Have Some Humility

If God said to you on this first Sunday of 2020, “Choose eight things that you feel would make your new year a happy one and I will give them to you,” what would you choose?

Make the List

How about this for a NY resolution: In 2020 i want to experience more sorrow!

In 2020 I want my life to be more difficult and filled with opposition!

Would you choose things such as mourning, meekness, hunger and thirst, being merciful, being pure in heart, being a peacemaker, or experiencing persecution?

Do you think these eight things would make you happy?

Jesus seems to think so.

Jesus opened his famous sermon on the monut listing tghese 8 things as charicterists of a truly blessed life.

Matthew 5:1–12 AV

1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Before you conclude that Jesus is wrong, consider the antithesis of these qualities: characteristics such as pride, pleasure-seeking, aggressiveness, compromising, impurity, cruelty, and hatred.

You could not be happy with these characteristics, could you?

Of course not!

Therefore consider the eight Beatitudes as eight steps to a blessed life.

And the Journey beings with: Humility.

In Matthew 5:3 when Jesus spoke of being “poor in spirit,”.

What does that mean? - Well does it mean to be poor in something? - It means that you have nothing.

So to be poor in Spirit means that you recognise your spiritual poverty and understand that you have nothing to offer God.

People who are “poor in spirit” do not boast of their attainments or talents because they know they have nothing that has not been given to them.

Why is humility the way to happiness?

Humility enables you to be honest about yourself.

Jesus declared that if you want to be happy, you must be aware of your spiritual poverty.

you must be aware of just how much you need God - not just for salvation but even after for our everdy life.

No picture is more pathetic than that of a person who has a great need and is unaware of it. Do you remember Samson standing in the valley of Sorek? He was surrounded by Philistines: “But he did not know that the LORD had left him”.

Judges 16:18–21 AV

18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand. 19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him. 20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him. 21 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.

It is so easy to forget that Jesus told us:

John 15:5 AV

5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

The problem is that one day we try to live a day without God, a day without prayer, a day without reading the scriptures - and because we dont die - we think we can.

We skip church for a few sundays and because we dont die, we think all is ok.

But the problem is that, seed sown today dont produce there harvet rightaway - and todays

spiritual neglect could only ripen in years to come - and then you will know, but then its too late.

Poverty in spirit is the beginning of happiness.

It is the admission that you are nothing without Christ.

Humility impels you to commit your full potential to God.

Blessed are the poor in spirit” means blessed are those who have realized their own helplessness and who have placed their complete trust in the Lord.

After you have done this, you will become detached from things and attached to God.

You will commit your full potential to God’s will.

The boy who came to hear Jesus teach illustrates this commitment.

John 6:9 AV

9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?

He took all the food he had and turned it over to Jesus.

Once you are willing to do this, you will be amazed at what Christ can do with what you have to offer.

Andrew asked what we are so often tempted to ask, “But what are they among so many?”

In his own hands, the boy’s lunch was hardly enough to satisfy one lad’s hunger. But in Jesus’ hands, the small meal became enough to feed more than five thousand people!

Never underestimate what God can do with your five loaves and two fish. The moment you commit all that you have to Christ, the impossible begins to happen!

Humility places whatever you have, no matter how seeming small into the heandfs of a great and wondeful God.

Humility allows you to be led by the Holy Spirit.

No proud soul can be filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit, for a life filled with pride has no room for him.

Those who are unwilling to be controlled by the Holy Spirit are controlled by selfish ambition.

Therefore the Lord said that we must become like little children before we enter the kingdom of heaven. Children depend on their parents, their confidence and trust is in their parents.

Bella will do anything we ask if she has enough in us - if she trusts us.

We took her zip linning - instant death - but she looked and ask us”Is it safe” - confidence and trust, NOT in the rope or the guide - in US.

As God’s children, we are dependent on him. And as God’s children we MUST trust Him.

Our heavenly Father is responsible for our care. We are told to cast our cares on him because he cares for us.

Jesus said:

Luke 11:11–13 AV

11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

The “poor in spirit” know they are poor in spirit. They know they can do and can be nothing apart from the indwelling Spirit of God.

But they trust God for their daily lives and they prrove their trust through their daily dependence on prayer and the Word.

If you do not pray and read your bible every day - I know the reason.

Its simply because you dont think you need too. You are not yet that poor in spirit to know how hopless and helpless you are with God’s daily word and fellowship.

Conclusion

Cast off pride...

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