A Battle You Cannot Win - Part 1 of 2

The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder Lacerre Bradley, Jr. O for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise, the praise of my God and King, the triumph of his grace.

This is Lacerre Bradley, Jr. inviting you to stay tuned for another message of God's sovereign grace. Take time to be holy, speak out with thy Lord, abide in him always, and lead on his word. Make friends of God's children, help those who are weak, forgetting in nothing his blessings to seek. Take time to be holy, the world rushes on. Spend much time in secret with Jesus alone. By looking to Jesus, by him thou shalt be. Thy friends in thy conduct, his likeness shall see. Take time to be holy, let him be thy guide, and run not before him, whatever be time. In joy or in sorrow, still follow the Lord, and look into Jesus, still trust in his word. Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul, each thought and each motive beneath his control.

Thus led by his Spirit to fountains above, thou soon shall be fitted for service above. I am very thankful when people write and tell me how God used the truth that we presented from his word to make a difference in their life. If indeed the Lord has blessed you as we bring these messages from God's word, we'd appreciate hearing from you. Our address is the Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. A few years ago, I brought a message entitled A Battle You Cannot Win.

I want to use that same title today because it fits the subject matter that we want to look at. Go into the book of First Peter, chapter five. We recently preached on the seventh verse, casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you. And used in conjunction with that, the hymn, I must tell Jesus. We want to look at a couple of the verses preceding that, going back to verse five.

Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another and be clothed with humility, for God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.

First we note here a warning given. God resists the proud. That means God opposes the proud.

So a person who is proud and embarks on a course of activity that seems right in their own eyes must face the fact that they have engaged in a battle they cannot win. Look at the book of Proverbs, chapter six, beginning in the sixteenth verse. These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are an abomination unto him. A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, and heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren. God hates a proud look. A proud look indicates that there is a proud heart, and it says clearly that God hates it.

Look at the Gospel of Luke, Luke chapter one, reading in the fifty-first verse. He hath showed strength with his arm, he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. Scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

The proud make their plans, they have their goals in life. God says that he will scatter them, he will destroy them, he will bring to an end all of their idle boasting. He hath put down the mighty from their seats. Biblical history certainly confirms this fact over and over again. God dealt very forcibly with those who were proud and exalted themselves. We see a vivid example of that when the children of Israel were coming out of Egyptian bondage, and Pharaoh determined to send his army after them and bring them back. Pharaoh set himself against God, but he did not win. Exodus chapter fifteen, the third verse. The Lord is a man of war, the Lord is his name.

So you declare war on God, you're not going to make it. The Lord is the man of war and he will always win. Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea, his chosen captains also are drowned in the sea.

The depths have covered them, they sank into the bottom as a stone. Thy right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power. Thy right hand, O Lord, dashed in pieces the enemy. So Pharaoh set himself against God. You remember, he originally had said when Moses came saying that God demanded that the people be let go. And he said, who is the Lord that I should obey him? Not recognizing the one true and living God. And now he sets himself against God, against God's people, against God's demands. And what's the result? The Lord's hand is against him and Pharaoh's host, he hath dashed in pieces. And then we see another example. In the case of King Saul, Saul had been told to go out against the enemy and destroy them.

Now that sounds strange to I know some people in our day. Why would God tell his people to oppose some other nation and to wipe them out? Well, the fact is they were idolaters. And the law of God says thou should have no other gods before me. So because they were violators of God's law, it was according to God's holiness that they should receive just what was coming to them because of their rebellion and sin. But Saul failed to do explicitly what God said.

So in 1 Samuel chapter 15, we read in the 13th verse. And Samuel came to Saul and said unto him, blessed be thou of the Lord. I have performed the commandment of the Lord. As the prophet Samuel comes to meet the king, Saul has the audacity to say, I have performed what God expected of me. He obviously had not done it, but he is bold enough to say, I have obeyed.

I've done what I was supposed to do. And Saul said, they have brought them from the Amalekites for the people spared the best of the sheep. Now immediately there's some blame shifting. He said the people spared.

He's not going to take full responsibility. The people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen. For what purpose to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God and the rest we have utterly destroyed. Then Samuel said unto Saul, stay and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, say on. And Samuel said, when thou was little in thine own sight, was thou not made head of the tribes of Israel and the Lord anointed thee king of Israel. Now here's another important lesson for us. He said, when you were little in your own sight, God exalted you and made you king.

Oh, how important for us to remain little in our own sight. As soon as we get to the place that we think we have progressed so that we have such insight, we have such knowledge about whatever needs to be done, and we're ignoring the plain teaching of God's Word, we're going according to our personal desires and our only instinct, destruction comes. And the Lord sent thee on a journey and said, go and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly upon the spoil and didst evil in the sight of the Lord?

Saul said unto Samuel, yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord and have gone the way which the Lord sent me and have brought Agag, the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of things which should have been utterly destroyed to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal. And Samuel said, hath the Lord great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of rams.

They're going to excuse what they've done by saying, well, we saved the mass because we're going to offer it to the Lord. But God did not tell you to save these for offering a sacrifice. He said to wipe it all out. He said to destroy the people, to destroy the animals.

And you haven't done it. You have no right to say, I'm going to change what God commanded and do it my way because it seems good to me. It seems like a good idea that we would offer these as a sacrifice to God.

No. No matter how great the sacrifice that you might make, you might decide, here's a project upon which I should embark. Here's a work that I should do. But it's not one that God has designated.

You may pick a particular task because you think you're going to get some praise of me and you're going to receive recognition. Or it's just something of your own personal interest. But it's not what God has designated. To obey is better than sacrifice. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Rebellion. When a person sets themself against the clear declaration of God's word.

They say, I just, I can't agree with that. Or that doesn't work for me. Or I think that's outdated. It doesn't apply in our time. That's rebellion. Rebellion is as witchcraft and idolatry. In other words, you set yourself up as an idol. I know better than God.

Oh, I think the Bible is a good book and has a lot of good things, but some of it just doesn't apply today. You've made an idol out of yourself because you're dictating now as to what is right and what is wrong, what is acceptable and what is not acceptable. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Here's the end result. Saul decided I can do it my way. It seems reasonable to me. Why would not God be pleased with a sacrifice that we've been offered? What would please God is doing what God said to do. So he battled with the Lord, but he lost. It's a battle he could not win. And therefore the kingdom was taken from him. Then we've talked much about King Nebuchadnezzar in the fourth chapter of the book of Daniel when he stood there viewing his kingdom and said this is my kingdom.

I've gotten it by my might, by my power, for my glory. It was all about himself. The Lord said while the words were yet in his mouth that the kingdom was taken from him. And he was brought down from the throne to eat grass like the beast of the field. A battle he could not win.

And then Herod in the fourth chapter of the book of Acts. When the people commented at the end of the speech he gave, he sounds like a god. He didn't object. It pleased him obviously.

He was glad that somebody thought about him at such a high station. That shall have no other gods before me. He entered a battle that he could not win. And God sent worms inside his body to consume him so he died. And what about the warnings for us today? He says that God will resist or oppose the proud.

Think about some things that can affect your life. You know I certainly see the terrible procedure of those in Old Testament times. Men like Pharaoh and Saul and Nebuchadnezzar and Herod. These were proud men indeed. But certainly I'm not guilty of that kind of arrogance. No real pride in me. Look at some details about what the scriptures say concerning pride and maybe you'll find out that there's a bit of it in your own heart.

But there are indeed some warnings given applicable to us today. First of all, God will not hear your prayer. Psalm 66 verse 18 says, if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.

So if you're guilty of pride, you are exalting yourself. You're respecting your own opinions, your own desires above that which God has laid out in his word. God will not hear you. And then we look at the book of First Peter, chapter 3 verse 7, then talking about the responsibility of wives who have an unbelieving husband. And how they should conduct themselves, not by what they say, but by what they do. Having a meek and a quiet spirit. You won't find many places in our culture today where people are given counsel to say that a meek and quiet spirit is of any value.

But God says that it's acceptable in his sight. Now, after that dissertation that runs from verse one through verse six, the seventh verse says, likewise, he husbands dwell with them according to knowledge. You must do everything you can to understand your wife and live with her in a way that you are supporting her, encouraging her, helping her. Giving honor under the wife as under the weaker vessel and as being heirs together of the grace of life that your prayers be not hindered.

The husband and wife are constantly bickering. There is a terrible spirit between them. And yet they might say, well, we're praying about the matter. We're praying that God will help us.

Well, you might as well quit. Because as long as you're fighting, God isn't going to hear your prayer. Your prayer is being shut out. You first need to repent.

You need to change your attitude, your spirit, your action, your interaction with one another. Next, God will not prosper you. If you're walking in pride, God is not going to prosper you in any area of your life.

It may be a setback from a financial standpoint, as far as material things are concerned. The book of Haggai, chapter one, verse six, ye have so much and bring in little. Ye eat, but you have not enough. You drink, but you're not filled with drink.

Ye clothe you, but there is none warm. And he that earneth wages, earneth wages to put into a bag with holes. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, consider your ways. A person says, I just got to dig in here and work harder. I seem to be getting behind. Other people seem to be prospering more than I do.

What is the problem? You work and you work and you work, but you're putting your wages into bags with holes. You're bringing the money, but it's soon gone.

Living just for month to month, barely getting by. It may be that the sin of pride is the problem. God will deal with any who walk in pride. In other words, chapter 13, the 15th verse says, good understanding giveth favor, but the way of transgressors is hard. The way of transgressors is hard.

I can think back over the years of people with whom I have counseled. When we reached a point that they were resisting it. They rejected it. They don't care what God's word said. And I've often used this verse as my parting comment. That the way of transgressors is hard.

And I can tell you, I've seen that unfold time and time again in a person's life. And they say, I don't want to do it that way. And one finally said, well, I just don't believe the Bible.

That's going to change everything. If I don't believe the Bible, then I'm not obligated. And over and over again, you can see this text unfolding. The way of transgressors is hard. If you are a child of God and you're walking in pride, God will deal with you. The book of Hebrews chapter 12 verse 6, for whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as sons. For what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not? God will not have his children walk in pride or continue with a disobedient rebellious spirit. If you're one of his in his new time, in his way, he will chasten you. He will deal with you.

Now, the question then may come to mind. Just how would you describe a person that is walking in pride? Obviously, nobody here is going to be engaged in some of the activities that we observed in these Old Testament examples. What about us? Well, the proud are friends of the world. We turn to the book of James chapter 4 verse 1. From whence come wars and fightings among you? Now, we're talking about engaging in a battle that you cannot win. What about the wars? What about the conflicts? What about the battles within a marriage? What about the conflicts among friends? What about troubles that sometimes invade churches? From whence come wars and fightings among you?

Come they not hence even of your lusts that war in your members? Your desires. Your desire to have your way. Your desire that you may always be able to execute your plan. Your self-will.

Your selfish. Ye lust that is your desire and have not. Ye kill and desire to have and cannot obtain. Ye fight and war, yet ye have not because ye ask not. Verse 4. Ye adulterers and adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God. Whosoever, therefore, will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

That's pretty plain, isn't it? Person that becomes enamored with the world. I want to fit in. I want to be like everybody else. I want to be accepted to the culture in which I'm living. All of their focus is on gaining material things, making a name for themselves, getting ahead.

He says you become the friend of the world and you at that moment have become the enemy of God. The proud are friends of the world. The proud are full of complaints. This is one way that it becomes evident that a person is walking in pride.

Because they are a constant complainer. The book of 1 Corinthians chapter 10. Neither murmured ye, as some of them also murmured and were destroyed of the destroyer. Obviously talking about the experience of the children of Israel in olden times.

They murmured, they complained and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all of these things happened unto them for ensamples. And they are written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come. So these experiences of old testament times are not there just as a historical record. But they are there for our example.

For our benefit that we might learn from them. Children of Israel were complaining. Complaining when it appeared they were having nothing to eat. God provided that. Sent down the manna complaining. After a while because they got tired of the manna complaining.

Constantly in their travels. Proud person feels, I'm entitled to more than what I have. My life ought to be smoother.

Things ought to be better for me. And so they are constantly complaining. The complainer gives evidence that he is full of pride. And the proud are often unhappy with their circumstances and their present position in life. I feel like I should have reached a higher plane by this time. Ought not to still be a worker on my job.

I ought to be the boss. And they are very unhappy with the fact that they are not there. Miriam complained about Moses. Complained because he had married an Ethiopian woman. And also complained because she said, Does God send all of his messages through Moses? What about me?

What about me? And Miriam became leprous because she said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses, hath he not spoken also by us? Not willing to accept her role.

Not willing to appreciate Moses as the God appointed leader. As the one through whom God was speaking. She wanted more. She was not happy with her position.

She was full of pride. Search me, O God, And know my heart today. Drive me, O Savior, Know my thoughts I pray.

See if there be Some wicked wave in me. Lend me from every sin. And set me free. Miriam was unhappy with her position which showed that she did not have a humble spirit. Yes, the scripture is very explicit that God resists the proud.

Judgment came upon Miriam because of her rebellious attitude. May we remember the promise that he gives grace to the humble. Humble ourselves before the Lord. Knowing that we are unworthy of the least of his mercies. And that we want to be surrendered in all things to his will. I hope that you are righteous and until next week at this same time may the Lord richly bless you all.

My name. The Baptist Bible Hour has come to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. Address all mail to the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. That's the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Lord, take my life and make it holy time. Fill my poor heart with thy great love divine. Take all my will, my passion set.