God's Grace to the Humble - Part 2

Transcription

1 Sunday March 18, 2012 Phone: Pastor David Miklas Message: Book of James - #19 Text: James 4:6-12 God's Grace to the Humble - Part 2 Introduction: In our last message from the very practical book of James we said, By now we should realize Satan desires nothing more than to create TENSION and DISHARMONY in every relationship we have, within our family, among our friends, and within our church. In James 4 we are warned about some major causes of this disharmony, SELFISHNESS, ENVY, JEALOUSY, WORLDLINESS, and SLANDER. When it comes right down to it, Satan might create the desire, but our basic problem is found in one word - PRIDE. Notice James 4:6, "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble." God resists the PROUD, because pride is sin. But to the HUMBLE, in verse 6 God... gives more and more strength to the HUMBLE to stand against all such evil longings." The consistent message of the New Testament is God's grace is available for our deepest needs. In Hebrews 4:16 we read in view of our great High Priest the Lord Jesus Christ, "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of GRACE, that we may obtain mercy and find GRACE to help in time of need." Whatever God puts upon us in life "He gives us accompanying grace to handle it." When the pressure is on, God's grace is there to help us handle it. When the problems seem overwhelming, God's grace is sufficient. When the resources are low, God's grace of provision is at hand. When our health wavers, God's strength and comfort is present. When family dreams are shattered, God gives courage to face them. When the spiritual flame is but a flicker, God s grace is there. God gives and gives and gives more and more grace. The key to this is: "We don't live by OUR RESOURCES; we live by His." Now the word "proud" speaks of an arrogant spirit that shakes its fist in the face of God and refuses to admit it needs Him. Understand the basic sin of man is pride. You will notice in the middle of the word PRIDE is the letter "I." And allow me to remind you that the middle letter in the word SIN is also "I." If covetousness is the root of evil, then pride is the soul of evil. Proverbs 16:5 says, "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord." Proverbs 16:18 tells us, "Pride goeth before destruction and an haughty spirit before a fall." Now in contrast to a proud spirit, the humble spirit becomes the recipient of God's grace. Listen to this, "Humility speaks of a person who recognizes his absolute dependence upon God, his need for the touch of God in his life." Remember, Satan is the author of all "do-it-yourself" spiritual enterprises. He enjoys inflating the ego and encouraging the believer to do it his own way. Now, on the basis of His promise of grace, James outlines a program that will enable you and I to receive that grace of God. In verses 7-12 James uses a series of Greek imperatives to communicate TEN principles of God's grace to the believer. We could call these James TEN COMMANDMENTS. Follow me as I read verses 7-12, Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. (9) Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. (10) Page 1

2 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. (11) Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. (12) There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another? In our last message we looked at the first 5 of these. Commandment One: Relinquish Control of Your life to get under God's authority. "Therefore submit to God." Commandment Two: Resist the Devil, and stand your ground against Satan. "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Commandment Three: Restore Worship to God, by spending time with Him, by getting close in dependence upon God. " draw near to God and He will draw near to you." Commandment Four: Renounce Sinful Actions through confession of sin. "Cleanse your hands, you sinners." Commandment Five: Reject Sinful Attitudes, and purify your heart in the Holiness of God. "Purify your hearts, you double-minded." Again in verse 8 we read Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Notice the more we draw near unto God in all His righteousness, purity and holiness: The filthier our sin and the uglier our pride appear to us, and The more repugnant our lust and worldliness will be to us. Therefore, this honest view of ourselves will enable us to confess our sin and have a pure heart or a heart that is in tune with the holiness of God. We now come to verses 9-10 where we have the next 4 commandments. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. (10) Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. All the statements in verse 9 strike a somber note, since they have to do with sorrow. This sorrow is clear evidence of repentance. Please don't misunderstand. James is not saying Christians should walk around with a face that looks like it has been weaned on a sour pickle. Christians, more than anyone else, have the right to LAUGH, to REJOICE and to express HAPPINESS. But Christians who are deliberately living in sin ought to be mourning. Commandment Six: React to sin with sorrow. "Be afflicted." The more we come to recognize the problem of PRIDE and the problems of sin in our lives, the more our hearts will be afflicted. In effect, James is saying there must be SORROW associated with repentance. No SORROW no JOY! When there is CONTRITION of the heart, there will be JOY in the soul. When there is no SORROW for sin, there is no quitting of sin. Have you found as you sorrow in your heart, God fills it with divine joy? Oh, where is the godly sorrow today that leads to repentance? Paul tells us in II Corinthians 7:10, "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation..." David cried in Psalm 51:17, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart..." In Psalms 34:18 we read, The Lord is near unto those who are of a broken heart." Oh, that we would see a revival at the altar, where people with broken hearts over sin would come and get right with God. The Greek word for "afflicted" means "to bear, to endure hardship" The first evidence of repentance is to recognize the burden of sin which leads to repentance of sin. John Bunyun in Pilgrim s Progress said, "A sinner is a burden-carrying individual and the burden of sin is toilsome." Have you come to that moment of utter distress in your life, when you realize the only hope you Page 2

3 have is in the Lord Jesus? This is the point where you come face to face with the bitterness of sin. As someone said, "There would be no sin in the world, if people had to take the bitterness of it first and then the sweetness, if there is any, last. Let's face the fact, and be honest with ourselves, we are miserable when we are sinning. Repentance involves the SENSE OF SIN, the SORROW FOR SIN, and the SUCCESSION FROM SIN. Please turn with me to Luke 18:9-14 where we read the parable of the Pharisee and Publican: And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: (10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. (11) The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. (12) I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. (13) And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. (14) I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. You notice the Pharisee didn t walk the isle. He was self-righteous, proud, and wasn't afraid to say so. What did Jesus say about Him? He would go home exactly like he came, no repentance, no sorrow, no change in the heart. You will notice the Publican came forward, and with a broken heart cried "God be merciful to me a sinner." Jesus said THIS man went home justified, forgiven, righteous. Commandment Seven: React to Sin with Mourning, "And mourn." Here is the inward evidence of repentance - grieving. The Lord used the same word in the second beatitude, "Blessed are they that MOURN, for they shall be comforted." Mourning is an indication that someone has died. In the same way we are to mourn over the death to sin. The grief over sin will give God the opportunity to change our heart as "dead to sin but alive unto righteousness." Commandment Eight: React to Sin with Weeping, "And weep." In commandment seven we are to mourn, the internal grieving of the soul over the sins of pride, selfishness and worldliness. Now James, when he says in commandment eight, "And weep," he is expressing the external evidence of the inward sorrow. "Tears in the eyes are indicators of true repentance in the heart." "Tears are the safety value of the heart when too much pressure is laid on, and believe me, sin is pressure." "Tears are a sign that a man is broken because of his sin." "The weeping soul touches the heart of God, where he has the opportunity to pick up the pieces and make something worthwhile." Please notice again verse 9, especially the last phase, "let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness." What is the meaning of this? Now laughter is a healthy thing and there is nothing wrong with it. Jesus brings happiness and joy to the heart. True Christians are always happy people. So what is this laughter that is turned into mourning? Listen to this: "If you want to know whether a man's life is made up of frivolous or serious things, WATCH WHAT HE LAUGHS AT. If a Christian has to laugh at the things of this world, there is something wrong with his Christianity. A Christian cannot laugh at sin, rather, he mourns because of it. The things that caused him to laugh before he became a Christian ought to cause him to mourn now after his repentance." Please stop for a moment to do some serious inspection: When was the last time your heart broke because of sin in your life and you mourned over it? You wept because of it. Your heart was heavy as you grieved over it and cried unto God in repentance. When was the last time your heart broke over the sins of abortion, adultery, sodomy, euthanasia and of wickedness in high places; and wept because these same sins are also found in the church as well as in the world? Page 3

4 When was the last time your heart broke for your children, and you cried out to God? I mean wept for them and over them. I believe hell is being filled with children from deacon s homes, preacher s homes; homes of Sunday School teachers and from the homes of "good church-going people." So many of our children have heard the gospel until it's coming out of their ears, and they have become hardened to the sound of it. Sin has not been made exceedingly sinful to them. Sin has become a joke to them, because you have laughed at it and have winked at it. Oh, beloved, when was the last time you really wept for your children and let them know the exceeding sinfulness of sin and the holiness and judgment and mercy and grace of God? When was the last time you wept and cried over the souls of men and women, boys and girls, who are without Jesus as Saviour, and who are dying and going into a Christ-less eternity? Teachers, when was the last time you wept for your class? When was the last time any of you wept for an unsaved loved one? Let us never forget Psalms 126:5-6, "They that sow in TEARS shall reap in JOY, He that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seeds (the Word of God) shall doubtless come again with rejoicing..." Be honest. Do you really care, are you really concerned, are you really broken over the souls of men on their way to a Christ-less eternity, in need of the saving Grace of God? We have gone through EIGHT Commandments in James list of ten. Now notice the last commandment for this Sunday as we will take up the tenth commandment of James 4 in our next message. Commandment Nine: Respond Humbly. "Humble yourselves in the sight of God." Humbleness is agreeing with God about the principles of life and accepting His solutions. I believe the answer to PRIDE is found in this statement, "The closer I get to God, the more He fills my vision, the greater he seems to me, and the less I seem to be." The closer I get to God, the less I think of David Miklas and the more I think of God. It's just as true that the farther we remain from God's perfection, the more likely we are to think we are doing pretty well. The reason why many people don't walk down the aisle and weep at the altar is because they are too far from God to realize how bad off they really are. Many of us are guilty of thinking we're not terribly bad people. But that's not an indication of spirituality, that's an indication of PRIDE. The best Christian in this auditorium doesn't think he's the best Christian. The person who is closest to God will feel his sinfulness more keenly than all the rest. When Isaiah came into contact with the holy presence of God in Isaiah 6, he said, "... I am a man of unclean lips, and dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips..." The closer Isaiah got to the holiness of God the more he saw his sinfulness. When John the Baptist knew of Christ he said in John 1:27 "He it is, whose coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose." It was then John the Baptist cried out, "He must increase, but I must decrease." When Peter recognized the greatness of Christ he wrote these words in I Peter 5:5-6, "...for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time." When Paul finished giving his background credentials before he was saved in Phillippians 3: 8, he said, "Yea...I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord; for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but garbage, that I may win Christ." There is something bigger than you and I. There is something bigger than our ministry. There is something bigger than our lives and homes, our dreams and our plans. There is GOD ALMIGHTY! The smaller we become to ourselves, the more room God has to work in our Page 4

5 lives. We live in a generation of folks who have inflated egos, who are demanding their rights, who are being told, "You are somebody." The only right we have is to die and go to hell - that's what we deserve. Everything better than that comes to us only by the grace of God. For us, that is a rather humbling reality at which to look. The closer we get to God and the more clearly we see Him, the more accurately we will see ourselves. The songwriter said, When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, My richest gain I count but loss and pour contempt on all my pride. Humility is a natural result of getting closer to God. It is the result of us seeing God as He really is, HOLY and JUST and RIGHTEOUS, which makes us realize what we really are wretched sinners. The truth is, many of us have not been to an altar in a long time. It's not because we're so close to God, rather it's because we're so far away that we don't see our own sinfulness. It's because we are BLINDED, and we're DRIFTING from God. So we think we're doing well, and that means we're not. If we get as close to God as Paul was, we are going to say, "I am the chief of sinners. No one has a greater need than me." Perhaps you are here again this morning, and for weeks you have known you are a sinner, bound for a Christ-less eternity in hell. But you refuse to get before the Lord and say Oh, My God, My Saviour, please save me for Jesus sake. But because of PRIDE, you won't do that. It is Pride that keeps you glued to your seats during the invitation time. God has spoken to your heart. Your soul has been griped with the challenge of the message and the need to deal with the spiritual issue in your life. But it is almost as if your knuckles grow white from holding on to the pew to stop you from coming forward. Maybe you are saying, Pastor, I dare you to make me come forward. No, my friend it is the Holy Spirit of God pleading with you to come and make things right with the God of Heaven and with those around you. Humility is a natural outcome of drawing near to God. Again in James 4:8 & 10 we read, "Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you... Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." The closer you draw to God, the greater He becomes in your sight, and the more He occupies all your vision. As we come to a close this morning let us pray this prayer, "Father, I acknowledge that it is only by your grace I am what I am and can be what you want me to be. Help me never to take pride even in the fact that you have chosen me. May I only fall at your feet and thank you for your marvelous LOVE, GRACE, and MERCY in Jesus Christ, towards me. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen. ******************************************************************** If God has spoken to your heart after reading the sermon God s Grace to the Humble Part 2 then right now talk to God about what He has spoken to you. Do you have the assurance that one day you will go to heaven? If you have no assurance that you know Jesus Christ, then I trust you will decide to accept Him as your personal Savior. The Bible tells us in Acts 16:31,...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved... Romans 10:13, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. This prayer is here for those who need to ask Jesus to be their personal Savior: I do want to go to Heaven. I know I am a sinner, and I do believe Jesus Christ died for me. I realize I cannot buy this great salvation, nor can I earn it. Knowing Jesus died on the cross and arose from the grave to pay my sin debt and to purchase my Page 5

6 salvation, I do now trust Him as my Savior, and from this moment on I am completely depending on Him for my salvation. If you made the decision to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior let me know? Please send an to, pdmikbbm@aol.com and I will send you some literature that will help you in your Christian life. The Weekly SERMON was sent as a ministry of Bible Baptist Ministry, 48 Alexie Rd., Hanover Township, PA Privacy policy: your address will not be sold, or shared with any third party. Copy write permission: Because the Weekly SERMON will be reproduced into other formats, PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING: The Weekly SERMON in its original form, without any changes, may be copied and re-transmitted by electronic mail, and copies may be printed for individual or ministry purposes, provided that such copying, re-transmission, printing, or other use is not for profit or other commercial purpose. Any copying, re-transmission, distribution, printing, or other use of the Weekly SERMON must set forth in full the heading that is given before each Weekly SERMON. Any other request for use, please contact Bible Baptist Ministries at pdmikbbm@aol.com or by phone at Page 6