see his steel-like meekness in two ways. First, in
respect to himself-his power not to practice retaliation, his ability to
forgive. And second, in his fierce defense of others or of the truth.” (A) In
his outstanding book, The Fruit of The Spirit, John W. Sanderson has also characterized
this beautiful Christ-like virtue thusly, “Humility is strong—not bold;
quiet-not speechless; sure-not arrogant, “Fear and courage are symptoms of our inward
state.” “Meekness and gentleness are not opposites of courage: it takes
courage to be meek and gentle in and evil world.” “Meekness is the opposite of
self-seeking.” (B) Sanderson 126-127
As
I have been explaining in this series of sermons; the greatest impediment to fully
possessing a beautiful Christ-like spirit is an insidious spirit of pride which
continues to lurk within each of us. Pride is a sin so odious in God’s eyes
that He hates it with a passion. and He couldn’t express Himself with any
more clarity. For instance,
Proverbs 6:16-17 (NIV)
16 There are six things the Lord
hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty
eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,
Proverbs 16:5 (NIV)
5 The Lord detests all the proud
of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.
Proverbs 16:5 (KJV)
5 Every one that is proud
in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join
in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
In
what I believe is the finest commentary on The Book of Proverbs, Charles
Bridges explains: “Men see no abomination
in this spirit. It brings no disgrace. Nay, it is often thought to be high minded.
But it keeps the heart away from God. It lifts up the heart against him. It
contends for its superiority with him. (C) Concerning this grave sin; the Lord
told the Prophet Ezekiel to:
Ezekiel 28:2,8,10 (ESV)
2 “….say to the prince of Tyre,
Thus says the Lord God: “Because your heart is proud, and you have said,
‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,’ yet you
are but a man, and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a god— 8 They shall thrust you down into the pit,
and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas 10 You shall die the death of the
uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, declares the Lord
God.”
Elaborating
on this verse, Bridges expounds: “Moreover, how unseemly is this sin! Here we
have a prince, a mere creature who is so utterly dependent upon its Creator, a
man who is so fearfully guilty, and yet he is proud in heart!” Also consider the temptation of Adam, “A
true child of a fallen parent, who, in dreaming to be just like God, made
himself just like a devil. (Genesis 3:5). There are many forms of this hateful
spirit. Some are proud because of their good looks; some because of their
talents; some because of their rank; and some because of their goodness—all the
while forgetting, that “they have nothing that they have not received from
God,” (1 Cor. 4:7); and all of them are completely oblivious of the fact,
that they are an abomination to the Lord!
(D)
Bridges
goes on to ask that whenever, “A proud heart strikes at God in this way, is it
any wonder that God strikes at it as an
abomination to him?” (D)
1 Peter 5:5 (ESV)
5 “Clothe yourselves, all of you,
with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives
grace to the humble.”
The
old Puritan, Richard Mayo explains, “.... we are all infected with this plague.
No human being can truthfully say they aren’t. There is nothing as contagious
or more wide-spread. It reaches the poor as well as the rich and the godly as
well as the wicked. However, although it rules in the latter, it still dwell’s
in the godly. You see how it was with the Apostle Peter, with David, with
Hezekiah, etc. The holiest persons on earth are more or less sick with this
infectious disease. That’s why we must endeavor to prevent and cure it!”
“....
it is a sin of the greatest magnitude, a first rate sin, greater then theft,
intemperance, or uncleanness, or any other fleshly wickedness. It is, indeed, the strength and heart of the
old man; it lives in us; when other sins are dead, yes, it will help to kill other
sins, so that it may boastfully show their heads, and puff the sinner up with conceit
bragging of his own strength and holiness.” “When men are convinced of its
sinfulness, when they believe it has more evil in it than other disgraceful
sins, then they will earnestly strive to mortify and subdue it. They will put
it far away from them, and deal with it as other sins which, in the opinion of
all men, describe them as being graceless and ungodly persons. Remember,
therefore, what has already been hinted at concerning the odiousness of this
sin. It is indeed hateful to men when it is discerned; but it is most hateful
to God. His nature and his honor both engage him against it. He severely
punishes it, both in this world and the next. Pride is the forerunner not
only of temporal, but of eternal destruction.” (F)
Proverbs 16:18 (ESV)
18 Pride goes before destruction
and a haughty spirit before a fall.
“What
more vivid exposition of these Proverbs is needed, than our own ruined
condition? Our first father’s pride,
desiring to “be as God,” plunged the entire human race into destruction.” Then citing the Puritan
Richard Baxter, Bridges writes: “as long as any man is proud, he is akin to the
devil, and a stranger to God and to himself.” “The most awful strength of
Divine eloquence seems to be concentrated to delineate the character and ruin
of pride.” (F) For examples, read Isaiah 14:4-19; Ezekiel 28:29. Ponder also what
the Lord once said to the godliest man living on the face of the earth at the
time:
Job 40:6-14 (ESV)
6 Then the Lord answered Job out of
the whirlwind and said: 7 “Dress
for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 8 Will you even put me in the wrong? Will you
condemn me that you may be in the right? 9 Have
you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? 10 “Adorn yourself with majesty and dignity;
clothe yourself with glory and splendor. 11 Pour
out the overflowings of your anger, and look on everyone who is proud and abase
him. 12 Look on everyone who
is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand. 13 Hide them all in the dust together; bind
their faces in the world below. 14 Then
will I also acknowledge to you that your own right hand can save you.
Bridges
continues: “Example abounds in the Scriptures; Pharaoh, Exodus 9:16-17;
Amaziah, 2 Chronicles 10:12; Haman, Ester 5:11; 7:10; Pharaoh, Ezekiel 19:3-5.
Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel 4:29-33; Herod, Acts, 12:21-23; In the Church, David, 2
Samuel 24:1; Uzziah, 2 Chronicles 26:4-16; Hezekiah, 32:25; Isaiah, chapter 39;
Peter, Matthew 26:33, 69-74. Yes, examples abound throughout the Scriptures;
each sounding this solemn admonition—“.... do not become proud, but stand in
awe, Romans 11:20, (ESV). “If the warning isn’t welcomed, if the need
for it isn’t felt deeply, the danger will be fearful indeed!” (G)
You
and I must do everything we possibly can to get rid of this deadly spirit and
cultivate a Christ-like spirit of humility. However, we must proceed with
extreme caution. For instance, contrasting true humility with what he
characterizes as being a weed and therefore an artificial fruit of the Spirit, Sanderson
explains: “The weed of self-centeredness embitters, blinds, and
frustrates the grace of God. It is a noxious weed, and Jesus rebuked his
disciples severely for it.” (H) For
example, think about the time when,
Luke 9:46-56 (ESV)
46 An argument arose among them
as to which of them was the greatest. 47 But
Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his
side 48 and said to them, “Whoever
receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives
him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.” 49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone
casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not
follow with us.” 50 But Jesus
said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.” 51 When the days drew near for him to be taken
up, he set his face to go to
“Some
time later, as the point of discussion festered within their hearts, violence
reared its ugly head and two of their leaders succumbed to it.” (I) Sound
familiar! It’s that old “us versus them” mentality! We know the truth! We’ve
got it all systemized. I still remember a pastor once proudly telling the
congregation that was the reason the word “Orthodox” was included in the name
of their denomination. Many believers don’t seem to realize that they are majoring
in minors when they get themselves all worked up over non-essential things such
as the proper mode of baptism, or if they must serve wine as opposed to grape
juice when they observe “The Lord’s Supper” or whether or not speaking in
tongues has ceased. I’m not suggesting sound doctrine isn’t important because
it is. But not to the extent many people and denominations make it out to be.
It’s almost as though they’re at war with each other. Of course, Satan and his
demonic forces of darkness are making headway. But if you and I would only take
the time really think about it and try to view that kind of strife through God’s
eyes we will be able to see glimpses of reality. Commenting on differences of
opinion among Christians, Alexander Maclaren explains: “The things on which
they differ are on the surface, and sometimes by reason of their difference of
opinion Christians stand like frowning cliffs that look threateningly at one
another across a narrow gorge, but deep below the ground they are continuous and
the rock is unbroken,” because “by one faith they each have been joined to the
one Lord.” (J) And that’s one of the reasons I can say with confidence: “The
Commenting
on the argument that broke out amongst the disciples concerning which one of
them was the greatest, Sanderson explains: “The disciples “party spirit had
begotten party-spirit, and party-spirit, vengeance. They had forgotten the
meaning of “the Gospel,” the good news, and the significance of Jesus’ words,
“The son of man is come not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (K)
He goes on to ask: “But if not self-centeredness, party-spirit, and violence,
then what? Surely their opposites-false modesty, self depreciation, and
spineless refusal to stand for anything! This artificial fruit denies one’s
personhood, ones God-given abilities and talents. God has given every man some
gift, so every man is worthwhile in God’s eyes. This is not to deny our sinful
depravity or our true guilt before God. But it is to assert that even the
lowest person has a dignity, a value, and a uniqueness because he was made in
God’s image. Now the artificial fruit denies all this, and dehumanizes the
individual so that he is no longer what God intended him to be.”
“This
artificial fruit is not true virtue. It is a cowardly retreat from reality
which substitutes a passive selfishness, and only avoids trouble at the cost of
allowing even greater trouble to develop. We see examples of this on every
hand: the speaker who has just given an excellent speech, who mutters, “It was
nothing; the soloist who has real ability to sing, who pushes it all aside
with, “I’m just getting over a cold.” It is the refusal to recognize God has
given us abilities and has given successes as we have used them.” Far better is
the advice of Susanna Wesley, the mother of John and Charles, who was equally
concerned with meekness and modesty. She counseled men not to praise children
because of their natural talents-the beauty of a little girl, the natural athletic
prowess of a little boy. Her approach was to say something like this to the girl,
“Hasn’t God given you pretty curls, and to the boy, “wasn’t it good of the Lord
to give you a fine body?” “Here was perfect honesty: The acceptance of
ourselves as we really are, as God has endowed us with His gifts; but also the
full recognition that we are what we are only because He has created us, and
has given us gifts of grace. False modesty denies all this, and Christians
should be aware of its heinous character and of God’s feelings toward it.” (L)
It took a while for those formerly self-centered disciples to realize how
infected they were with the spirit of pride. It sure didn’t happen overnight. For
instance:
Matthew 18:1-4 (NIV)
1 At that time the disciples came
to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" 2 He called a little child and had him stand
among them. 3 And he said: "I
tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore,
whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven.
Hughes
reminds us of the fact that, “Jesus once put on the slave's apron and
undertook the humblest of all duties, washing his disciples' feet; so we also
must in all things put on the apron of humility in the service of Christ and of
our fellow-men; but that very apron of humility will become the garment of
honor for us, for it is he who is the servant of all who is greatest in the
Kingdom of Heaven.,” Matthew 18: 1, 4. (M)
It
was only after having endured all the heart-breaking sorrow connected with the arrest,
trial, Crucifixion, and then the joyful Resurrection of Jesus that the
disciples were prepared to serve mightily in His war against Satan and his
cosmic forces of darkness.
Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV)
16 Now the eleven disciples went to
Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him,
but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came
and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to
the end of the age.”
The
Great Commission must have seemed like an impossible task. How could they
possibly accomplish something so monumental? Quoting Jesus, Luke answers that
question and later went on to give an account of some of the results.
Acts 1:8 (NIV)
8 But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 17:5-7 (AMP)
5 But the unbelieving Jews were
aroused to jealousy, and, getting hold of some wicked men (ruffians and
rascals) and loungers in the marketplace, they gathered together a mob, set the
town in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring [Paul and
Silas] out to the people. 6 But
when they failed to find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brethren before
the city authorities, crying, These men who have turned the world upside
down have come here also, 7 And
Jason has received them to his house and privately protected them! And
they are all ignoring and acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar,
[actually] asserting that there is another king, one Jesus!
The
great Apostle Paul kept jogging the memory of those first Christians. In spite
of the horrendous tribulation they were enduring, he boosted their spirits when
he reminded them they had accomplished their mission:
Colossians 1:23 (NIV)
23 if you continue in your faith,
established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is
the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature
under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
Throughout
his Epistles, Paul described the characteristics of a true warrior in the
Lord’s Army, and the first one he mentions is humility.
Ephesians 4:1-4 (NIV)
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then,
I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be
patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make
every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit-- just as
you were called to one hope when you were called--
The
“Kingdom of God” is slowly but surely advancing in our country but, as I have
been reminding us; we Christians aren’t as spiritually healthy or as vibrant as
we could and should be. We must relentlessly struggle every day of our lives to
overcome the spirit of pride which is still lurking within us. If we clothe
ourselves with a Christ-like spirit of humility, and rely on Him for the
strength; God may be pleased to turn our country upside-down through the organized
corporate Body of Christ, just as He did through those early Christians.
Meanwhile, let’s constantly remind ourselves and one another that we have been inducted
by Him to serve in “The Army of Humble Warriors.”
Lord
willing, in a couple of weeks...
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
A.
Ephesians,
The Mystery Of The Body Of Christ, © 1990 by, R. Kent Hughes. Published by
Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, 1300 Crescent Street,
Wheaton, Illinois 60187, pg.123.
B.
The
Fruit of The Spirit, by John W. Sanderson, ©1972, 1976 The Zondervan Corp., Twelfth
printing 1982, pg.125, 126.
C.
A
COMMENTARY ON PROVERBS, by Charles Bridges, The Banner of Truth Trust, 3
Murrayfield Road, Edinburgh EH12 6EL, P. O. Box 621, Carlisle, Pa. 17013, U. S.
A. First published 1846, Reprinted by photo litho 1968. Reprinted 1983, pg.
228.
D.
Ibid.
pg. 228-229.
E.
SERMON # 16: What
Must We Do To Prevent Spiritual Pride? Preached by the Rev. Richard Mayo, A. M.
Puritan Sermons, 1659-1689. Being The Morning Exercises at Cripplegate, ST.
Giles in the Fields, And in Southwark, by Seventy-Five Ministers of the Gospel,
in or near London, with notes and translations by James Nichols. Richard Owen Roberts, Publishers, Wheaton,
Illinois 1981. Pg. 382.
F.
Bridges, pg. 228.
G.
Ibid pg.238.
H.
Sanderson p. 126.
I.
Ibid pg. 126.
J.
Expositions Of The Holy Scripture, by Alexander MacLaren, D. D.,
Vol. 13, Ephesians. Reprinted 1984 by Baker Book House Company, pg. 205.
K.
Sanderson pg. 127.
L.
Ibid pg.128.
M.
Barclay's
Daily Study Bible: The Letters of James and Peter, Revised Edition, ©1976 by
William Barclay, Second edition, published by The Westminster Press,
Philadelphia, Pa. May, 1960, p. 270-271.
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