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Now, here's today's podcast, From Pathway to Victory. Hi, this is Robert Jeffers, and I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day on this Bible teaching program on today's edition of Pathway to Victory. It was veteran mountaineer David Brashiers who said, getting to the summit is the easy part. It's getting back down that's hard. That's not only true about mountain climbing, it's true about the Christian life.
If we're going to reach that summit, that plan that God has for us, We've got to empty our backpack of pride. Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffers. Mountain climbers know that the most dangerous part of their endeavor is not the ascent, but the descent. And in the same way, Christians need to avoid over-celebrating their achievements, lest they slide down the slippery slope of pride.
Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffers encourages us to practice the virtue of humility. But first, let's take a moment to hear some important ministry updates. Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. Today I'm going to pull back the curtain and expose a common weakness among Christians.
You see, Christians can become vulnerable, not only when life is hard, but when life is good. That's right. When the career is thriving, the family is healthy, and everything seems to be going your way. That's exactly when the enemy moves in, because pride is a slow poison. We stop depending on God and start depending on ourselves.
And before long, we're drowning in problems we never saw coming. My book, Courageous, will show you how to stay battle-ready in the good times and the bad. It's my gift when you become a new pathway partner or make a generous one-time donation. I'm eager to send a copy to your home today. In fact, it'll arrive with a collection of 10 convenient, courageous encouragement cards.
You can tuck these into your pocket as a reminder of God's promises to you. When you glance at one of these cards, you'll gain strength from the Bible verses that celebrate God's promise to help you live with courage.
Alright, it's time to focus on today's topic. It's one that confronts us all. How do we safeguard ourselves from pride? The answer is survival tip number seven. I titled this next message in our courageous series, Don't Celebrate the Summit.
Doug Hansen, a 47-year-old postal worker from Kent, Washington. Couldn't afford expert mountain climber Rob Hall's $65,000 fee to guide him up the side of Mount Everest. Unlike the rest of the climbers in the group on his 1996 Everest trek. Hansen had to scrape every penny together to make the trip. He even enlisted the kids at Sunrise Elementary School in his hometown to sell t-shirts to help pay the bill.
In return, they would receive postcards from Nepal and if he successfully summited the mountain, a picture of the school's flag planted on the top of Mount Everest. Hansen had tried to reach the summit the previous year. But because of the leader, Rob Hall's strict turnaround time. A measure used to ensure a safe return to camp before bad weather or nightfall. The guide had turned Hansen back just 330 vertical feet below the summit.
Hall felt bad about denying Hansen the summit then, so he offered him a reduced rate if he would try again in 1996. Between the two expeditions, Doug Hansen obsessed about reaching the summit of Everest. Thinking back to his previous expedition, Hansen told fellow 96 Everest climber John Krakauer. The summit looked so close. Believe me, there hasn't been a day since that I haven't thought about it.
In the dark hours of May 10, 1996, Hansen, along with Krakauer and others in Rob Hall's group, left camp in their bid for the summit.
However, three hours into the climb, Hansen was unable to shake the cold. Feeling miserable, he pulled aside to let others pass on the rope. He told one of the climbers that the summit would have to wait another year. When Hall reached Hansen, a conversation ensued. No one heard what was said, but Doug Hansen got back on the rope line and continued the ascent.
Throughout the day, the climbers began to spread out. Stronger climbers racing ahead, weaker climbers lagging behind. Rob Hall's turnaround time was 2 o'clock p.m., a deadline that was to be obeyed without question. Nevertheless, violating his own rule, Hall crested the summit at 2.10 p.m. He radioed base camp, Doug is just coming up over the horizon.
But the figure Hall saw wasn't handsome. He was still two hours away from making the summit. According to Nepalese climbing guides for another expedition, Hansen didn't reach the top until after 4 o'clock p.m. And then only with the help of Hall. Hall, who had been sitting at the summit, 29,028 feet, for two hours.
didn't allow Hansen much time to celebrate the accomplishment of his dream. They had to descend and do so quickly. But Hansen was out of bottled oxygen and completely spent. At 4.30 and 4.41, Hall radioed that he and Hansen were in trouble. and needed oxygen.
By this time, an approaching storm was beginning to look ominous. When Hall radioed again, The storm had engulfed the mountains.
Sometime between Hall's 5:57 p.m. distress call on May 10th. and his call at 4.43 a.m. on May 11th. Doug Hansen either slid or stepped off the mountain.
About 45 minutes later, Basecamp reached Rob Hall on the radio and asked about Hansen. Doug is gone, Hall said. After enduring a night of wind chill 100 degrees below zero. Rob Hall finally succumbed to the extreme environment and died. People have debated what actually happened on that mountain.
Why would somebody experienced like Rob Hall violate His own strict turnaround time, and caused the life not only of himself, but of Doug Hansen as well.
Some people say it was a business decision. that motivated them to violate the rule. He had failed once to get Doug Hansen up the mountain. He didn't want to fail again. After all, the rumors would start that it was an inferior company that couldn't get people to the summit.
That would hurt him business-wise. Other people said no, it was just the macho thing, macho men doing macho things. But whatever the reason, the truth is clear. Rob Hall and Doug Hansen violated a basic rule of mountaineering. And that is remembering that climbing the mountain Isn't only about reaching the summit, it's about returning home from the summit.
In our series, Courageous. We're looking at 10 survival tips for living out our faith in a hostile, threatening environment. The story of Doug Hansen and Rob Hall illustrates the seventh survival tip we're going to talk about today. And that is to beware of celebrating the summit. In fact, those who either obsess about the summit or celebrate too long at the summit.
missed three important truths we need to look at to begin with today. Jot them down. First of all, life is about more than fulfilling your dreams. Life is much more than accomplishing your dreams. Secondly, your dreams have been given by God for His glory.
Thirdly, God has more dreams for you to pursue. The danger of celebrating the summit too long is we forget God has other things He wants us to do after the summit. If we forget these three important truths, we are in danger of Pride, and nothing is more dangerous in either reaching the summit. are staying on the summit than pride. Pride leads to ingratitude toward God.
Ingratitude to God leads to independence from God. Whenever we become intoxicated by our own successes, we begin to think we don't need God. And by the way, that was the basis of the very first sin ever committed in the universe. It wasn't here on earth, it was in heaven. Remember Lucifer?
God's chief angel. Had his own case of pride. One day he was looking in the mirror at himself and he said, You know, I'm a pretty good-looking angel. And not only that, I'm pretty smart as well. I could be running this show just as well as you know who could.
And God pronounced a judgment against him. In Ezekiel 28, 15, he said, You, Lucifer, you were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you. And what was that unrighteousness? Verse 17, your heart was lifted up because of your beauty. You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.
Lucifer, you forgot you were the creature. Not the Creator. Any good thing Lucifer had was what God had done for him. But he was filled with ingratitude, and that ingratitude led to independence. And we find that in Isaiah 14, verses 13 and 14.
When Lucifer felt he didn't need God, then he organized a rebellion against God. But you, Lucifer, you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven. That's what Lucifer wanted to do. He wanted to reach the summit. He wanted to reach into heaven to raise his throne above the sons of God.
He said, I will sit on the mount of assembly in the resources of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will make myself like. the Most High God. I will, I will, I will.
And for that reason, God cast Lucifer out of heaven. And he became Satan. And from that day until now and until the end of the time. Satan has one goal. He's creating a rival, a shadow empire set against God's empire.
And his empire is built upon this proposition. That life apart from God is not only possible, It's preferable. That is the epitome of pride. I don't need God. I'm putting my will above God's will.
That is the basis of pride. C.S. Lewis called pride the great sin, and he observed: It is pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation. and every family since the world began. Listen to me, pride, being consumed with yourself.
Setting your will above God's will. Will blind you as you try to reach the summit in your life. And it can cause you to stumble after you've reached the summit. The only way to clear the fog of pride that may have set in in your life. is through humility.
Humility allows you to see your life and God clearly. What is humility? Humility is the recognition that any good thing in your life Is the result of what God and/or others have done for you. Three characteristics of humble people. First of all, the humble recognize their spiritual bankruptcy.
Second characteristic of humility. The humble reflect the character of Christ. Thirdly, the humble are dead to themselves. By that I mean they put God's will above their will, not some of the time, but every time. Just like Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, not my will, but your will be done.
In Matthew 16, Jesus said, If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Jesus says the truly humble are those who put the interest of God and others above their own. You know, when you look... Clearly in the Old Testament. Probably the man who demonstrated humility above all.
Was the character Moses? Let me mention just two illustrations of Moses' humility that are so interesting to me. First, in Numbers 11, 26 to 29, the elevation of Elbad and Nedad. Do you remember that story? They had just Gotten over to the other side from the Red Sea, great deliverance.
And then the people started complaining, complaining to Moses about the food, the water, the living accommodations out in the wilderness. And Moses got so tired, he just went to God and said, God, just shoot me right now. I'm tired. I'm spent. I can't do this any longer.
God said, No, here's what to do, Moses. Take 70 elders, men of the spirit, and share the burden with them. Share the burden of leadership. And once they've been selected, I will put my spirit on them and they will prophesy.
So 70 men that had been chosen started prophesying to show that they were the 70 God had chosen. And finally they quit prophesying. Everybody except these two guys, El Dad and Me Dad, they kept on prophesying after everybody else stopped.
Well Somebody got alarmed by this. They told Joshua. Joshua was kind of Moses' executive pastor. And Joshua decided he better tell Moses what was going on. He said, Moses, there's something bad going on.
There are two men who are still prophesying. And it doesn't make you look good that God is speaking through them. Numbers 11, 29, Moses said to Joshua, Are you jealous for my sake? I would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them. Moses didn't care about his rank.
His position, his reputation. He wanted the word of God to be spoken. He was like Paul in Philippians 1, who said, I'm hearing reports that there are others out there while I'm in prison preaching the gospel to make me look bad. He said in Philippians 1, you know what? I don't care what their motive is.
As long as the gospel is being chained, that's all that I care about. That's an example of humility. Second instance of that in Moses' life was the murmuring of his sister Miriam. When people started grumbling against her brother Moses, she and her older brother Aaron thought, this is our chance. To tell everybody what we really think of our younger brother.
There had been years of sibling rivalry that had built up. And so they used this occasion of a small rebellion to speak out against Moses. Numbers 12, then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses and they said, Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us as well? In other words, why do we listen just to him?
We're all followers of God. We all ought to have an equal voice. He's not that great. We're just as important as he is. The only problem was Verse 2 ends with, and the Lord heard it, and he wasn't happy about it.
Remember what happened? He called Aaron and Miriam to come stand before him, and he struck Miriam. with a case of leprosy.
Now How did Moses respond to that? I'm going to tell you how I would have responded. If it had been my sister. Leading a rebellion against me, and she had been struck with leprosy. I would have said, see what happens?
When you touch God's anointed I couldn't resist. I'm sorry. That's not how Moses responded. Numbers 12, 13, and Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, O God, heal her, I pray. He prayed for the healing of His sister.
As you pursue your goals in life, as you reach toward the summit, Remember, humility is that Fog cutter, if you will, that allows you to see God clearly and keeps you from being blinded with pride. In closing, let me share with you just three quick suggestions for how to develop humility in your life. First of all, accept the fact that you aren't indispensable. Except the fact that you are not indispensable. If you want to see How important you are in the world today, here's a great suggestion: take a bucket of water, fill it up with water.
Stick your arm in it. Up to your elbow. Quickly remove your arm and then measure the size of the hole you leave in the water. And the size of that hole is a measure of your significance in the world. That's true for all of us.
God doesn't need us. He's given us the privilege of partnering with Him. You know, if you ever go to Westminster Abbey in London, Where so many great figures in history are buried, you'll find a marble memorial. I've seen it many times, a plaque. To the memory of John and Charles Wesley, the Wesley brothers, who did more for the spread of Christianity in Great Britain than perhaps any two human beings.
And on that marble plaque, there are the words of Charles Wesley, who said, God buries his workmen. but he continues his work. Remember, none of us is indispensable except that fact. Secondly, Cultivate the habit of silence. Cultivate the habit of silence, especially when you're being attacked.
Moses didn't speak out against Miriam, but he did speak to God. He did speak to God. It would have been easy for him to come back with a retort to Miriam. You know, if you and Aaron are so important, Why don't you have a bigger part in the Ten Commandments movie? I mean, does anybody remember them in that movie?
I mean, we remember Charlton Heston. We don't remember who played Miriam and Aram. I mean, they were secondary players. You could have come back with a great return. He didn't talk to them, but he talked to God about them.
He cultivated the habit of silence. And again, he was foreshadowing what Jesus would do when he was attacked. 1 Peter 2, 23, and while being reviled, he did not revile in return. While suffering, he uttered no threats, but he kept entrusting himself to the one who judges righteously. And finally, you want to demonstrate humility.
Pray for those who hurt you. Pray for those who hurt you. That's what Moses did. There are some of you right now who have gone through a great injustice in your life. You have been deeply hurt by another person.
They may not know it or care about it. You may never have a reconciliation with them. But listen to me. It's important that you don't harbor bitterness in your own heart against them. And the best way to extinguish bitterness.
is by praying for your enemies. praying God's best for their life. It is impossible to be bitter towards somebody you are praying for. That's what Jesus did. Luke 23, 34.
Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they know not. what they are doing. It was veteran mountaineer David Brashiers who said, getting to the summit is the easy part. It's getting back down that's hard. That's not only true about mountain climbing.
It's true about the Christian life. Pride is easy. Humility is hard. And yet, If we're going to reach that summit, that plan that God has for us. We've got to empty our backpack of pride.
Pride not only weighs us down, It keeps us from receiving the help we need from God. or even from other people in reaching the summit. And it's pride that causes us to stumble after we have reached the summit. Do you wish, really wish for God to lift you up and help you attain his best for your life? It was James, the half-brother of Jesus, who told us how to do that.
James 4:10, humble yourselves. in the presence of God. And he will exalt you. The way up. is often down.
And as we conclude today, I'd like to take a moment to share an inspiring story from one of your fellow listeners. Carol is a young Bible student from Wyoming. As she listened to the messages on pathway to victory and sought God's will for her life, God called her to serve in a local prison ministry.
Now, prison ministry takes boldness and courage. The jails in her area have very few Christian books and materials, but Carol is able to reach the incarcerated and their families with the biblical hope and truth that she hears on Pathway to Victory. Carol concluded her letter by writing, Pastor, thank you for all that you do in teaching and encouraging me and my family through your website and broadcasts. Friends, when you invest in Pathway to Victory, you're helping people like Carol and so many others like her make an eternal impact in their community. Courageous Christians are taking what they learn and stepping into unfamiliar places like the local prison to share the hope and light of God's Word.
And it's because people like you are financially sustaining Pathway to Victory, especially our Pathway Partners. As an expression of my thanks for your one-time gift today, or with your first gift as a new Pathway Partner, I want to send you a hardback copy of my book. Courageous, 10 strategies for thriving in a hostile world. The strategies in this book will keep you grounded, grateful, and ready for whatever comes next. Here's David to share the details.
You're invited to request a copy of Courageous, the book by Dr. Robert Jeffress, when you give a generous gift to support the Ministry of Pathway to Victory, or when you become a Pathway Partner. To request your copy, call 866-999-2965 or go online to ptv.org. You could also support this ministry by texting PTV to 78800. And when your gift is $75 or more, you'll receive the complete Courageous Leader Kit, which includes a copy of the book, the Personal and Group Study Guide, the Complete Teaching Series on DVD and MP3 format audio disc, and a set of courageous encouragement cards.
To request the Courageous Leader Kit, call 866-999-2965 or go to ptv.org. You know a lot of listeners prefer to contact us the good old-fashioned way. And if that sounds like you, write to PO Box 223-609-Dallas, Texas, 75222. Again, that's P.O. Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222.
I'm David J. Mullins. Wishing you a great weekend, then join us again Monday for survival tip number eight: learn from the past. Right here on Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory with Dr.
Robert Jeffers comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. The Apostle Paul sailed these waters, walked these streets, and the church was never the same. I'm inviting you to follow in Paul's footsteps on the Pathway to Victory Journeys of Paul cruise through the stunning Greek islands, into ancient Ephesus, and many other destinations as well. This is purposeful travel at its finest. Set sail May 14, 2027.
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To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org/slash donate, or you can follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory. Oh, and one last thing before we go: don't forget to reserve your spot on the 2027 Journeys of Paul Mediterranean cruise. You've heard me and Dr. Jeffers talk about it, and cabins are going quickly.
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