Submission, Part 3

Music 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. This is the third part of a message titled, Submission.

It was first preached March 5, 2023. So as we continue then, verse 5 and 6 for today, I want to talk about the upside of humility, the upside of Christ-like humility. We need to understand humility for what it truly is. It's not about having a low self-esteem. That is not what it is. The Scriptures don't even play that game.

It's not about having a high self-esteem. It's about understanding yourself in light of who God is and who you are. You are who God says you are. And it's knowing that and functioning according to that. The upside of Christ-like humility. Let's look at the Scriptures here. Chapter 5, verse 5, Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders, clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility towards one another. For God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that at the proper time He may exalt you. Four points to the upside of Christ-like humility.

Number one, it clears the path to meaningful community. Christ-like humility clears the path to meaningful community. What is pride? Which is the opposite of humility. Pride is an obsessive competition with others. You have to be better than or have more than whatever it is, right?

I've used this illustration before. One person has a truck and another person has a truck and this truck is newer and shinier and more powerful. So he's not proud in the fact that he just has a new truck.

He's proud in the fact that he's got a newer, shinier, more powerful truck than this guy. That's what pride does. It's an obsessive competition. It's a natural part of being human.

Every one of us deals with that. We're constantly comparing ourselves with each other. And comparing ourselves with each other in this unhealthy way has no part in the gospel of grace. This kind of pride will lead us to despise others and to rebel against God. The wars, the desires that are at war within us cause wars among ourselves. All of that's rooted in pride. But humility, on the other hand, humility makes your personalities and your abilities complementary and encouraging.

When you have a Christ-like humility, it clears the path to meaningful community because your personality and your abilities become complementary and encouraging instead of competitive and divisive in Christ-like humility. There was a time in the late 90s where I was on like a two and a half year hiatus from pastoral ministry. And I found myself for 11 months working at Peterson Farms where they processed foods, fresh fruits into frozen foods. And I worked in quality control. And I got moved to, started out in the night shift and got moved to the day shift and there was a day shift supervisor. His name was Larry. He was maybe 10, 15 years my senior.

And here I come in now into his shift as a newbie with a college degree. I could tell right up front that Larry was suspicious and he asserted himself. I had a choice. I could either push back and tell him how great I was, how good of a worker I was, but I chose not to go that route by the grace of God. I chose instead to submit to his authority and he would tell me things that I knew very well or reminded me of things that I knew very well. But I submitted to his authority and I engaged, I purposefully, intentionally engaged in conversation with him.

And as it turned out, we became good friends. In the work environment, what? You can have friends?

Yeah, you can. There's a lot of pride that goes on and a lot of competition that goes on in the corporate work environment, isn't there? Let's not participate in that. Harmony and friendship have to be intentional. They have to be led by the Spirit. And Christ-like humility clears a path to meaningful community.

And if that, listen, if that exists anywhere, it will exist in the church, in the body of Christ, the church that is being the church. Number two, Christ-like humility moves you in a God-ward direction. The end of verse five says, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

He's quoting Proverbs here, Proverbs chapter three. But Christ-like humility moves you in a God-ward direction because God opposes the proud. What does pride do? Pride says, I insist on having my way. Or pride insists, I can do this.

I don't need you to help me out or tell me what to do. And you know what happens? Because the verse here says God opposes the proud, and He does. It's clear He does that, right? But let me tell you a subtle way that God may oppose you in your pride when you insist, I can do that. I'm good.

I don't need your help. God can very easily second the motion and get out of the way, and then watch you fall flat on your face. I mean, Lucifer, at the beginning of time, he was preoccupied with his beauty, and a preoccupation with his beauty led him to be preoccupied with his limits. And then he had this crazy, outrageous notion, I will ascend to the throne of God. As a created being, he will ascend to the throne of an infinite creator.

You see how irrational pride is? But that was his ambition. And he fell flat on his face. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve, they were tempted to think that they could find greater satisfaction apart from God.

Well, they tried that, and how'd that work out for them? The very one who writes this letter, three times recorded in the Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples, you're all going to abandon me. And what did Peter say? I will never. He said it just like that.

Even if it means going to prison or even death, I will not abandon you. Well, we know the rest of the story, don't we? You see, that was his flesh speaking.

He was focused on what he could do. That's what pride can do. But humility, Christ-like humility, moves you in a God-ward direction. Remember the story of the religious leader and the tax collector, right? They go to the temple and they both pray.

What does the tax collector say? God what? Be merciful to me. What did Jesus say?

That man went to his house. What? Justified. You know what that means? That means acceptable before God. Isaiah 66 2 teaches us what humility is required of us. To this, this is the one to whom I will look, he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word. Christ-like humility moves you in a God-ward direction.

Instead of God being opposed to you, it moves you in a God-ward direction. Number three, Christ-like humility opens the floodgates to God's goodness. God gives grace to the humble.

He opposes the proud. He gives grace to the humble. And this Christ-like humility opens the floodgates to God's goodness. He gives grace. He gives forgiving and cleansing grace. He gives transforming grace. He gives helping and equipping grace. He gives hope-filled grace.

Two statements here. Your posture of Christ-like humility opens the floodgates for God to lavish His goodness on you and through you. Secondly, your satisfaction in Him will melt the pride of your self-preoccupation. Christ-like humility. Fourthly and lastly, Christ-like humility frees you to live with the end in view. It frees you to live with the end in view. That end being when you indeed are fully alive, which is the glory of God. Irenaeus say that the glory of God is man fully alive. In other words, when you are everything God designed you to be. That moment will come when you and I stand face to face with Jesus Christ.

It is not yet, but it will come. And Christ-like humility frees you to live with that end in view. That end being your highest good and your deepest satisfaction. That's what he's referring to in chapter 1 verse 7.

Remember he's talking to a persecuted, disdained people in the empire. That the genuineness of your faith being more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at what? The revelation of Jesus Christ. We're so glad you've joined us for Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. You can hear this message and others anytime by visiting our website, www.delightingrace.com. You can also check out Pastor Rich's book, 7 Words That Can Change Your Life, where he unpacks from God's Word the very purpose for which you were designed. 7 Words That Can Change Your Life is available wherever books are sold. As always, tune into Delight in Grace weekdays at 10 a.m.