"Humility of Heavenly Wisdom (James)" - Pastor Doug Batchelor

dear father once again me thank you for the opportunity to study your word together we invite the Holy Spirit to come and lead our our hearts and our minds this is an important subject so we ask in a special way for your presence to be with us in Jesus name Amen continuing in our study in the book of James and we have a memory verse the lesson is James it's lesson 8 and it's the memory verse is James 4:10 and it's well I'll let you all say it with me you ready if you've got your lesson open or your Bibles open here we go James 4:10 humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up that's right some of you it says he will exalt you think of King James New King James it says he will lift you up this lesson is titled humility the humility of heaven let me say that again this lesson is titled the humility of heavenly wisdom and we're gonna have some of you participate in just a moment and helping us read along you know in preparation for this lesson I'm actually you know just even teaching and preaching it blesses me because in studying to talk to others it's not as though I'm one who has arrived I'm convicted often by the things I prepare in in the study time and this lesson that's dealing with pride in humility I'd read it years before there's a book a book that's somewhat of a classic called mere christianity by CS lewis and he's got a chapter in there called the great sin and in that chapter where he deals with the great sin it's talking about pride I'll read you one little excerpt from that according to Christian teachers the essential vice the utmost evil is pride unchastity anger greed drunkenness and all of that are mere flea bites in comparison it was through pride the devil became the devil pride leads every other vice it is complete anti-god state of mind it is the complete anti god state of mind and you know as I was pondering that and considering the lesson it really is the foundation of just about every other sin because pride really leads to the heart of selfishness pride is what turn Satan into a devil or Lucifer I should say into a devil he was a goody angel and I I don't know if it was John Knox I forget which one of the reformers it was that said you're never more like the devil than when you're proud and you're never more like Jesus than when you're humble because they represent the two polar opposites Jesus was this coming to me for I am meek and lowly Jesus was the exhibit a of humility and so in this lesson and in a number of places in the book of James he appeals for us to model the characteristics of Christ which is that of humility now just to start out I thought it'd be good to look at some of the examples in the Bible that illustrate this point of how dangerous pride is when Christ first began teaching in Matthew chapter 5 he talks about the scribes and the Pharisees but it's not restricted to them happens in churches all the time that pray to be seen of men so you pray long prayers thinking that you're gonna impress people with how holy you are what is the root motive for doing that right he said that they fast and disfigure their faces so that they can look holy and tell everybody they're fasting what is the motive behind that right it's you know trying to appear religious this is where it's so dangerous it's religious pride and they said that and you blow the trumpet before you make a donation you want to make sure that they name a pew or a window or brick after you because of your donation what's at the heart of that jesus said when you gift don't let your when you give don't let your left hand know what your right hand does that would be humility when you quietly give things away I read about this billionaire is one of our amazing facts during our program I can't remember his name right now but he had over a billion dollars and he gave away all of it but a couple hundred million dollars and he did it quietly without any fanfare he would secretly go into these institutions he write letters he'd say here's what I hope you can use this for and he just he said you know my goal is I want to provide for my family what they're gonna need says I want a guy without anything left and it was just amazing that he just gave away his wealth and he wanted nobody to know he had matter of fact for the longest time people were wondering where's all this money coming from for these projects and he would fly coach fare billionaire ride the bus in the Train didn't own a car didn't own home this is quite a it's quite a story and but he didn't want any credit for doing that religious pride and since we're principally talking to people that are studying Sabbath School lesson I thought that's an important context for this it's just as deadly as any other kind of pride you know you see a football player get a touchdown he does his victory dance what's behind man stomping around throwing the ball it's just you know it's an act of humility it's pride but do we have that sometimes even in the church make a donation blow the trumpet say a long prayer tell everyone we're fasting why did the religious leaders crucify Jesus because of pride and envy even Pilate said Bible says he knew that it was for envy that they had brought him to Pilate envy is really a its fallout from pride I mean jealous that somebody else is getting the credit that you want so pride is really striking at the heart you can even think of some of the good people in the Bible good Kings King ezza you read about the history of other he's the second longest reigning king in Judea actually for all of Israel think he reigned 52 that's a long reign Manasseh is the only one that reigned longer I think that was 55 years I was a good king he built the Lord was with him matter of fact the record of us and he walked in the commandments of the Lord according to David his father or like David his father but one day I don't know what came over him you know I guess you they say that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and when you're King and everyone tells you how wonderful you are because they want favours it can start to you can start believing it after a while and something possessed him and one day as a thought you know how come I can't go into the holy place and burn incense like a priest all of these other pagan nations around me the Kings also get to act as a priest why don't I get a act like a priest even I should be who knows what he was thinking but he took a golden censer in his hand he threw some incense on the coals and he went and started to wave it back and forth like a priest all the priests saw what was happening and letting 80 priests got together and they all confronted him and they said your majesty this is not appropriate the scriptures say it is only for the sons of Aaron to do this said I'm the king I can do what I want and they said no and he got angry why do you get angry pride was offended he wanted a position above and as he began to argue and say I've got my rights and I should be able to do this and who knows what he said just says he became enraged leprosy broke out in his forehead right at that very moment and it stayed with him till the day he died what does leprosy a type of in the Bible sin and you're never more like the devil than when you're proud they chased them out of the sanctuary because he was unclean and he had to finish out his reign living in isolation what about King Hezekiah good King who here wouldn't want Hezekiah I mean he prayed and God slew a whole army good King he prayed and God turned the Sun backwards didn't just stop it like he did for Joshua it went backwards he's a good king but when the ambassadors came from Babylon and he said no where are you guys from that Babylon Wow that was the center of learning in the world from Babel you've come to me to learn from me Wow hey you know compared to Babel and I'm a small King but I better impress these guys and so instead of telling them about the God they've come to inquire about the Wonder done when the Lord turned the Sun back that's what the Bible says instead of talking to them about God what a wasted missionary opportunity he said let me show you my spices let me show you my armory let me show you my treasures let me show you and my mind mind me me me and then Isaiah came and he said these people came learned to learn about the Lord what did they see in your house and so Wow yeah babbling I showed him everything well they were impressed you should have seen them their eyes sparkled when they saw my stuff and I say I said yeah well here's the rest of the story because you were just thinking about yourself this is a paraphrase he said the Babylonians are gonna come and they're gonna take all the treasures you showed them back to Babylon and they'll take of your sons and make them eunuchs in their palace Daniel Shadrach Meshach and Abednego or some of the princes of Judea that were taken off and he was proud of his stuff I think it was Spurgeon that said don't be proud of faith or race or place meaning your position but stand at the door after a sermon when your pastor and people say the nicest things but I have also stood at the door knowing that I preached a terrible sermon and people still said nice things and it finally occurred to me that people are just being nice and they don't know what else to say you start to believe all that stuff I think who was it again it was John Knox someone said to him pastor Knox you're the best preacher in all of Scotland he said I know the devil tells me that all the time so after a year the Bible says in Daniel chapter 4 verse 30 the King spoke and said he's walking on his balcony overlooking beautiful sunset glistening off the kingdom of Babylon which was quite a kingdom is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty and while the word was in the king's mouth there fell a voice from heaven saying O Nebuchadnezzar Tavita spoke and the kingdom is departed from me just that quick he turned in just a raving animal he dropped to his knees and began to trial around and and people wondered what in the world went wrong with him you know I understand I think it was King George during the Revolutionary War lost his mind and they ended up finding it was well at least the historians speculate he had some kind of uric acid poisoning or something that was rare disease but he ended up getting his wits back but a long time they tried to hide that the king had lost his mind King George and you know the orders that he gave his British troops were not very coherent as America being independent today is evidence of that but Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind and they tried to talk about putting him out to pasture they literally did and they tried to hide it I don't know who knows he is his cabinet tried to run things for all but for seven years he kept wondering where did he go how many of you heard in the news today that folks are all speculating what's wrong with the the dictator of North Korea just suddenly fell off the public scene for six weeks and not any appears young guy younger than me a little bit heavy for his age wobbling around with a cane and I'm thinking after just guessing him maybe he's got gout I don't know what it was but they trying to hide it because it can create instability and so they tried to hide it for Nebuchadnezzar but what made him lose his mind pride now we're gonna come back to this theme of pride later in our lesson I just wanted to you reduce that just from bow to stern in the Bible why didn't Eve eat from the forbidden fruit the devil said you will you what did the devil one be like the Most High you will be like God and yeah so all those things yeah that's another good point Bible says love not the world this is a first John chapter 2 verse 15 nor the things that are in the world for If any man loves the world the love of the father's not in them for all that's in the world the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father but of the world and the world passes away in the lusts thereof but he that does the will of God so the pride in the world is the antithesis of what God is and so as James is talking about this he mentions pride and humility quite a bit it must have been the problem in the church back then I'm glad we don't have that problem in our church today your your laugh will take his testimony that you know I was being facetious all right the meekness of wisdom we're gonna ask you to help us with a few verses someone look up for me proverbs 27 verse 2 he's gonna have that you'll have that one dig in just a moment here and I'm gonna read James 3:13 who is wise and understanding among you let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom now you notice we're still little by little plotting through James and now we're just reading James 3:13 we're breaking these things down in the meekness of wisdom the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom but here he's connecting meekness with wisdom how much wiser was Nebuchadnezzar when he had an eruption of pride or did he lose all his wisdom and became an animal so pride you know people make a lot of rash bad decisions when they're driven by prying meekness is a good starting point matter of fact why don't you go ahead read that verse for us now in proverbs 27 let another man praise you and not your own mouth a stranger and that's your own lips if now is it ever wrong to compliment somebody is it ever wrong well there could be does the Bible talking about flattering your neighbor and spreading a net for their feet could mean it's not always wrong I said is it ever wrong trick question yeah somebody said that humility is mind over flattered and someone else that complements are like perfume sniff but do not swallow because there's another one here's I got one metaphor after another many of bee has drowned in its own honey you ever heard that one so you don't want to take these things too serious and it's good we should show appreciation we should compliment but you know what's the difference between a compliment and flattery well sincerity motivation I think sometimes when someone is flattering another person they're wanting a favor and the buttering a person up you try to win some kind of benefit from them and anyway all right let's move along we should in Hebrews 13:7 I want you to know as we just read James 3:13 it talks about let him show by good conduct that his works are done in righteousness then you go to Hebrews 13:7 that word conduct in the Greek is really talking about a life of wisdom you know one of the things I noticed about David King David is he's actually the only David in the Bible so that's not easy to confuse when he was living in the palace with Saul and he knew that Saul's temperament was very tenuous it says he conducted himself wisely why did Saul want to kill David what started though what triggered the whole thing to remember nothing Ya Ya Ya Ya they're coming back from a battle against the Philistines and the women used to come out and meet the soldiers when they came back and they would come out with singing and tambourines and and and the women were singing a song and everybody saw like the first verse it said Saul has slain his thousands and he took a big chest fillet air and lifted his head a little notch and then they he heard verse two and David his ten thousands from that moment he wanted to kill David if they had said Saul has killed his thousands and David his hundreds he would have been happy but because they ascribed more victories to David then too and what they meant was when David killed Goliath he killed he sent the whole army running there talking about that that did not sit very well especially with the young ladies singing that that just right there was a tipping point for him why pride how different was the attitude of Saul's son Jonathan than his father Jonathan said David I know God has chosen you and even though I'm the crown prince you're gonna be king in my place and he said I just hope that you'll not wipe out my family when I'm gone and I'll be there to help you and he was sincere a humble man and yet he had great victories in battle - I ever wonder sometimes when you go through the kings of Israel you get a really bad wicked King and he has a really good king as a son yeah it's like Josiah his father was wicked but Josiah was good and then his sons were wicked and Hezekiah was good but Manasseh was wicked Saul was wicked Jonathan was good kind of goes to show that the sons will not bear the sin for the father and the father for the sons mother's daughter same thing anyway but Hebrews I never got to it sorry Hebrews uses the same word remember those this is Hebrews 13:7 remember those who rule over you have spoken the Word of God to you whose faith follow considering the outcome of their conduct right now we're gonna someone reads proverbs 1619 you'll have that Katrina in just a moment okay speaking about now we're talking about the meekness of wisdom his wisdom different from knowledge you know you can have lots of knowledge and there's some people that are geniuses that they'll fall down three times on the way to the piano but once they get there they just play like a genius you might be able to build a car with knowledge takes wisdom to know how fast to drive the car you know what I'm saying it's different in the Daniel chapter 12 notice the use of these words those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who turn many to righteousness like the Stars forever and ever but you Daniel shut up the words and seal the book until the time of the end many will run to and fro and knowledge will increase how many would agree that we're living in an age that has more knowledge I mean you don't have to pull them out right now but on your smartphones you're able to access the information of the world through Google or Yahoo or Bing or whatever your favorite search engine happens to be can you imagine just imagine trying to explain that to the Apostle Peter as he climbs from his fishing boat 2,000 years ago say yeah I got it I want to show you something Peter come over here see this thing you think it's a shiny rock it's not it's called a smartphone let me show you what it can do of course they wouldn't have the support network back then so but you know what I'm saying just think about the knowledge I've heard various statistics that you know in the last 20 years the majority of knowledge of all of history can be focused in just the last 20 years in every few years it's doubling you just think about how from but with all that knowledge do we still have people that are just blowing each other up in different parts of the world and and doing terribly violent things to total strangers when it comes to wisdom wisdom will turn people to righteousness knowledge can just be knowing things and in the last days people will run to and fro we're running to and fro faster now than we ever have in the history of man and knowledge will increase but not necessarily wisdom wisdom comes from the fear of the Lord wise men speak because they have something to say fools because they have nothing to say if someone said he that knows little often repeats it you ever read what Solomon says about the wise and the fools I don't have time to go through all of that but of course being foolish if something the Bible talks about a lot jesus said when we don't have faith were foolish Oh fools and slow of heart to believe all the prophets have spoken the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom go ahead read with us read that next verse for us then it should be off a humble spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud and this is what James is talking about by the way that was proverbs 1619 a humble spirit with a lowly men to divide the spoil with the proud and you know these are just some of the all through proverbs he talks about having a humble spirit now how humble was Solomon or it depends upon what age of his life you're talking about when Solomon was young what was his prayer Lord I am just a child I don't know how to go out or come in and hear you've made me ruler of this people that's like the sand of the sea I don't know what I'm doing and because he had a humble heart he said lord please give me understanding that I could know the difference between good and evil because he had a humble attitude God answered his prayer and he gave him all the things that proud people pray for gave riches and glory and and all of that but later in his life when a prophet came to him and told him he was sinning because he was beginning to let his pagan wives manipulate him and he was putting idols in the temple of the Lord when the Prophet confronted him Solomon wanted to punish the Prophet his whole attitude changed he became proud his pride was offended can you think of other stories in the Bible where a prophet comes to tell the king the truth and the Kings pride is offended he wants to take it out on prophet how about Jeroboam you remember when the Prophet from Judah doesn't tell us his name came to rebuke him for putting up idols those golden calves and the king said seize him what happened to his arm froze right he couldn't pull it back it just locked up and then he said to the Prophet please pray for me his pride was offended that this prophet would have the audacity to tell him the truth in the name of the Lord and it kind of humbled him then do you remember in the Bible when Mike ayah was a prophet he went and he talked to Ahab and Jehoshaphat and he said day hab says you're gonna die in battle if you go fight at ramoth-gilead because of what you've done to the prophets of God it'd have said put him in jail and feed him with a bread of affliction in the water of affliction until I come back in peace why pride was offended have you ever been offended when someone told you the truth you ever had someone say something to you and then they'd say they're just kidding usually they're not kidding when they say that isn't that true and once someone says it's not the money it's usually the money this has nothing to do with the money that's not always true but often it can be true well we're getting more than we paid for now let's get back into the lesson someone said once wisdom is knowing what to do next skill is knowing how to do it you might even say knowledge is knowing how to do it and virtue is doing it all right let's go to two kinds of wisdom James 5 15 and 16 and someone's gonna be reading Colossians 3:1 in 2 and who's got that verse next okay I recognize that young lady all right James 3 let's read that this wisdom does not descend from above he's talking about the wisdom of the world but it is sensual demonic for where envy and self-seeking exist confusion and every evil thing are there have you ever heard stories about a church that's split to different church groups form not da night in talking about church plant talking with split you understand the difference what usually is that the foundation of a church split and God has taken some church splits and worked it for good but you know more times than not there are two warring fractions that are not being led by the spirit but they're being led by the flesh in other words it's they're just arguing among themselves over some it may have been architectural plans I mentioned that because I know one church in particular that when it came to the architectural plans people were so entrenched they had to fight and they split and ended up with two churches because of it some it could be a decorating committee you know what often causes church splits nominating committee why do you think someone has passed up for a position or they're replaced and they become upset they start and get a group together and they say oh this leadership here they don't recognize real talent or they may not say it that way and then they they have a breakaway but what's at the heart of that spirit of Christ mimimi yeah I'm so glad Jesus disciples never had problems with that what were the disciples arguing about even up until just before the Last Supper yeah hey whoa James and John came with the help of a good Jewish mother that went to Jesus and said you know you released sons of mine you know she was actually a distant relative of Jesus through Mary so she was asking for you know family favorite blood is thicker than water you know they really ought to be sitting on your right in your left hand and then later they argued on the road which of them was the greatest now James and John they were so mad at James and John where that happened why do you think the disciples were mad at James and John because they thought of it first they thought of asking that and they are all thinking it but they thought they actually had the audacity to ask and they got their mother to do it for him who could be more qualified than my sons doesn't every mother feel that way talking about the disciples doesn't that encourage you though that if Jesus disciples that ended up turning the world upside down with the Holy Spirit if they had problems with pride when we look in our hearts and in our mirrors and I look in the mirror and it lends the humility but you know what I'm talking about and we see we see these same things in our own hearts we think how am I ever gonna make it that you think well Jesus was dealing with the same substance in the disciples Paul Barnabas good friends was there a little church split among them mark John mark on one of their missionary endeavors he just got discouraged and just gate threw in the towel and walked away and left him and they really needed his help and then later when they said we're gonna go on another missionary excursion Barnabas said let's bring mark with us pulse it not on your life you forgot what happened last time no I wish isn't baseball three strikes in your out he said once you're out Barna said give him another chance he said no we can't afford to risk him just walking out on us again and we're gonna teach him a lesson who knows but a bit they said something like that and it says the contention was so great between them I'm sure it fried had nothing to do with it which of them was right that they split and they ended up with two missionary groups Barnabas went with John Mark but by the way Barnabas was evidently right because later in Paul's writings he said send mark to me he's profitable for me in the gospel but and then Silas went with Paul so he ended up with two missionary groups God worked things together for good but I don't think he wanted them to have that kind of contention I think there's a lot of sometimes unnecessary contention in families sometimes in families people say things with a little bit of a cutting edge on their words little sarcasm a little bit of a bite why someone's been offended and they're just letting you know with their verbage well I couldn't be sharp too and all kinds of conflicts come into families because what I have not been appreciated the way I think I should be appreciated I man here he goes on a business trip and why he's gone I fill his car with gas and I wash it and he doesn't say anything to thank me I wasn't thinking of anyone in particular but sometimes if those things happen where you know we feel like we're not appreciated or we forget to appreciate and and people's feelings are hurt and I don't think about us now you're gonna read your scripture Colossians 3 1 & 2 if then you were raised with Christ seek those things which are above where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God set your mind on things above not on things on the earth now this is a corollary of the verse that we just read in James where it said this wisdom does not this wisdom does not descend from above talking about the sensual wisdom of the world there's two kinds of wisdom there's a godly wisdom there's a worldly wisdom and that's what also Paul is talking about he says if you've been raised with Christ seek those things that are above and most of the times in our spirit we can just tell right now we're by the time this program airs it might be over but we're in the midst of election season and I believe everyone should be patriotic good to vote vote your conscience but let's face it sometimes you almost have to hold your nose and vote and when you listen to the ads that are constantly lambasting at each other and and you'll wonder and boy but the wisdom that goes into some of the political jostling I mean they get the best minds in the world is that divine wisdom or is it worldly wisdom well they're clever shrewd sharp evil all at the same time so there's an earthly wisdom and then there's a heavenly wisdom you know to be a good peacemaker takes wisdom but it's a different kind of wisdom that's from above this is where James is highlighting Jesus talks about this wisdom that comes from above John 3 we all know this John 3:3 I'll read through verse 7 this is when Nicodemus came to Christ and jesus answered and said to him most assuredly I say to you unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God and Nicodemus said to him how can a man be born when he is old can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born of course there's a little sarcasm there jesus answered most assuredly I say to you unless you're a born of the water in the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God that which is born of flesh is flesh and that which is born of spirit is spirit do not marvel that I say unto you you must be born again I heard it said before and I probably repeated it several times if you're only born once you will die twice second death if you're born twice you only die once if mind I die at all if you're alive when Jesus comes right you need to be born again the second birth which brings about the spiritual life in the soul and this is that wisdom that is from above that Jesus talks about and where does the wisdom come from from the fear of the Lord the Bible also tells us that comes from the word of the Lord now I'm jumping back to Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 4 verse 5 and 6 Moses this is the last sermon of Moses is what Deuteronomy is he says surely I have taught you statutes and judgments just as the Lord my God commanded me that you should act according to them in the land that you go to possess therefore be careful to observe them for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of these peoples who will hear of all these statutes and say surely this nation is a wise and understanding people where does this wisdom come from it says when you follow the statutes that I've given you even other nations will say wow this is a wise and an understanding people can I just since we're talking about politics I'll just put in my two cents and it's just happening so fast while I believe America was founded with the principle of separation of church and state meaning that it was the intention of the founders that there was never to be a denomination or church like they had in England that ran the state or like the head in Rome it was never intended by the founders you can read their language to mean that our nation was not to be governed by biblical morals that's right and because people have taken that too far now they're just it seems like they're changing everything we were once I still not planning and moving but we were once a nation that all the other nations wanted to be like because it said where do you find such a wise nation because the biblical principles were the foundation of our government and you know these were the principles that in Providence Rhode Island I started with when was the Roger Williams he said we are to follow the last six Commandments in our government I'm rather sorry yeah beginning with honor your father and mother he says no country can survive that does not recognize the last six commandments we will let every man decide for himself how to apply the first four we will not tell you what God to worship we will not tell you when to worship Him we will not tell you who he is everyone is free to determine that but you cannot survive civilly if you don't respect the last six when the government takes away parental rights when we stop respecting the institution of marriage or say that marriage can be between any number of people of any gender or commingle in any way that's then you stop being that nation that other nations will look at and say what a wise and an understanding people and that's a real concern of mine because I just it seems like some of these fundamental principles that were the foundation of the country this divine wisdom that we once had just like falling like dominoes and a country cannot long survive that does that anyway all right getting back to now I'm off my soapbox but it felt good someone's gonna read Galatians 5:17 just a minute that will that be you Candace and so you're holding the mic okay I'm gonna read first Jane's for one where do Wars and Fighting's come from among you do they not come from your desires for pleasures that war in your members now when he says desire for pleasures he's not just talking about central desires he's talking about just the selfish earthly desires and that could be pride it could be attention and it's just you know our selfish selfishness and these are also you got to fruits that it talks about their in Galatians and you got the fruits of the flesh and the fruits of the spirit and they're just their opposites from each other and they it's like there's that war Paul talks about the war between the spirit and the flesh we are not to be carnally minded we're to be spiritually minded that's Romans chapter 8 talks about that our God read for its relations 5:17 for the flesh lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary to one another so that you do not do the things that you wish so he recognized that there's this battle between these two forces that we all have inside between the spirit and flesh I feel it every day unless I consciously pray for God's Spirit and the Spirit is present to guide me in my thinking my thinking will be selfish it's just like a compass needle you can move a compass needle but it takes an outside force left to itself it's going to point the same direction every time and unless we have the Holy Spirit giving us the mind of Christ we will naturally interpret everything that happens around us in a selfish way it is not normal for a baby to be loving have you noticed that babies are born they're cute that God makes some cute because if they weren't cute they wouldn't last long they're cute but they are extremely selfish right and you have to teach them to love it comes more naturally for some than others if you overindulge them you end up with a selfish monster that's right fish ain't the whole world revolves around them when they're little it's all about me me me I remember there's a song we sing in cradle roll Jesus loves the little ones like me me me fortunately y'all there's another verse that says he also loves people like you you you isn't that right that first part comes really easy for the little kids James for still reading now root reading James for verse two we just read James for verse one you lust and you do not have you murder and you covet and you cannot obtain you fight in you war yet you do not have you do not ask and you ask and you do not receive because you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures adulterers and adulteresses do you not point how did he ever get elected to office in the church talking to the members like that adulterers and adulteresses do you not know now was he saying that everybody in the church was committing adultery or do you think that he was also talking about what was happening on the inside and the pure in heart will see God adultery Jesus made it clear not just the Act it can be the attitude he said you and one more thing while we're on that subject adultery in the Hebrew mind they remember the book of Hosea there's a spiritual adultery not just thinking it carnally but against God when we're like when a Christian is thinking how much do I have to give up to get into heaven how much of the world can I still have and manage to squeeze in the gates that is thinking like the world that's not motivated by love for God that's that's really a kind of spiritual adultery can you imagine a husband saying to his wife can we negotiate a little bit there you're standing before the past you're about to get married let's put it in that context and you say pastor comes apart we says forsaking all other keep yourselves solely under under him or her and they said wait can I just go on a couple of dates a month with a old girlfriend just just a date just dinner when you start thinking like that would the bride-to-be say wait a second now I might have the wrong guy what did you you think something's wrong in the heart and so when we said Lord you know I want to go to heaven but I really like the devil too I really like the world too that's the kind of adultery that I think the James is talking about here all right do you not know friendship with the world that's what he's talking about is Emma tea with God where do you see that word emnity Genesis 3 is at verse 15 yeah yeah where it says that I will put enmity between thee and the woman the woman is a symbol there of the church right between thy seed and her seed and you got the seed of the serpent in the seed of the woman that M nity means polar opposites there's a resistance you ever try and push the same end of two magnets together and they did that's what's going on between these forces of light and darkness good and evil in the world whoever wants to be the friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God Wow I read that I don't know about you I mean God so loved the world he wants to save the people in the world but sometimes we love the stuff in the world and we want to be as comfortable as we can be in this world and still get into heaven all right we want to be as liked as we can be in this world and still get into heaven but friendship with the world jesus said woe unto you when all men speak well of you and so it's really hard to live a godly life and please everybody usually when you do that you'll end up pleasing nobody all right let's go talking about friendship with the world and I just read that verse in James that's under that section there Jeremiah makes an interesting statement in chapter 2 verse 2 go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem saying thus says the Lord I remember you the kindness of your youth the love of your betrothal when you went after me in the wilderness in a land not sown you know what he's almost saying sounds like revelation where Jesus said to the Church of Ephesus who knows where I'm going you've lost your first love God is saying to Israel you know before we came into the promised land that generation that entered the promised land they were pretty faithful for the most part and so you were willing to follow me through the desert and you had that first love your rejoicing when yeah I brought you out of Egypt he said I don't know what happened but now it's like Jehovah we still have to serve Jehovah but that was the selfishness in their hearts all right um let's go on there I'm looking at the clock I want to try and get a number of other thoughts in here before we run out of time still dealing with pride and humility James 4:7 now this is just one of the great verses youyou should have at least part of this memorized therefore submit to God here's a formula for success right here submit to God resist the devil he will flee from you draw near to God he will draw near to you that right there should be underlined every time you draw near to God whether it's coming to a prayer meeting when you go to church you go to an evangelistic meeting when you go in your closet and read your Bible or your office or wherever it happens to be and you are drawing near to God God always sees you drawing near and like the father of the prodigal as soon as he saw his son coming home he ran to meet him when God sees us making an effort to draw near to him he will respond He loves us he's waiting for us to reach out to him you reach out to him he reaches out to you what a great promise draw near to God he'll draw near you notice this his resist the devil he'll flee from you it might not be first resistance or second resistance you keep resisting Jesus had three temptations and then the devil left him right so you might get a little blitzkrieg of temptation that comes hold firm he gets tired the devil has no patience he gets tired and he goes and regroups resist the devil and he'll flee from you what great promises cleanse your hands you sinners cleanse them from what sin purify your hearts you double-minded and if you ever feel a double-minded you love the Lord but you love yourself and you love the world but you love the church and we all feel a little schizophrenic don't we if you're honest with me you're here the very fact you're here is evidence of you're being a little spiritually bipolar don't maybe I shouldn't say it that way because we were all lost in the world but we weren't satisfied and we said I want the Lord but you probably also still feel the tug of the world because there's still a devil if you feel no tug that something's wrong of the world because being a Christian you are going against the wind being a Christian you're swimming against the current and you're gonna meet with that resistance you're gonna feel double-minded lament and mourn and weep let your laughter be turned in the morning and you're joined a gloom humble yourself and aren't you glad the verse doesn't in that way it just says let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom Wow doesn't the Bible say we should have joy this is kind of talking about repentance now there needs to be a humbling of yourself humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up he doesn't leave you in the clouds he doesn't leave you in the gloom says don't be joyful about being lost humble yourself about your sins repent of your sins turn from your sins and then God will lift you up and give you the real joy it's not the joy that Solomon talks about when people go to the house of feasting instead of the house of mourning he said you're better off in the house of mourning in the house of worldly feasting because people forget there again you have the the word humble blessed are the meek for what they land here the matter-of-fact who has psalm 37:11 i'm gonna have you read that in just a minute matter of fact you guys all let them get ready I want you to read that next because of the verse I just quoted you're ready for that hold hold just about ready thumbs out alright go ahead but the meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace so when Jesus says in Matthew blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth who is he quoting he's quoting from David assuming this is a psalm of David 10% of everything jesus said was a quote in the Old Testament when the when Jesus said man will not live by bread alone but every word that proceeds from the mouth of God do you know that part of that verse says God allowed you to go into the wilderness that he might humble you and teach you that man does not live by bread alone but by even that very vs. quoted to the devil you know I read stories in the Bible about pride and humility and I'm amazed at how powerful humility is but humility is something you must choose the Bible says you humble yourself when God forces a person you can't force a person really to be humble God can make a person go through a humiliating experience but you still don't have to be humble if I've seen people that have just been so embarrassed but instead of humbling themselves they just hardened their hearts hears from testimonies 9 verse 189 good reason to practice the things James is talking about if we would humble ourselves before the Lord and be kind and courteous and tender-hearted and pitiful there would be 100 conversions to the truth where now there is only one if we would humble ourselves before the Lord if my people who are called by my name would humble themselves and pray and seek my face draw near to me I'll draw near to you turn from their wicked ways then I will hear from heaven I will forgive their sin notice prerequisite for forgiveness humble yourself and he will lift you out cleanse your hands you sinners going back to James I will forgive their sin and heal their land God can forgive and heal us till we humble ourselves in the Bible you can even find wicked kings like a ham after Ahab killed Namath or actually his wife did it the dirty work but he was an accomplice and Elijah confronted him a have realized that Elijah was right and he humbled himself this is Ahab that had done all kinds of terrible things said he was a terrible King listen to what the Bible says - speaking he's talking to Elijah God says see how a hab has humbled himself before me because he has humbled himself I will not bring the calamity in his days but in his Sundays because he humbled himself 2nd chronicles 32 26 then Hezekiah humbled himself with a pride of his heart and the inhabitants of Jerusalem saw that the wrath of the Lord did not come upon them in the days of Hezekiah because he humbled himself second chronicles 12 6 so the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and they said the Lord is righteous now when the Lord saw that they humbled themselves the word of the Lord came to shamaya saying they've humbled themselves therefore I will not destroy them but I'll grant them some deliverance wow that's a powerful lesson don't you think we need to humble ourselves and I just read this and as I went through the study and know this much more let me read you one more thing and we'll close with this the evil that led to Peters fall that shut him shut the Pharisee out from communion with God is proving the ruin of thousands today there is nothing so offensive to God nothing so dangerous to the human soul as pride and self sufficiency of all sins it is the most hopeless and incurable that's from Christ object lessons page 154 you know if there's a single thing we should pray for is the mind of Christ Jesus who laid aside his his throne and the one who humbled himself the most is going to be exalted the most that's Jesus made himself of no reputation but took upon him self the form of a servant and that's the spirit in the mind that we all need don't forget we have a free offer and it's that book called compromise conformity and courage and we'll send it to you just for asking call eight six six seven eight eight three nine six six that's eight six six study more we'll send you this free book and make sure that you read it and then show it to your friends god bless you friends until we study again next week

Channel: Aaron

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Id: Ww_4qEhJZf8

Length: 54min 37sec (3277 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 16 2020