The First Step The Wise Take

Introduction I consider myself a pretty easy-going guy. I stay pretty calm and easy going most of the time. If you question my integrity, talk to me like I'm stupid, or interrupt me dismissively, then I might raise an eyebrow with you. And I read this week a good article that I'm going to use if someone interrupts me dismissively next time. The article I read stated that learning to listen can lower our blood pressure and stress hormone levels, and make us less at risk for a heart attack. A Duke University study found that people who interrupt are up to seven times more likely to get heart disease. When subjects in another study focused on being silent while others talked, they lowered their blood pressure and stress hormone levels. So the next time someone dismissively interrupts me, I'm going to point out that "A Duke University study found that people who interrupt are up to seven times more likely to get heart disease."

When we think highly of other people, we are interested in what they have to say. When we regard them as more important than ourselves, we listen to them instead of interrupting with our own opinions. Being a person who listens also demonstrated humility. Therefore, humility has health benefits. Who knew? We God knew. He designed us this way, so He knows that humility is good for us physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Humility is a personality trait we all should nurture more in our lives.

But our world is one where humility isn't a prized or admired trait. For the past few centuries humility has lost more and more admiration in our world. When Sheldon Vanauken was in Oxford in 1950, and was working his way toward Christ, he wrote to C. S. Lewis: “There is nothing in Christianity which is so repugnant to me as humility—the bent knee.”

A while back, MTV showed a documentary entitled, "The Seven Deadly Sins." I thought that was interesting because those seven sins: pride, covetousness, lust, anger, envy, gluttony, and sloth, are standard MTV fare. It turned out to be a montage of celebrity quotes, movie out-takes, interviews, one-liners, quips, and witticisms. Then rap singer now actress Queen Latifah was asked about the sin of pride. 'Pride is a sin?' she responded. 'I wasn't aware of that.' Actress Kirstie Alley added, 'I don't think pride is a sin…I think somebody made that up.' Rapper Ice-T echoed the same idea: 'Pride is mandatory.' It seems that one of the basic teachings of scripture is totally out of touch with the values of our modern culture, especially humility.

We learn different lessons throughout our lives. Some lessons in life are easy to learn. Other lessons are difficult to learn. One of the most difficult lessons to learn is a lesson in humility. Today in the continuation of our series "A Season of Wisdom" let's look at humility because the first step the wise take is always in humility. Bible Passage Proverbs 16:1-9 (ESV - English Standard Version) 1 The plans of the heart belong to man,  but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. 2 All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,  but the Lord weighs the spirit. 3 Commit your work to the Lord,  and your plans will be established. 4 The Lord has made everything for its purpose,  even the wicked for the day of trouble. 5 Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord;  be assured, he will not go unpunished. 6 By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,  and by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil. 7 When a man's ways please the Lord,  he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. 8 Better is a little with righteousness  than great revenues with injustice. 9 The heart of man plans his way,  but the Lord establishes his steps. Scriptural Analysis V1-3 One common theme from the beginning to the end of Proverbs is this: God is sovereign over man. Human hearts plan, but the results that come forth are somehow from God. Humans act according to their intentions, but God is somehow at work in those acts of word and deed.

Not only is God sovereign, but he knows our heart. A person may think nothing is wrong with what he does; outwardly it may seem innocent. But God knows his heart, whether the motives behind his actions are pure or not. The Lord judges people on the basis of why they act because He sees human hearts. The interaction of the three verses in this proverb suggests that God is better able to discern our motivations than we are, hence the need for wisdom and instruction that originate from outside ourselves.

Recognizing his presence in everyday affairs, we might paraphrase: “Plan, pray, then follow.” V4-6 Just as God weighs motives and plans, his sovereign purposes are established while those of the wicked fail in disaster. A counterpoint to the previous verse, this proverb reminds us that trust in God’s plan is no guarantee for our desires but rather a reciprocal relationship between God’s intentions and our own. Ultimately, God does what he purposes (or “answers”), even while there are those who seek to work out their purposes, purposes that are contrary to God’s. In fact, there is peace in knowing that the wicked do not undo God’s intentions for the world.

Everything – there’s nothing that you see that God created that He’d say, “I didn’t have a purpose for that.”  There’s a purpose for everything He creates, which means if you’re alive if your heart is beating, you are not an accident.  Regardless of the circumstances of your birth, you are not an accident.  And if you’re alive, He has a purpose for your life and a reason for your existence. “Love and faithfulness” are the classic pair that describe God’s relation to us. Both terms refer to steadfast love that does not forget to do kindness. It weathers hard times.

“Fear of the Lord,” the key theme of the book, takes on new significance here as both motivation and means for avoiding moral evil. V7-9 Friendship with God spills over into friendship with others. It is not stated whether this is an instance of cause and effect, as though peace with enemies is a reward, or whether the goodness of one’s ways works like the words of the wise, which create calm instead of turmoil. “Peace with God, peace with others” might be a paraphrase of the proverb that stands in the very center of the book. Tucked within the series of proverbs is this “better than” saying. The point is not to glorify poverty, but to deal with life’s complexities. The Bible addresses the complexities of life. Because interests sometimes conflict, one should learn to choose righteousness and justice over profit—certainly because it is better, but ultimately because it pleases God. From the beginning, God explicitly implies that we should care about justice, even for those not in our immediate circle. Verse 9 is a variation on the theme of 16:1–3 and using similar vocabulary, this saying compares the “heart” that plans a person’s way to the work of God, who confirms or establishes the steps. A person makes plans, and if the wisdom of the previous sayings has been heard, there is a beautiful balance between human plans and God’s oversight of the outcome. From a wisdom perspective, the two are in cooperation, not conflict. The plans we make and the steps we take, are always subject to God's sovereignty and will. To have our plans and God's will in step together is life at its most peaceful. TODAY'S KEY TRUTH The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord Application “Do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God.” Micah 6:8 is a well-known verse of scripture that says, "Walk humbly with your Lord."

God’s choice people have always been humble. Humility is the channel to fruitfulness. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12 “When I am weak, then I am,” what, “strong.” What he meant was when I recognized that in myself I can do nothing, it is just then that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” The Old Testament connects the quality of humility with Israel’s lowly experience as slaves in Egypt—a poor, afflicted, and suffering people (Deut. 26:6). For the Jews, that word for humility had a powerful meaning. The Hebrew word translated as humility is similar to another Hebrew word meaning “to be afflicted.” In Old Testament thought, humility was closely associated with individuals who were poor and afflicted. For the Israelites, that word hearkens back to a difficult & dark time, in which they could do nothing to rescue themselves. Their deliverance from brutal centuries of slavery was totally the work of God. They had plans and dreams to escape, but until God interceded nothing happen for hundreds of years. It was a joyous time to be delivered but also a humbling one. Their walk across the Red Sea was a reminder of who was delivering them.

What God desires most is not outward sacrifices but a humble spirit. Such a humble spirit shows itself in several ways: a recognition of one’s sinfulness before a holy God, obedience to God, and submission to God. The Old Testament promised blessings to those who were humble: wisdom, godly counseling, and honor. Those who do not humble themselves before God will be afflicted. The pathway to a life of freedom is found in steps of humility."

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord

According to the Bible, the root problem at the very core of all of our lives is pride. Now I know that’s nothing new. In fact, this problem first surfaced in the Garden of Eden. The issue with pride is that it robs us not only of a full and meaningful relationship with other people but, even more so, it robs us of a full and meaningful relationship with God. Adam and Eve sinned because of their pride, wanting to be like God. Throughout Scripture, we find the same theme repeatedly: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble”. But I’m afraid that most of us today are unaware of our problem with pride. C. S. Lewis once wrote, “If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can tell him the first step. The first step is to realize that one is proud.”

Let me share a working definition of pride with you: Pride is simply our refusal to acknowledge God as we should. It is failing to realize fully that all of our abilities, achievements, possessions, plans, and relationships are not due ultimately to our sound judgment or our superior wisdom, but to the gifts and grace of a sovereign God. Humility is the personal quality of being free from arrogance and pride and having an accurate estimate of one’s worth. According to the Bible, there is something wise about being humble. There is something noble about being meek. Even though such attributes are out of style in our current culture, the scriptures praise these qualities. Being humble doesn't mean being submissive! Being meek doesn't mean being weak. What does the Bible mean by humility? What is a humble person like? Being humble doesn't mean you think less of yourself, it means you think of yourself less. God called us to be humble because it enables us to be godly.

Actor Kevin Bacon recounted when his 6-year-old son saw Footloose for the first time: He said, "Hey, Dad, you know that thing in the movie where you swing from the rafters of that building? That's really cool, how did you do that?" I said, "Well, I didn't do that part, it was a stuntman." "What's a stuntman?" he asked. "That's someone who dresses like me and does things I can't do." "Oh," he replied and walked out of the room, looking a little confused. A little later he said, "Hey, Dad, you know that thing in the movie where you spin around on that gym bar and land on your feet? How did you do that?" I said, "Well, I didn't do that. It was a gymnastics double." "What's a gymnastics double?" he asked. "That's a guy who dresses in my clothes and does things I can't do." There was silence from my son, then he asked in a concerned voice, "Dad, what did you do?" "I got all the glory," I sheepishly replied.

Too often we are not sheepish in our desire for recognition and all the glory. How many relationships and churches have been hurt because of people’s desire for recognition? We are prideful people, and we want what we think is due us, what we deserve. If we do something, we better be recognized. If someone else is recognized for something else, then we better be acknowledged as well. I have seen many churches hurt because someone was upset that they were not recognized, their name was acknowledged, or someone did not say thanks enough. When we do something, serve in some way, even if originally we had good intentions, but we get our feelings hurt, or we become angry because we did not receive what we think is proper recognition then pride has taken over, and we have cancelled out any good we accomplished. Simply said, humility means being of low estate. It means seeing others as higher than our self. It means to serve for serving’ sake, not for our own honor or recognition. Serving is based upon God and not ourselves. We serve to please and honor God. Humble people are not filled up with the hot air of arrogance and pride. They are not people who clamor to be President or Prime Minister.  That's the kind of humility we need. Humility enables us to serve without demanding recognition.

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord

What's even more humbling is often the recognition we think we deserve isn't really ours to receive anyway. Alex Haley, the author of Roots, had a picture in his office, showing a turtle sitting atop a fence. The picture is there to remind him of a lesson he learned long ago: “If you see a turtle on a fence post, you know he had some help.” Alex Haley said, “Any time I start thinking, Wow, isn’t this marvelous what I’ve done! I look at that picture and remember how this turtle—me—got up on that post.”

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord Conclusion I don't know about you, but I feel like a pretty crummy Christian sometimes. I can be competitive, greedy, judgmental, and self-absorbed. None of those qualities demonstrate humility.

To be humble, doesn't mean to be self-loathing, but to acknowledge our need for God's mercy and grace. To be humble doesn't mean you don't like yourself, but it does mean that you know you can't climb to heaven on the strength of your own flawless spiritual performance. To be humble means to acknowledge that you want to do better, to be a better person, and to acknowledge that God can and wants to help you. To be humble, as a Christian, means to have a realistic self-assessment and to have hope to change for the better.

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord

As we bring our time to an end, let me share four practices that help us remain humble.

Confession of your sins. The humble don't get concerned with the sins of other people because they are focused on getting their own sins right with God. The humble know there's no right relationship with God if there's no confession and repentance.

Serve God simply because you are demonstrating your love for God. Serve without any intentions or need to be recognized. The Bible tells us if we seek our reward here, we forfeit it in heaven.

Give thanks to God for the simple things we have taken for granted lately. God has blessed us in some many ways, but we forget to thank Him for the small things. Realize that those small blessings make your life what it is today. We are turtles who didn't get on the fence by our own doing.

Value others more. Christ is our example. Christ always placed others above himself. He valued you and me enough to be willing to die for our sins, though He was blameless. Christ shows us that we are to think of others before we think of ourselves.

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord

Our world is one of a lot of anxiety, hurt, and noise. Humility is a perfect quietness of the heart. It is to expect nothing, to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised. Likewise, it is to have a blessed home in the Lord, where I can go in and shut the door, and kneel to my Father in secret, and am at peace as in a deep sea of calmness, even when all around and above me feels like troubled waters. The humble person is not one who thinks harshly of himself, he simply does not think of himself at all. Christian humility is an invitation to work behind the scenes, to appreciate the simple blessings of life, and to trust God whose strength will never fail. It does not require that you think less of yourself, it requires that you think of yourself less as you walk in step with God.

The Wise Walk Humbly With The Lord