HUMBLE BEFORE THE KING

INTRO: Story of me playing golf with Stephanie and being humbled when I accidently launched her golf club in the air.

I was humbled. There is a sense in which I never want to feel that way again, but in another sense, there is something about that moment that I always need to have in my heart and mind, which is humility.

What is humility? C.J. Mahaney defined humility as “honestly assessing ourselves in light of God’s holiness and our sinfulness.”

MIT: God spoke directly about the only proper way we are to worship Him

MIM: The only proper way we are to worship Him is with humility

Regardless of all of our religious efforts and practices, if we do anything with a proud and selfish heart, we are not offering up acceptable worship before the King of kings.

Why does God expect humility from us in our worship to Him?

1) HUMILITY MAKES US SEE GOD AND OURSELVES MORE CLEARLY (V.1-2)

(V.1) Many of the Israelites had a wrong understanding of the temple

A. The temple had the very presence of God dwelling inside, but some failed to see that God is so much greater than what the temple could contain.

David was the one who came up with the idea to build a beautiful temple for the Lord, but his son Solomon built the temple.

a. After it was completed, Solomon said in 1 Kings 8:27, “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built!”

2. Even all of heaven cannot contain the weight and the vastness of God’s greatness

a. “Heaven” not only refers to the place where the angels are, but it also means the sky and stars and the universe. The glory and beauty of God is not even limited to the universe, for it is too small.

b. The universe is just like a throne to God, whereas all the earth, is nothing but like a foot stool for our King.

c. How crazy is it to think that God can be confined to a temple? God accepted the temple as an expression of worship, but Israel was not to forget that God cannot confined or controlled by a place.

(v.2a) God further stated that He is the Maker of all things

B. He is the one who made the stones that made up the temple! He is the one who made the lambs and all the sacrificial animals!

Israel was proud of all their religious actions.

a. ILL: Something that Luke and Joel like to do just for fun is to get a bag or a box and then go find some toys that we already bought for them, and then put them inside, and then give it to me as a funny gift to make me laugh. As a dad, I love that, its cute, because its about their heart. But all of our religious actions are just like that- using what God already gave us and giving it back to Him. How can we be prideful and arrogant, when God alone deserves the glory?

(v.2b) But here God reveals what gets His attention

C. This is the one to whom I will “look.” God is not interested in dwelling inside a building, but in people.

This gets God’s attention, lets is what draws His eyes upon someone

He who is humble, contrite in spirit, and trembles before His Word

“Humble”- to be afflicted, to be poor and needy, to be weak and wretched

Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Are you humble before God this way?

“Contrite” in spirit- means to be crushed, crippled, and beaten down.

Do you feel the weight of your sin before the holiness of God? We have nothing to offer God. The only good thing about any of us is Jesus.

“Trembles” before His Word- means to be afraid and anxious.

The same word is used to describe to the people of Gideon when they were at war, trembling before the Midianites and were sent home because of it.

This means that God expects us to hold His Word in such high esteem that we will do whatever it takes to obey it. We should be afraid if we do not.

D. Application: Be the the kind of people that God expects us to be as His church

Be humble before God by seeing Him for who He is, and you for who you are

Be contrite and broken over your sin by being humble before God

Tremble before His Word by elevating the Bible as our authority above everything else

Pray and ask God to help you to see Him more clearly as you study and submit yourself to His Word

Remember that this place is not the house of God- if you are in Christ, you are the house of God. Let us treat each other as such.

ILL: If someone came inside here and disrespected this sanctuary or said nasty things about our building, that would be wring, but does not even come close to how terrible it is when we insult the house of God, namely each other.

ILL: Pictures from of our church going out

A light year is how far light travels in a year. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second.

Our galaxy is 100,000 light years away

John Calvin- “Men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.”

2) PRIDE MAKES OUR WORSHIP TO GOD ABOMINABLE (V.3)

(V.3) ILL: When I hear the word “abominable” I think of the “abominable snow monster” from Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. The abominable refers to something monstrous, detestable, unclean, and filthy. But that is the type of word God chose to use to describe our worship if we are not humble, contrite in spirit, or trembling before His Word.

A. Evidently, Isaiah was writing this to the Israelite religious leaders who failed in those 3 areas.

They were proud. They did not care about their sin. They did not care to submit themselves under the authority of God’s Word.

The irony is that they still followed some of the Bible, but disregarded other parts, which were still important to God.

The offered up sacrifices, like the Old Testament commanded, but they also allowed idol worship into their services.

We cannot take worship lightly, before we come together for worship, or whether you are worshipping Him alone, we must have a humble heart that is broken over sin and is willing to trust and follow His Word at any cost.

Since Israel was not that way before the Lord, look at the result of their worship in verse 3

All of their “obedient” sacrifices were looked upon by God as if they were sacrificing human beings (which was murder) dogs (which were unclean to Jews), pigs (which were even more unclean), and it was like they were worshipping idols.

Isaiah 64:6, “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.”

They all chose that way because they loved their “abominations,” their sin, more than God.

B. Application: Let’s evaluate our hearts before the Lord.

Let’s follow Paul’s advice in Romans 12:1, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

Thankfully we do not need to sacrifice animals anymore, because of Jesus. He is the last and final sacrifice for the forgiveness of all sin, for those who trust Him. But everyday, we who know and trust Him by faith, are to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Christ. We are to daily sacrifice or lay down our selfishness and sin and lay our whole self down before the authority of His Word.

3) PRIDE BRINGS THE DISCIPLINE OF GOD (V.4-6)

(v.4) God disciplined His people whom He loved. Like all good discipline, the goal of discipline is repentance and restoration.

A. The Israelites had fears of the future, of calamity or difficulty coming, and so they incorporated the worship of false gods in order to feel more secure

They placed their security in the wrong place. Their sense of security should have been in God and in following His Word. But they wanted more of a sense of control. Since they failed to look to God and His Word alone, they trusted in their own resources and the result was God’s discipline.

He chose to discipline them with harsh treatment (he allowed their fears to come true).

Why? When He called and spoke, no one answered. How does He call and speak to us? His Word. God disciplined His people for disregarding His Word.

(v.5) Now God is speaking directly to those who are humble, contrite in spirit, and are trembling before His Word

B. There was division between those who were serving the Lord with humility and obedience and those who were serving the Lord with pride and disobedience

Disobedient religious leaders wanted to cast out the obedient and mocked them. Those who feared the Lord with humility would not bend when it came to His Word. God promised that even though the righteous here suffered, it would be the disobedient who would be put to shame.

(v.6) God came in judgment upon those who arrogantly persisted in their sin

C. The sound of an uproar from the city was a picture of God coming in judgment

It was a sound from the temple, from the Lord

God brought “recompense” or “punishment” upon those filled with pride, unrepentance, and who disregard His Word.

D. Application: Let us fear God above anything else

Individually, plead and ask God to help you have a humble, contrite, and trembling spirit. Ask Him to convict you in your own life of any sin that you may follow Him better.

Corporately, ask God to come in power upon our church again. Beg Him to come and bring conviction of sin. Plead with Him to lead us all to submit ourselves to the Word of God. We have asked for unity. The result of submitting ourselves under God’s authority will be unity. Let’s have His gaze upon us by being a humble and obedient people.

Remember also the words of 1 Peter 4:17, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

I want to avoid the discipline of God at all cost. This is not talking about hell, but discipline. If you are in Christ, you are saved. God will discipline us like a good Father. If you are not saved, God will punish you in hell, unless you come to Christ. Will you do that now?