We better not rise up and think ourselves equal with God. We better not contest God's wisdom. We better be meek and lowly and humble, whatever God brings into our life. Whatever he brings. We humble ourselves.
We accept it. From his hand. Welcome to Grace to You with John MacArthur's verse-by-verse Bible teaching. I'm your host, Phil Johnson. Today, we're continuing a study called A Practical Path to Spiritual Maturity with an in-depth look at humility.
Of course, humility characterized the life of Christ, who is our supreme example of godly living. And as you may recognize in your own life, there may be no attitude that's harder to cultivate.
So how do you defeat pride and replace it with genuine humility? What steps do you need to take? You'll find out today on Grace to You.
So if you have your Bible, turn to 1 Peter and follow along with John MacArthur. 1 Peter chapter 5, verses 5 through 14 compose the final section of this great epistle. And we'll take this section under one heading. Fundamental Attitudes for Spiritual Maturity. Attitude number one.
An attitude of Submission. An attitude of Submission. Spiritual maturity always calls for An attitude of submission. And if you don't have that, Not only do you make the ministry difficult, The servant of the Lord, sorrowful and grieving. But you will.
fail to have a cornerstone. in your own spiritual life. There's a second attitude that needs consideration that goes right along with the first one that Peter gives us. And that is an attitude of humility. Immediately upon Completing his first command.
He gives another one. Verse 5. And all of you. Clothe yourselves. with humility toward one another.
For God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace. to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God. That he may exalt you. at the proper time.
An attitude of submission. is a twin to an attitude of Humility. If the attitude of submission attacks self- promoting pride. The attitude of humility attacks self-love.
So the matter of spiritual virtue is a matter of humility. The matter of maturity is a matter of humility. And notice how comprehensive He says, You younger men, I'm particularly concerned about you because you have the potential to be unruly. But all of you, notice that in verse 5, all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another.
Now, did you know that God has developed a certain garment? Where one size fits everybody? I was in New Orleans the other day. And I walk by a store. And there's a salesperson in there, very aggressive, came out and said, why don't you come in?
You might want to buy something. And um So I walked in and I saw lots of clothes folded on shelves, and I said, I said, well, it was women's clothes. I said, I have a basic rule. I don't buy women's clothes for me. And I don't buy women's clothes for my wife because I might get the wrong thing, especially if I'm out of town.
And she said, well, it doesn't matter. All these clothes all fit everybody. I thought to myself, if I brought home something for my wife that could fit anybody. She wouldn't take it as a compliment. She said, everything in the store fits everybody.
Well, there's something in verse 5 that fits everybody, too. And he says, all of you need to put it on. You all need to clothe yourselves. That word, clothed, is a very, very interesting word. It's not as general as it appears.
The word literally means in the Greek To tie something on yourself with a knot or a bow.
Okay, very specific word. Inkamba mai. to tie something on yourself with a knot or a bow.
Now the word was used of an apron. which you tie on yourself with a knot or a bow. And it had particularly in mind a work apron. In fact, it had the apron that a slave put on in mind. A slave Would put on an apron over his clothes to keep them clean, just like you might do when you go to work.
Just like a housewife might do around the house. In order to keep your clothes clean, you put on an apron, you tie it in a knot or a bow. It became the word. For putting on humble service. Garment yourself.
in the one-size-fits-all garment of humble service. Put on the apron of the slave. That's what he's saying. Clothe yourselves. With The word humility is the word lowly-mindedness.
with an attitude that you are lonely. An attitude that you are not too good to serve, you are not too great. To stoop. And by the way, this is totally foreign in the pagan world. Humility was not a virtue, you know that.
Humility was not a virtue in the pagan world, just like it isn't a virtue today. Humble people today, they get mocked and trampled. They're called wimps. By the world. This is the day of the macho man.
It was the same day in Peter's day. Humility was no virtue. Humility was for weak and cowardly people. The only humility they tolerated was the involuntary humility of slavery. And so Peter is saying, you need to put on the garment of a slave and take on a voluntary humility, a lowliness of mind.
In two directions. Verse 5. First, toward one another. toward one another. Peter might have been thinking About his Lord.
You remember the incident recorded in John 13 where it says that Jesus looked and the disciples' feet were not washed? And no one was there to do it? And so he got up. And he girded himself. And he stooped and washed their filthy feet.
This is the Son of God. who put that garment that fits all on. and tied the knot in the slave's apron, and bent down and washed their dirty feet. Peter probably remembered when the Lord put that on. And when the Lord did that, And he says, you need to put it on too.
You need to clothe yourself. With the attitude of a slave. the attitude of a foot washer, the attitude of a servant toward one another. What does that mean toward other Christians? Philippians chapter 2.
He says Do nothing from selfishness. Or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, let each of you regard one another as more important than himself. That's the key. You have to see others as more important than you are. That is a challenge.
I mean, you just battle your fallen flesh and your pride on that one incessantly. To be able to see others as more important than yourselves is a major spiritual victory. But that's what it takes. Don't be selfish. Don't be conceited.
With humility of mind, regard others as more important than yourself. Then he says, Do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but the interests of others. Have the attitude in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. And then he goes on to say how Christ Jesus was exalted with the Father, stooped, became a servant, and gave himself even in death in order that he might serve us, humbled himself in an amazing inconceivable way and that's the heart attitude you need to have. You need to stoop.
Even to serve unworthy sinners. Put on the garment of a slave.
Now to support his exhortation In verse 5, Peter quotes from the Old Testament. He quotes Proverbs 3.34. Which says God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. This is reason to be humble. Why?
Because God gives grace to the humble, but he opposes the proud. By the way, James quotes that same verse. Proverbs 3:34 and James 4:6 says the same thing. God, as opposed to the proud, gives grace to the humble. The only difference between this quote and what the Old Testament Greek Septuagint says is the Old Testament uses the word Lord and Peter substitutes the word God, but both obviously have reference to the same person.
That's an Old Testament axiom that must have been very common. Peter used it, James used it. The axiom says, it's wise to clothe yourself with humility toward each other because God will give you grace if you do, and God will fight against you if you don't. That's pretty good motivation. God is opposed to the pride.
You say, why is He opposed to the proud? Very simple, He hates pride. God hates it. He hates pride. And that couldn't be more explicitly revealed in Scripture.
Proverbs 6, 16, there are six things. Which the Lord hates. Yes, seven which are an abomination to him. He starts off haughty eyes. It's just another word for pride.
Haughty Eyes He hates pride. In Proverbs 8:13, the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverted mouth I hate. You know why God opposes the proud now, don't you? He hates pride.
He despises it. Do you know what sin it was that caused Lucifer to be thrown out of heaven? What was it? Right. I will, I will, I will, I'll be like the Most High and I will ascend and so forth.
Pride. And God's grace is reserved for the humble. Perhaps no one has said it better than Isaiah In Isaiah 57, In verse 15, For thus says the high and exalted one, Who lives forever, whose name is holy. I dwell in a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit, in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and revive the heart of the contrite. Isn't that something?
God says, I live on a high and holy place. And who lives with me there? Not the high and lifted up, but the lowly. They live there with me. Isaiah says it again.
The message from God in Isaiah 66, 2. But to this one I will look. to him who is humble. God gives grace. What does he mean grace?
Blessing. He blesses the life of the humble. and he opposes the proud. I see people stumbling around all the time trying to fix up their life. Stumbling around trying to find some kind of solution, some kind of fix, some kind of therapy that'll work, some kind of counseling that'll solve their problems, some kind of book that'll deliver them from their supposed dilemma.
And the bottom line may be there is no deliverance, my friend, because you are not experiencing the grace of God. You are rather experiencing the opposing hand of God in your life because you are proud. God opposes the proud. And he gives grace to the humble.
So, Peter starts out then by saying, You better be humble toward each other so that you can know the grace of God and not the opposition of God. Then, secondly, he says you better be humble not only toward each other, but toward God. This is so Straightforward. Look at verse 6, and this will open some richness of thought. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God.
That he may exalt you at the proper time. Since God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble, therefore you better humble yourself and not only toward one another, but under the mighty hand of God. Based on that scriptural truth quoted in verse 5, Peter gives a clear command to humble ourselves. Under God. We better not rise up and think ourselves Equal with God.
We better not fight God. We better not contest God's wisdom. We better be meek and lowly and humble, whatever God brings into our life. Whatever he brings. We humble ourselves.
We humble ourselves. We accept it. From his hand. The Old Testament has so much to say about this, I feel somewhat. Pressed.
But let me just give you a few scriptures that'll open this. Rich truth. Micah 6-8. He has told you, old man, what is good. And what is that?
What does the Lord require of you? Listen to this: to do justice. to love kindness. And to walk Humbly With Your God. What does he require?
You walk humbly with him. What does that mean? You walk under his mighty And You walk under. His mighty hand.
So what does that mean?
Well The mighty hand of God is an Old Testament symbol of God's covering power. God's controlling power. God's sovereignty. God is in charge. The mighty hand of God is the hand of God in charge of you.
That's what it means. It is the Power of God. Working in the experience of men, always accomplishing his sovereign, loving purpose. The mighty hand of God means different things at different times.
Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used to deliver the believer. from trouble.
Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used to protect the believer through a time of testing. It's a shelter. Rather than a deliverance.
Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used as a chastening hand. bringing blows against the believer. But always It is the sovereign, mighty hand of God. Whether for deliverance, For testing. for chastening Always God's mighty hand.
So Peter says, look. You just need to humble yourself. Whether the mighty hand of God is there to deliver you. Whether the mighty hand of God is there to protect you through testing that seems so difficult, or whether the mighty hand of God is there to, as it were, strike you in chastening, submit yourself, humble yourself. Don't question God.
Don't argue with God. Don't debate with God. Humble yourself under his will. Under his word, under his power. You see, this is very direct for these readers.
They're under God's hand. And it isn't the hand of deliverance. In some cases it might be the hand of chastening, but mostly it's the hand of testing. He's covering them and they're going through this terrible time of testing. And Peter is saying, look, you need to accept that God-controlled experience.
You don't need to fight it. You don't need to argue with it. You accept the mighty hand of God. Over you in this time of testing, as God puts you through a trial, because you know, verse 6, that He may exalt you at the proper time. What's the proper time?
His time. Not our time. His time. The perfect time for God to lift you up. He knows what it is.
You say, when will it be?
Well, it'll be when he's accomplished his purpose. And Only he knows his purpose. 1 Timothy 2.6. says Jesus gave himself a ransom at the proper time. And in God's perfect timing.
He gave himself a ransom. Titus 1.3 says, The hope of eternal life. came at the proper time. Even his word. Christ came at the proper time.
The word came at the proper time. And you're. You're uh Exaltation. You're being lifted up. The word means to be lifted up out of the trouble.
will come at the proper time. But until the proper time, what are you to do? Humble yourself. We don't know much about that. That's a building block, that's a cornerstone, that's a foundation stone to spiritual maturity.
And if we fight God at that point, we literally destroy the future. For us.
So it's important to remind these readers. that while you are under the mighty hand of God, And he brings pressure against you. To test you, to purge you, to purify you. And you are suffering through very difficult experiences. You're not to become discouraged.
You're not. to judge God as unkind or unfair. You're to be humble. Warren Where's be Sad One of the evidences of our pride is our impatience with God. And one of the reasons for our suffering is that we might learn patience.
God has to teach us that. And the way to be able to remain humble under God's hand, what's the way to do that? It's the third attitude. Verse 7. Very simple.
casting all your anxiety upon him because he cares for you. That's the way to be humble. That's the way to remain under it. This is the third attitude, an attitude of Trust. An attitude of trust.
Humility, what does it require? Much prayer. For the death of pride. Don't ever. Think.
you will be easily humbled. It takes much prayer. Much prayer. Secondly, it takes much rejection of praise. Much rejection of praise.
Thirdly, it takes much confession of sin. But fourthly, It takes much. confidence in a caring God. I can't humble myself under God's pressure if I don't think He cares. But I can if I do.
And so Peter says, You have to have an attitude of trust. Trust in what? In his care.
So that you cast all your anxiety on him because you know he cares for you. And so you're able to say, Lord, it's difficult and I can't handle the trial, but I'm going to give you the whole deal because I know you care for me. The word casting It's used of throwing something on something. For example, throwing a blanket over a horse, a donkey, a mule. That's how it's used in Luke 19, 35.
Throwing a blanket on an animal. Peter says, just cast it on, just throw it on him. All your anxiety, what's the anxiety? All of the discontent, discouragement, despair, questioning, wondering, pain, suffering that you're going through. Just give it all to Him, turn it in for trust.
And the God who really cares. About you. Hannah is a great illustration. She didn't have a little boy and For a Jewish mother not to have a little boy was a real problem.
So it says in 1 Samuel 1:10, she greatly distressed. Prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. She was one broken-hearted woman. And God had her at that time under the mighty hand of testing.
So she made a vow. She said, O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your maidservant and remember me and not forget your maidservant, but will give your maidservant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor will never come on his head. I'll not only give him back to you, but I'll take a Nazarite vow for him so that he'll give no attention to his physical looks and he'll devote his whole life to you. And so it came about as she was continuing praying before the Lord that Eli was watching her mouth. As for Hannah.
She was speaking in her heart, only her lips were moving. But her voice wasn't heard, so Eli thought she was drunk. And Eli said to her, How long will you make yourself drunk? Put away your wine from you. Hannah answered and said, No, my lord.
I'm a woman oppressed in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink. I've poured out my soul before God. I'm under the mighty hand of God, and it's painful, and I'm praying. I've given God my burden.
Don't consider your maidservant as a worthless woman. I have spoken until now out of my great concern and provocation. And Eli answered and said, Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant your petition that you have asked of him. And she said, let your maidservant find favor. in your sight.
So the woman went away and ate. Her face was no longer sad. And God gave her a child. What happened to her? It says in verse Yeah.
She went her way and ate. and her face was no longer sad. Why? How was it no longer said? Nothing had changed, no.
But what's she done with the burden? Gave it to the Lord. Just gave it to the Lord. That's the issue. Why?
Because he cares for you. He does. Because he cares for you. There's no doubt in my mind that Peter had in mind Psalm 55, 22 when he said that. Psalm fifty-five 22 says, Cast your burden on the Lord.
And he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. Oh, that's good. Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.
He cares for you. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount: If he takes care of the lilies of the field, you think he'll clothe you? If he feeds of the birds of the air, do you think he'll feed you? Paul says, My God shall supply what? All you need?
So Peter says, let's get back to basics, folks. Spiritual maturity begins with some fundamentals. An attitude of submission. To those in spiritual authority, An attitude of humility. Toward others?
toward God. Under his mighty hand, and an attitude of trust. that says I can humble myself. because I'm going to give this whole burden. to the God who really cares.
Those are the fundamental attitudes that produce spiritual maturity. Without them, Doesn't happen. And there are more. But that's for next time. You're listening to Grace to You, the Bible teaching ministry of John MacArthur.
Today, John showed you how to replace pride with humility as he continued his study: a practical path to spiritual maturity.
Well, friend, to cultivate humility and other essential Christian attitudes, you need to know what God expects from you, and that means you need to know God's Word. The MacArthur Daily Bible can be a big help in that. With daily readings from the Old and New Testaments, Psalms and Proverbs, also study notes from John, this resource can help you understand the flow of God's Word like never before. Order the MacArthur Daily Bible when you go online today. Our web address is gty.org.
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Now for the entire GraceTU staff, I'm Phil Johnson. Thanks for joining us today. Be back tomorrow as John MacArthur shows you practical steps for cultivating the vital trait. of self-discipline. It's another 30 minutes of Unleashing God's Truth, one verse at a time on Grace to You.
