Submission, Part 2

Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem.

This series on 1 Peter is titled, Live as People Who are Free. Today, Rich looks at 1 Peter 5, 5-6, pointing out our need for humility and submission within the community of believers. What does true humility really look like?

And how can freedom come from surrender? What are the blessings that come from Christ-like humility? Let's listen in as Pastor Rich answers these questions using today's text. In a living example, this is what he says in the first four verses, a living example by the spiritually mature. And so, when he says, submit to your elders, he's talking about a posture, particular posture, a mental posture towards those who are in God ordained authority. And it's not an adversarial posture, but it is an admonishable posture.

Spellcheck didn't like that word, but it's a word. Are you in an admonishable posture? Are you a person recognizing that you are still not completely like Christ, not fully like Christ, that day will come, but it's not yet? Are you one who has the proper disposition and posture where someone can come to you and say, let me walk with you this way in a God-ward direction?

Are you open to that? You know, that's really kind of what the theme, a big part of the theme was at the men's retreat this weekend. Love the brotherhood, and that's talking about committing to a culture of grace and taking our relationships beyond the surface and being able to cross the pain line.

What is that pain line? It's being able to have uncomfortable conversations with each other, all towards the end of moving God-ward together. That's what a brotherhood does.

And we're thinking about, you know, the staff of the church working here, you know, and we are often talking to each other, and we got some young guys in there, right? And they still need some shaping. They maybe have still some rough edges, and it's not like I don't have rough edges. But, you know, the Bible says iron sharpens iron. You know, since we're willing to cross the pain line in our staff presence here in the church throughout the week, let me tell you something. We're a pretty sharp bunch, because iron sharpens iron. We're willing to cross that pain line with each other to speak truth, lovingly, graciously, in the context of a family bond. I meant that tongue in cheek, right? We're a pretty sharp bunch, okay? But we are, right, Bobbies? Are you open to receive wise, loving counsel?

Search your heart. We are called to exhort, to admonish, to warn, to call to repentance, to call to restoration. All of that is a part of the responsibilities of leadership in the church. Responsibilities of leadership in the church. And do you have the biblical posture towards that weighty responsibility?

This is why he writes this. And he says it's the language of discipline that is necessary for shepherds. But remember, just like Paul said, it's for your joy. It's for your Christ-likeness.

It can never be about control. It's for your joy. That's very grace-filled. And so he says that, likewise you who are younger be subject to the elders. And then he says, clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility towards one another.

Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility towards one another. The word clothe, when we talk about somebody putting on clothes, it can speak of their character. It's a biblical metaphor, but it can also speak of their occupation.

Many of you, if you came in here wearing what you wear to work, I might be able to tell what you do for work. But he says, all of you, clothe yourselves, the whole flock, the whole family of God. Again, so important to point out that the church, the church is a family. The metaphors of scripture are a family, vitally connected so that whatever this arm does, the rest of the body does. You with me? We work together.

We move together. That's a vital connection. And if this arm hurts, it affects the rest of the body.

That's how a body works. Biblical metaphor is also a building. Building blocks were all built together into one building, a habitation, a body. Built together into one building, a habitation for God and a family.

The vital connection of family. All of you clothe yourselves with humility. And that's why the church, the body of Christ, is not just a loose association of people. We don't have to worry about pride and humility if all we are is just a loose association of people. And that's what happens when somebody gets disgruntled and say, I'll just go for another church. Listen, folks, that is plaguing the American church. Don't be a part of that. We're a family. The idea of humility is so central to the gospel.

Why? Because the one who is the gospel humbled himself. I'm going to read to you from Tim Keller's book. It's a tiny little booklet. The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness. The Path to True Christian Joy. You need to read this book.

I'm going to read some of it to you. And the part that I'm going to read begins with Keller quoting C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. And this comes down to understanding what humility is. Because what we're going to do, we're going to define what humility is.

And we're going to define humility this morning. He says this, and he's quoting C.S. Lewis. Tim Keller's quoting C.S.

Lewis. If we were to meet a truly humble person, we would never come away from meeting them thinking they were humble. They would not be always telling us they were a nobody because a person who keeps saying they're a nobody is actually a self-obsessed person. The thing we would remember from meeting a truly gospel humble person is how much they seem to be totally interested in us. Because the essence, here it is, the essence of gospel humility is not thinking more of myself or thinking less of myself. It is thinking of myself less. He goes on to explain gospel humility is not needing to think about myself, not needing to connect things with myself. It is an end to thoughts such as I'm in this room with these people.

Does this make me look good? Do I want to be here? True gospel humility means I stop connecting every experience, every conversation with myself. In fact, I stop thinking about myself, the freedom of self-forgetfulness, the blessed rest that only self-forgetfulness brings. Hopefully that gives us a really good picture of what we're talking about with humility. There is a chief natural motive for all of us as humans.

You want to know what it is? I've said this before. The greatest motivator naturally, I'm just speaking naturally, not supernaturally, not in the spirit, naturally in the flesh, the greatest motivator for you is what you think other people think of you.

I didn't say what other people think, it's what you think other people think of you. This is why we need to have the mind of Christ. We need to have the mind of Christ, Philippians chapter 2. I mean, who is Christ, right?

After all, He is the infinite, eternal Son of God, the Creator, who humbled Himself and came to earth. And He didn't just come. Do you remember the night of His betrayal when He was in the upper room with His disciples? What did He do? He stood up, girded Himself, took off His robe, He girded Himself, and He got down on the floor and started washing the disciples' feet.

That is the function of a slave. And He did it. And then when He was done, remember Peter objected, right?

Jesus objected at Peter's objection. When He was done, He said, I've given you an example. That's powerful, isn't it? Does any of us in this room have the audacity to say, yeah, that's an example I don't need to follow?

Wow. This is the infinite Son of God we're talking about, who humbled Himself, which is interesting because when Peter uses the word clothe yourselves, the word that's used there is a word that is often used of a slave putting on an apron to serve. Humility.

He's using a word picture here. It comes from our disposition, our posture of submission, because it is at the foundation of what the Gospel is. The humility of Christ Himself. Seven words that can change your life is available wherever books are sold. As always, tune in to Delight and Grace weekdays at 10 a.m.