Sermon Tone Analysis

What do you think of when you think Pride?

There has been a big controversy lately in the news having to do with athletic ware.

Now I am not going to dig into this silly controversy but what I do want to mention is something important about it.

The real issue that is at the surface of all this is arrogance.

It is a persons over inflated sense of importance.

To me nothing else in this controversy really matters except the fact the guy at the center of it is actually getting what he wants, which is look at me, lift me up, treat me well.

This kind of arrogance is not only in sports and entertainment but it is everywhere.

People have a very high view of themselves and their own sense of importance.

This is bad when it is in the world and it is ego against ego.

It is worse when it is against the church, ego against the humble servants of God.

Here is the thing when it comes to pride and the world's over-inflated arrogance, it is a folly that ends in destruction.

The sin of pride is dangerous and destructive.

Why is pride and arrogance so destructive well we will find out about pride and arrogance this morning and we will see why it is destructive and we will also learn that when it comes to the arrogance of the world, rest assured no one is getting away with any of their foolishness.

Do you have a high view of self, or as I like to call it an over-inflated sense of importance?

We have looked for the last two weeks at having a humble response to an arrogant world, this morning we are going to examine the arrogance of the world and see how justice is served without man having to lift a finger against the arrogant.

We will see this in Acts 12:18-15

The Folly of Arrogance is Blinding, Self-Seeking and Destructive.

If your have your Bibles let's turn to Acts 12:18-25

Remember in the beginning of this chapter we have found Herod is now king and he is out to kill the Christians.

He has already murdered James, and arrested Peter.

Herod's ego has been stroked by the Jewish people being pleased with Herod's attack against the sect that is effecting the Jewish religious system.

So he thinks he is doing an incredible job and he is working to appease the people.

Herod when he arrests Peter, has heard of the ease Peter has of getting out of prison.

So, to make sure Peter stays put this time Herod sets four squads of guards and locks Peter behind three gates and chains him to a soldier on each side of him.

There is no way Peter could escape, in fact the only way Peter could escape would be one of two ways, fight his way out against eight guards and open all these gates or to bribe everyone of these guards to let him go free.

Neither of these ways were how he escaped, Peter escape by the sheer grace, majesty and power of God.

God through one of His angels, rescued Peter.

Now we come to the very next morning.

Herod wakes up, probably with a smile on his face thinking this is the day.

The Jews are loving me and they are going to love me even more this morning.

He stands in front of his mirror, "Ah, your a wonderful man, Herod, so powerful, so great and so loved by the people.

Let's go make some Jews happy."

Then comes the news, "Peter has escaped?"

So begins the rationalization of what could have happened.

Arrogance Blinds

Look with me at verse 18, "Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter."

Notice the soldier are shocked.

They have no idea where Peter could have gone.

They are frantic looking around the prison and try to think through which one of them could have set him free and how could he have been set free.

Look even if one of them fell asleep, still the others would have seen him leave.

Do you know why else they are frantic, because they know what is in story for them.

They know the penalty for losing a prisoner.

The penalty for them would be death.

This is not something they can hide and they know it.

Word of the escape reaches the king.

Of course it reached the king, he has been waiting for this for days.

The Jewish people are gathering around his court as the guards are pondering what is going on.

They are all there for one reason and one reason only to see this Christ follower hung.

Herod knows why they are there and Herods is basking in the glow of his victory in the eyes of the people.

He is looking back at the accolades he recieved from James' execution and looking forward to even more from the people as they watch Peter die.

Herods' ego is getting stroked more and more and then word comes that Peter has escaped.

Think about this now, you are all pumped and ready to hear more accolades from the people, standing in front of the mirror, you the man, no one like you in the whole nation of Israel.

That's right.

And the bombshell happens, "Sir, the prisoner has escaped."

Your ego has just hit rock bottom and now it is no longer just pride now you are seething because your pride has been hurt, you have been made a laughing stock in front of the people who you have just been imagining are chanting your name, and what do you do.

Herod investigates the escape, this doesn't necessarily mean he does this on his own but he wants to know what is going on.

The investigation involved examining the guards.

It was an interrogation.

I can just picture it now, one by one these guards are questioned in respect to what they did.

Possibly looking for one to turn on another.

Did Maximus fall asleep, and Peter over take you.

Did he pay Ceryal to turn the other cheek?

They were looking for who it was that let Peter out and how the others turned their backs to allow this to happen.

These guards didn't budge, we never moved from our posts.

We didn't see him leave.

We have no idea how this happened.

It must have been an act of God.

See the last one is what it was but Herod's Pride didn't let him think this way at all.

Herod didn't want to hear anything like this.

The crowds are here and the have come to see an execution and they are going to see one.

Have you ever been blinded to something God is doing because you just couldn’t accept His Sovereign?

Explain your answer.

Pride usually blinds people to the reality that there is something greater at work then what is obvious.

Here is a man who believes himself to be the king of the Jews, in title only, yet has no idea who the true King is and doesn't even honor the King in any way.

This is what pride does, this is what arrogance is, it is irrational.

Do you know why arrogance and pride are irrational because arrogance and pride don't want to acknowledge that there is Someone greater then you out there who has total control.

Arrogance and pride place you on the throne of the Almighty and causes you to look at what He is doing and saying no it was this instead, God had nothing to do with it.

Pride and arrogance are deceptive.

It is man's pride and man's arrogance that cause such difficulties for the church and for Christian's.

Oh and I just want to be clear on one thing we are looking at those who are completely controlled by their pride and arrogance but don't think you are immune to it.

Don't think, "oh I'm a Christian I'm not proud" Think about that one for a little while.

We are looking at the way the world is and why it is this way but let's not take a look at the world and say "oh yeah that is the world and I'm better then that" Ha, Ha ha.

If you have ever said or thought that you are a proud person.

Pride is destructive.

I want to take a good look at pride and arrogance and how it is irrational.

You don't get very far through the proverbs without running in to the irrationality of pride.

In fact the key verse for the theme of all of Proverbs is Proverbs 1:7;

"Fear the Lord" this truly is the key to life.

If you don't "fear the Lord" you will never be transformed.

"Fear of the Lord," means fear, this means you understand He is the One who has created you, and He is the One who keeps you alive.

Jesus told His disciples, don't fear those who can kill the body, but fear the One who not only has the authority to kill the body but also has the authority to send the body to hell.

People don't want to believe this.

People want to think this is irrational.

Some would say God doesn't exist, some would say this isn't the God I worship, some will take from all kinds of religions to create a god they can listen to, one who bends to their will not them bending to God's will.

Fearing the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, do you know what that means, that means without fearing God you have no knowledge.

Look, the second half of the verse becomes clearer, "fools despise wisdom and instruction."

A fool will not listen to what God says, a fool will not trust God is in control, a fool will look at God's obvious work in the world and turn against God, actually what the fool does is instead of fearing God they make themselves God.

Do you Fear the Lord?

How does this fear motivate you?

If you don’t fear the Lord, why not?