The Utter Importance of Humility - Zac Poonen - April 6, 2019

[Music] God's desire is to bring us to the place where rivers of living water flow out from us every single one let's turn to that verse in John chapter 7 so one time in the Bible where we read that Jesus shouted the most of the time Jesus spoke very softly gently I think the whole Sermon on the Mount was like that but here it says in John 7:37 he stood most of the time Jesus sat and preached if you look through the Gospels almost every time Jesus preached he was sitting down even when he was in a boat or in the mountainside he sat down in the temple he sat but here he stood one of those rare occasions where Jesus stood and preached and he cried out saying if anyone is thirsty let him come to me and drink and then that is the type of thirst which is not like oh well I'd like a glass of water right now it's not that but I'm willing to pay any price for water you know like a man who's wandered in the desert for many days and is dying of thirst he'd be willing to give his whole fortune for water see many people don't seek for the power of the Holy Spirit like that they seek for the part of the Holy Spirit says yeah I wouldn't mind a glass of water right now okay you're not gonna get it but if you thirst like this where you're willing to pay any price then he can come to him and drink and he who believes and if you can believe in him if you trust him that he keeps his word as the scripture has said from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water and this he spoke of the holy spirit with those who believed in him were to receive for the spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified and yet the spirit was upon Moses David all the Old Testament prophets but here it says he was not given in this way in which way where he would work verse 38 from the innermost being that's the difference in the New Covenant in the Old Covenant it was like this there was a lid on top of man's heart spirit could not come inside so when the spirit was poured out upon all these Old Testament prophets the rivers of living water came from over he never went inside came upon them and flowed and blessed Millions imagine two million people got water in through Moses smiting the rock but Moses heart was not changed he sinned by disobeying God when God told her to speak to the rock he hit the rock but the water still flawed because it flowed from over him God could use Samson as a mighty judge but inside inside the Spirit could not go to clean him up the adultery inside his heart but in the New Covenant it's the veil was rent and the way into the most holy place was open and God the Holy Spirit could now come to the innermost being and then overflow from the heart to bless Millions that's God's will for how many people vs. 38 he who believes in me if you really believe and lean upon the Lord's in Lord I want this life it can happen for you but it has to begin from within it's not an external thing there a lot of people seeking for a ministry lord give me ability to preach give me ability to heal you can be like Samson full of adultery even if God gives you a gift there will be people like that the Bible says in the last days many will come in the last day when he will come before the Lord and say Lord Lord we did miracles in your name we heal the sick and Jesus said right but get away from me I don't know you go to hell imagine people who heal the sick in Jesus name being sent to hell by the Lord you read that in Matthew 7 verse 22 23 so I'm not so keen on healing the sick I mean I have compassion for the sick and I'd be pray for any sick person [Music] but that's not my goal in life my goal in life is to fulfill the ministry God planned for me if it includes raising the dead I'll raise the dead but if it does include if it does includes no miracles like John the Baptist who never did a single miracle in his whole life so be it I want to fulfill God's plan for my life not those spectacular things which I would like to do don't seek God for spectacular things don't seek God for a spectacular ministry the greatest thing you can do on earth is to do the will of God and if the will of God is to be hidden away somewhere unknown and unheard of by men all your life because you've got a quiet hidden ministry in the body of Christ something like the kidneys in our body you know the kidneys are very essential but who sees them but the day's you the day your kidneys back up you pack up too and there are many gifts like that in the body of Christ which are hidden we don't value them so much one day we discover when Christ comes again how important they were are you satisfied with the ministry that God wants you to have what do you want a public ministry that's spectacular and then people we'll talk about appreciate you particularly when you hear a very gifted preacher you say wow I wish I could speak like that don't ever wish that never never never in my young foolish days I wish like that till God opened my eyes and said no if you want to follow somebody follow a godly man and say I wish I could live like him that's okay not I wish I could have his ministry that is honor seeking that is pride it'll destroy you never never seek to have a ministry like somebody else seek to live like somebody else the Apostle Paul said follow me as I follow Christ jesus said follow me where do we have to follow him on walking on the water turning water into wine raising the dead who can do that how many people have you met in your life who have done any of these things there's never a man in the history of Christianity who walked on the water all returned water into wine but he said anyone can follow him so what did he mean follow him in his life that's not so spectacular isn't it to serve the poor to care for the needy to do a hidden ministry that nobody knows think of all the wonderful things Jesus did in 30 years in Nazareth was not even written down you know what all he did in the 30 years in Nazareth it says that in one little sentence in John chapter 21 whereas 25 there were many other things that Jesus did which if they were written in detail the whole world I suppose would not be able to contain the books that are written you want to know what all he did in those 30 years what's written in the Gospels only the three and a half years the way he served people blessed people without supernatural gifts he didn't have any supernatural gifts for 30 years he never cast out a demon or healed the sick or preached powerful sermons in those thirty years but I'm sure he comforted many widows and picked up little children and encouraged them and occasionally made some furniture for some poor person and gave it as a gift in so many little little things that if he saw somebody discouraged he'd go up and cheer him up you want to follow him in that ministry or the only one the spectacular things that's why you get nothing say Lord I want to follow you in your life and Paul said follow me he wasn't asking you to be apostles he's asking to live as he lived the rivers of living water will flow from our innermost being you know there's a verse in the Old Testament in Psalm 23 it says when the Lord is our Shepherd when we allow him to lead us as our Shepherd he leads us to green pastures that is into the Word of God he brings quietness in our heart and restores my corrupt soul back into the likeness of God Psalm 23 I'm reading it in the new covenant version of it I shall lack nothing because the Lord is the one who leads me I only want to follow him like a sheep who does not know the way he leads me and I seek His guidance I don't wander off on my own I'm a sheep the Lord is my shepherd and everyday I follow the shepherd go where he wants to lead me and he leads me beside the pastures of his word that he speaks to me through the Scriptures he leads me beside quiet waters of peacefulness and he restores my soul which is that soul that was spoiled ever since Adam disobeyed God and guides me always in the paths of righteousness he never allows me to go outside that straight and narrow path of righteousness in every area and he does that all not for my glory he does it for his namesake and so even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death it could be spiritual death physical death any type of thing attacks of Satan I will fear no evil because I've got somebody with me not somebody with me alone but in me and your rod and your staff they comfort me that is to protect you know the sheep from wild animals God protects us also he uses his rod to discipline us so to protect us and discipline us are you willing for that then even if your enemies are there you won't have to worry about them you don't have to go fight for them you can sit in our breakfast while the enemies are there they walk recon touching you eat with the Lord at his table and then he anoints my head with oil his all new covenant my cup overflows rivers of living water there it is in the Old Testament and it will flow or flow and goodness and loving kindness in front of me and behind me all of the days of my life when it says goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life what it means is if I go into a home when I left that home I have left some of God's goodness and loving kindness there behind me I speak to a brother or a sister or a family and when I leave I've left the fragrance of God's goodness and loving kindness behind me what a way to live and I will dwell in the house of the Lord to me that is the church I will all my life be a part of the church forever now and for all eternity it's not talking about heaven heaven is not my home the church is my home and I will dwell in the church forever I will never be an individualistic Christian living by myself with all the blessings of the Lord I find my home in the house of the Lord forever it's the only place I want to be I don't want to be in a church where I'm just someone warming the seats sitting there every Sunday and going away I want to be an integral part I am part of that house David could really say I'll be in the house of the Lord today I see it I'm part of that house of the Lord forever but the way he leads us to this place of overflowing you know I I was studying the Bible with the concordance once I discovered that the word my cup overflows is a Hebrew word called Revilla which is used only in one other place I don't know Hebrew I found it in a concordance he's used only in one other place in the entire Old Testament that word overflows and that is in psalm 66 and there in psalm 66 it is not translated as cup overflowing it's translated with a slightly different word in psalm 66 verse 12 the last part you brought us into a place of abundance same word you brought me to the place where my cup overflows so when I took that translation from Psalm 23 and put it here into psalm 66 12 you brought me to the place where my cup overflows and how did you bring me there it begins in verse 10 first of all verse nine you don't allow my feet to slip thank God but you have tried me tested me we are going to the place where are rivers of water gonna flow out from us right and how does he do it by testing us refining us like silver is refined you know silver is refined by being put in the fire there's no other way to refine silver soap and water won't do it he puts us in the fire what's his ultimate goal that rivers of living water may flow out from us that our cups will overflow and then he brings us into the net that speaks of restrictive circumstances where I can't move I'm in a net the Lord brings me into some circumstances where I'm tied down maybe I'm sick and I can't get up and go or the circumstances of my life are such some sister tied down with the number of children at home her freedom is restricted you think that she's wasting a life she's not God's preparing her for living waters to flow out from us brought into a net or the circumstance of my life a very busy life perhaps I don't have much freedom and then finally you laid an oppressive burden upon our loins burdens which we come to us which we feel it too much for me to bear and yet he give us grace because he'll never allow us to be tested beyond durability and on top of that he allowed men to write over our heads which means accused us falsely suppress us push us down kick us out lose our job all types of things allows men to write over our heads in Gnome so many ways and then he puts us into the fire as if all that you've gone through is not enough remember he's got a goal he's making a man of God he's making a woman of God that's me put her the fire when they test aluminium for aeroplanes they put it into the fire and then immediately after that it says he put me into water he puts me from the fire into icy cold water then into the fire again into the icy cold water and if the aluminium crack cracks say you can't use it for an airplane you can use it for children's toys what do you want to be used for if you crack when you're put into the fire and then into the icy cold water and back into the fire into the icy cold water have you had any experiences like that he's preparing you for to bring you to the place of abundance where the cup overflows that's God's will and God uses all this why does he use all this he doesn't have any delight in it but that's the only way he can break down the pride there is that we've all received from Adam and which he got from the fallen angel the head of the Angels in the King James Version he's called Lucifer that's not his name we don't know his name his name is never mentioned anywhere in the Bible Lucifer is just a Latin word which has got something to do with Morningstar something odd but let's call him Lucifer since that's the word used and many refer it to the one who became Satan how did he become Satan the first sin in this universe in a perfect universe was not some of the horrible sins we think of adultery murder you know we'd be horrified if he heard that some brother committed a murder and came and sat in the church or her brother was regularly committing adultery and coming a sitting in the church but the first sin that committed in the universe was pride would you be horrified if a brother was proud and sad in the church proud of some accomplishment of his or proud of his wealth or proud of his good looks perhaps looks into the mirror and says I thank God I'm not like other men will you be horrified if such a man sat in the church now and yet that was the origin of all sin never forget it see Ezekiel in Chapter 28 very important to understand where the Lord speaks to verse 12 to the king of tyre the king of tyre was Satan he lived inside verse 2 the leader of tyre and he tells the Satan you had the seal of perfection full of wisdom and perfect in beauty that is not a human being you were in Eden the garden of God do you know there was an Eden before Adam was there in the original earth that was created in Genesis 1 verse 1 there was an Eden that was destroyed and became corrupt Genesis 1 verse 2 but God remade it and the Eden was there again and when Adam came to Eden Lucifer was jealous this guy has come to replace me in this garden I am determined to get him out and he succeeded he was in Eden the garden of God the head of the Angels he was full of wisdom who gave it to him God gave him that cleverness that brilliance and he was beautiful perfect in beauty and it says here in verse 213 the last part about the margin of my Bible says your tambourines and flutes the workmanship of your tambourines and flutes right he was a musical person music was there that's how even today the devil controls a lot of the music in the world it was there in the beginning people are proud of their wisdom verse 12 were proud of their beauty proud of their position ahead of the angels in the Garden of God and proud of their musical ability all types of things people are proud of it all began there and you are the anointed he proud of the anointing he was anointed by God and God placed him there and he was blameless verse 15 until unrighteousness was found in you where seventeen your heart was lifted up pride began in the heart pride is not an external thing there are people who act proud externally that's a different thing that's that's what comes out what is inside but it begins in the heart your heart was lifted up what was he proud of his beauty his good looks you can be proud of your good looks God created every human being and some people have good features people say and some people's features are not so good in human eyes I think God created them God created people of different shades of color in their skin you can be proud of the color of your skin you're pretty close to Lucifer you can be proud of your good looks when you look into the mirror you can be you don't realize Lucifer was the first one who did that be careful you can be proud of your wisdom your knowledge your intelligence Lucifer was the one who was first proud of his intelligence it's not wrong to be beautiful it's not wrong to be handsome or good-looking or intelligent anything is wrong to be proud of it it's not wrong to be wealthy it's wrong to be proud of it when Jesus said how difficult it is for rich people to enter the kingdom of God you mean all the poor people will enter and we got millions of beggars in India they don't go into the kingdom of God it's not poverty that takes a person into God's kingdom what is it in wealth that hinders them from going through that narrow eye of a needle that Jesus spoke about it's pride that's all there are people who a lot more money than you have who are humble which you can get a little bit and be proud of it and then then you don't fit through the eye of the needle yeah I have the needle is so small you got to be small to go through it and that's humility what is it that prevents a lot of good-looking actors and actresses from getting Gosling they are proud of their looks you're making money through their looks it's pride it's not the good looks it's not intelligence why did Jesus say in Matthew 11:25 I thank you Father you have hidden these things from the clever and the intelligent and revealed them to babes what can and what can we do if we are clever and intelligent do you have to act dumb in order to understand Scripture no that would be hypocrisy we're not supposed to act if I am clever and intelligent I can't do anything about it I was born with it if it was the color of my skin I can't do anything about it I was born with it intelligence and cleverness is something we are born with you can't be proud of it but people are proud of it and then God hides his truth from them I've seen some brilliant clever born-again believers they don't have revelation on God's ways not because they're clever intelligent because they are proud of their cleverness they're proud of their intelligence they're proud of the college from which they graduated not some cheap ordinary college you know where I graduated from that's their attitude okay zero revelation in such a man zero when I say zero I mean zero because they are proud of the wrong things proud of things which God gave them but he's revealed to babes Jesus said in Matthew 11:25 is a great verse if you don't know it look at it Matthew 11:25 very important words for us to remember when we seek to be men after God's own heart this is a very important thing it's not enough to study the Scriptures we need revelation on the scriptures in the Old Testament they studied and studied and studied and God called them scribes in the New Testament we get revelation and the scribe becomes a disciple so here he says you have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and not taught them teaching is an Old Testament word to reveal them that's a New Testament word revelation revelation is not does not come through intelligence it comes through humility because it says it's revealed to infants what is it that infants have think of it what is it that infants have that clever intelligent people do not have or let's say most clever intelligent people don't have humility in humanities in Word it's in the thoughts if you could look inside the thoughts of some very clever intelligent people you'd see a lot of pride there I mean they act humble because it's disgraceful to act proud so they'll act humble and do all the external things but any person with disowned men can see that's just an act the guy's not really humble because humility is something that comes forth from within it's like body order pride is like that you know you can stink and yet you yourself may not smell it we don't realize what comes forth from us for example when you get old you don't have much control over your the your mouth and the orders that come out of your mouth you lose control of it and there are bad odors that you can't control but you don't know it yourself but other people smell it pride is like that very often we don't smell it we think we are quite humble but other people can people would discern when can smell anything people with a sensitive nose can pick up smell a long distance away but you look into the mind of a baby lying in a cradle a one-month-old baby lying in a cradle think what was that baby thinking of or a three-month-old baby lying in a cradle people go there and admire and show what a beautiful child he doesn't disturb that child one bit he doesn't get puffed up for one second he doesn't say whoo look at the number of people admiring me humility this is the one thing Jesus why Jesus picked up a child and said if you're humble like this you'll enter God's kingdom we need to meditate on that we need to meditate since we can't physically see Jesus we know that Jesus was the humblest person who walked on the earth but he also said children are humble so we can learn from children because we can see children how does a child react to somebody who hurts it I mean a three-month-old you go and pinch it in a naughty way and hurt it it cries because it really pains it tomorrow you go and see him he smile at you he doesn't even remember that the other guy who pinched him and hurt him yesterday imagine that's humility its humility that can make you look at someone who hurt you so badly yesterday and you don't even really realize it you say well it's okay you see how difficult it is to be humble you can't manufacture it you can try and act like that but in your thoughts you say out is the guy who hurt me I'll never forget it but the child doesn't think like that humility is a deep-rooted thing you cannot produce it by acting I've seen a lot of acting of humility I can see through it now see I've been a Christian 60 years I've dealt with people of all types in all types of countries and it's pretty easy to now to discern right when the person doesn't see it at all in him I'll tell you this you will not get revelation on God's ways if you're not humble you can understand a lot you can become a Bible scholar get a PhD from some Bibles seminary but you won't have a clue about God's ways God's ways and his thoughts are revealed to those who are humble see most of us are clever and intelligent but we can still be humble if we meditate on how Jesus was in our child was then we will get revelation and not only revelation the Bible says twice in James 4 and 1 Peter 5 that God gives his grace to the humble certain twice James chapter 4 verse 7 it says he gives more grace gives greater grace verse 6 but to whom he gives it to the humble James 4:6 you know why many people resist the devil's attacks in their life and the devil does not leave them the answer is here James 4:6 says God gives grace to the humble so submit to God then resist the devil and the devil will be scared of you you know the devil scared only of humble people he's not scared of people who ain't the Bible at him or who preach well he's not scared of all these people who know the Bible well and caught verses and all that and who say in Jesus name I resist you know did that's one thing Satan is scared of and it's big the people who have a quality that he doesn't have at all humility it is pride that made him the devil and his pride that sent him to hell and pride will send people to hell even today the big gulf between heaven and hell is pride that's what sends people there you know the devil wants to harm every Christian he wants to harm us hinder us from God's purposes mess up our life mess up our married life but he knows he cannot attack you because he's a defeated person he can tempt you externally but he can't really harm you so he says he's clever he's as if I con push him down let me make God push him down and for that all I have to do is puff him up a little bit because it says your God resists the proud he is opposed to the proud 4:6 God is against proud people he's opposed to them but he gives grace to the humble the way I pictured it is if I'm really humble if I've learned from a little child to be humble God behind me and push me forward continuously but the moment I become proud of anything intellectual physical good looks spiritual development what I've done for the Lord ministry whatever it is God comes in front of me and pushes me back he opposes me I got the devil opposing me I've got the world opposing me I've got some hypocritical Christians opposing me I've got my flesh up wasn't he on top of all that if God also opposes me I'm finished and if you don't know it the devil knows it so all he's got to do is make a Christian proud of something proud of his good looks so proud of his intelligence so proud of his achievement so proud of how smart he is or proud of his Bible knowledge perhaps so proud of his preaching or proud of how he lets somebody to Christ or prouder perhaps he prayed for someone and chap accidentally got healed and old can be proud of his thing like that I mean he was recovering in any case but you thought it was you you thought it was you it was just natural healing that was taking place and that's enough that's enough to make God push you back have you seen it brothers act like men you can't be the man of God God wants you to be if you haven't understood this fundamental truth and I've seen in the sixty years I've been a Christian the number of proud preachers and God has allowed them to fall into adultery because of pride God opposed them you think you can keep yourself from adultery maybe you can but if God opposes you there's not much hope if you don't fall into a doubt tree it may be in some other way and the devil knows that God will oppose anyone who's proud it's like a law of gravity it's a law it's a spiritual law God opposes Proud the law of gravity pulls everything down there's a power from the center of the earth pulling things down at 32 feet per second per second and if you jump off the roof the law of gravity is not gonna check out whether you're a Christian or whether you're wholehearted no he just takes over it doesn't matter you can be the worst criminal or the most wholehearted Christian the law of gravity will take over if this law is like that you become proud it doesn't matter whether you're a criminal or whether you're a wholehearted Christian the law takes over God resists the proud it's exactly like the law of gravity he'll push you back because God cannot go against his nature and there is zero pride in God do you remember when Jesus oh by the way the other words you know is it's repeated in James it's repeated also in case you didn't know in 1 peter in chapter 5 and verse 5 God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble repeated twice James 4:7 and 1 Peter 5:5 why is it repeated just in case you skipped missed it the first time God says I want to remind you is there two pages later so God is opposed to the proud and gives grace to the humble and that's why Satan was pushed down from heaven because God is opposed to the proud and he was the perfect angel sinless the moment he became proud he was pushed down never never forget that God wants to support us he wants to use us to build his church but the moment he we get puffed up God has to you know it's like sin God can't look at sin it doesn't matter who it is in if it is in his favorite child if sin is there he will turn his face away and the clearest proof of it is Jesus hanging on the cross there was no sin in him yet when our sin was placed on him the Father forsook him that is the greatest proof that there are no favorites with God if God had a favorite it must be his son but when sin not his our sin has on him God turned his face away you know it says in 2nd Corinthians 5 that verse 21 that God made him to be sin on our behalf you know what happened on the cross he who knew no sin was made sin it's a very strong word to be made sin I don't know what it means all the sin of the entire human race of 6,000 years all the billions of people concentrated and put on him God turned his face away God's nature never changes he hates sin he hated it when he's just put on Christ he'll definitely hate it when he's found in you if he resists the proud doesn't matter who it is you can be like the perfect angel and can imagine what a favorite that angel was of God that God put him in that position and as soon as pride came he was rejected immediately it's very important for us to understand that let's turn to Philippians in chapter 2 verse three do nothing from selfishness how many things am I supposed to do with selfishness nothing do you know that you can live with that word and work on it for the rest of your life because we are so saturated in selfishness and I'm I have to work towards the goal of doing nothing with selfishness and or empty conceit do nothing from pride don't ever ever say a word which comes out of pride but with humility of mind teaching us that humility is in the mind it's not in the way you act ahead and put your head down or the type of clothes you wear or any of that rubbish it's in the mind humility is in the mind if you don't have it there you don't have it it's the way you think so when you think about yourself in your spare moments when you've got nothing else to think about and you sit down and think of your accomplishments humility is in the mind with humility of mind regard one another not as most spiritual than yourself that's impossible as more important than yourself I am supposed to regard every human being is more important than myself I mean within the limits of my humanity which means I must never be too proud to talk to anyone have you seen pastors who feel it's beneath their dignity to talk to some ordinary person in their congregation but if some big wealthy man came along he'd have time for him such people are hypocrites agents of Satan not servants of God regarde everyone is more important than yourself very important some people say you must assume his most spiritual no you can't do that that would be a lie Paul told the Corinthians your carnal I'm spiritual you don't have to pretend that your heart is black when it is white no there's no humility there but important than yourself the perfect example is Jesus have the same attitude in you verse 5 which was in Jesus Christ what is the attitude he had towards other people you see in John chapter 13 it's a wonderful introduction the introduction to Jesus washing the feet ok see how the Holy Spirit puts it he's going to write the Jesus washed everybody's feet but see the introduction to it was John 13 3 Jesus knowing that the father had given all things into his hands that he had come forth from God and he was going back to God what's he going to do now get up and give a sermon no he girded himself and took a towel poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples feet including Judas Iscariot's and he came and told he told the people after that verse 12 do you know what I've done to you you call me teacher and Lord you're right I am your teacher Lord he didn't pretend that he was not that Eastern Lord we don't have to pretend that we have no gift or we have no ministry or I'm not an elder no you don't have to pretend there's no pretense in the true Christian you call me teacher Lord your right as I am but if I the Lord and teacher washed your feet you ought to wash one another's feet because I give you an example that you should do as I have done to you and then this is the you know I'm not the slave is not greater than his master nor is one who sent greater than the one who sent him Jesus took the position of a slave you know in their Jewish culture to the slaves who wash the feet of the guests who came in and here was the guest room where Jesus said I don't want anybody but like in Jewish custom the bucket of water was there to wash people's feet because people came with sandals on dusty roads and every rich home they'd have a slave to wash the feet and so here was this bucket of water and a towel and nobody to watch the feet Peter wouldn't do it he says I am the chief of the disciples I don't do such things Peter is the chart Matthew is the Chartered Accountant he doesn't do wash people's feet and everybody's got something on Judas Iscariot is the postgraduate he's not gonna wash people's feet so Jesus says I'm seen to be the only one around here who is a slave so he picks up the bucket is that how you think when you sit with other believers there was such abundant grace on Jesus as a man because God saw his heart he really had low thoughts about himself and then he goes on to say in Matthew I'm sorry John 14 when Philip said verse eight Lord show us the father and that's enough for us just let me see what the father's like and she said and verse nine have you said I been so long with you have you not known me here's listen to the sentence if you have seen me you saw me washing the feet right now right you've seen what the father is like that's what the father does one day when we get to see God the Father I look forward to that they like me sang in that song father of Jesus loves reward what rapture will it be I sing that often often and I imagine myself prostrate before thy throne - lion just gaze and gaze on thee for all eternity won't be boring and I'll see when I see him face to face I'll discover that he's the type of person who wants to wash my feet that's the god I worship and if you worship this God he will be like that you look for the lowly jobs today we don't mean it me to physically wash feet we are all wearing socks and shoes but the meaning of that is I saying in our church and banger I say are you one of those who will silently when nobody's watching go and clean the restrooms and you come away before anybody discovers it making life easier for your fellow believers that's washing people's feet and not letting anybody know about it doing quiet jobs for cleaning out the dirt the dirt could be in the restroom maybe some child used it never pulled a flush and so you're gonna clean it up and and other things like that - especially if it's something which you can do without people seeing it sometimes we serve when people see it we can't do anything about it we still serve but we have no longing to be seen that's how God is Isaiah 45 he read as an 45 and verse 15 Isaiah 45 15 Oh God truly you're a God who hides himself it's a characteristic of God he hides himself that's why there's so many atheists around imagine if every morning with the sunrise God would say hey I'm here I created this universe and the father of the Lord Jesus Christ there wouldn't be a single atheist in this universe but God has hidden himself so well and the clearest proof is there's only a theists and atheists ista me the proof that God has hidden himself in this universe so well people actually think he doesn't exist imagine imagine what a clever way he's hidden himself that people think he doesn't even exist I said Lord let me learn from that to hide myself not to promote myself project myself like who only people are you want to be a leader you want to be one whom God can accomplish this purpose through let this attitude be in you which is in Christ Jesus that's closer that verse Philippians 2 and verse 5 we saw it let this attitude be new which is in Christ Jesus I've often said with that one verse you don't need any other words in the Bible to live the rest of your life there are more than 31-thousand verses in the Bible but you need only one to live your whole Christian life whatever area you look at any situation what shall I do Lord let this attitude be any riches in Christ Jesus somebody's treated you badly what should I do let this attitude be you which is in Christ Jesus you're handling a lot of money you suddenly became rich let this attitude be in you which is in Christ Jesus maybe I was struggling through trials let this attitude be news is in Christ Jesus it's a verse that's enough to take us through every situation for the rest of our life and especially its refers here to his humility as God he humbled himself and became a man step 1 verse 6 when he became a man he didn't become a king that itself would have been humility he became a bond slave verse 7 step 2 of humility and then as if that was not low enough he died as a criminal which is even lower than a slave the Romans didn't crucify slaves this crucified criminals even death on a cross humility right down to the bottom so there are three stages in God's Jesus humility God became man man became a slave and then he died as as if he were a criminal so I often say the three secrets of the Christian life are humility humility humility if you understood or understood the three secrets of the Christian life let's pray Heavenly Father it's so easy to understand these things in our mind and I think we've got it please give us revelation on the humility of Jesus we pray in Jesus name Amen [Music]

Channel: River of Life Christian Fellowship

Views: 24,720

Rating: 4.7673378 out of 5

Keywords: utter, importance, humility, mens, leadership, seminar, 2019, zac, poonen, sermon, rlcf, river, life, christian, fellowship

Id: dWYbFl10jwk

Length: 52min 18sec (3138 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 07 2019