Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. First lesson is be humble. Second lesson is trust in God. The third lesson is resist the devil. Be humble.
Trust in God. Resist the devil. He is 100% evil. Therefore, Peter says, be watchful. This is the verdict with Pastor John Monroe.
Research shows that anxiety is now the number one struggle among college students, but it's not limited to young people. Our entire society seems gripped by worry and fear. Today, Pastor Jean Monroe continues his powerful message on spiritual strength. And how true trust in God can transform our anxious hearts.
So let's get started. Here's Pastor John Monroe with part two of his message titled Humble and watchful. Are you a humble person? Do you trust in the Lord? Life is difficult, and Peter has been dealing with his important subject of suffering throughout his first epistle.
Humble people respond much better to suffering than proud people do. Peter knew about pride as he once had thought he was superior To the other disciples. He boasted he would never deny the Lord. But he did.
So, this subject is not just academic for Peter, and it's not academic for us. As I meet with couples who are struggling in their marriage, I remind them how important it is to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God.
So much discord in the home is caused by pride and self-will. Remember, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. First Peter chapter five, then, verse five. Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward 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. Casting all of your anxieties on him. Because he cares for you. Be sober-minded, be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion.
Seeking someone. To devour. Resist him. Firm. In your faith.
Peter here gives at least three lessons. First, Be humble. We see that in verses five through Seven. There's our second lesson. And it's Basic to the Christian life.
This is Christianity, it is to trust in God. Seven. Casting all of your anxieties on him. because he cares for you. You are to cast all of your anxieties on God.
This is another way we show humility. I think this verse, verse 7, which is a much-loved verse and rightly so, but I think it's often divorced from its context. This is one of the ways we show our humility. Is by casting our anxieties On God.
Now, I don't want to be too technical here, but if you look at the word humble, That is an imperative. That is a command. And the word casting, verse 7, is a circumstantial participle dependent on the imperative.
Some of you didn't listen to your English teacher, and you have no idea what I'm talking about. But this is what we have in verse Seven. You have the command, humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. What's the relationship of The participle casting to the imperative, humble, it is this. The way by which You demonstrate your humility before God is by doing this, is by casting, is by unloading, is by throwing, is the point.
All of my anxieties. On God. You get that? One of the ways We humble ourselves. Under the mighty hand of God.
is by unloading. Is by throwing, is by casting all of my anxieties. On God. This word cast interesting is used of the throwing of the Uh clocks. on that colt that the Lord was going to ride on that triumphal day into Jerusalem.
It's casting, it's throwing. You say humility. Under God's mighty hand, Leads. to trusting in God. Think of the teaching of our Lord in the Sermon on the Mount.
in Matthew 6. Verse 25, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life. That meant that as our Lord Jesus Christ was given the greatest sermon ever preached. There were many people listening to him who were anxious. Verse 25, he's saying, I'm telling you, do not be anxious about your life.
Verse 31, therefore do not be anxious. Verse 34, therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow. What do we do? Don't be anxious. Look at the birds, look at the lilies.
No, you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Have that as your goal. And all these things. will be added. To you?
Again, Philippines Chapter four. Verse six: Do not be anxious about anything. There must have been people in the church at Philippi who were anxious. There are people sitting here who are anxious. Do not be anxious about anything.
But in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God. Which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Being humble Don't forget the relationship between the command, be humble. And The casting.
Being humble is acknowledging The sovereignty of God in your life. and your complete dependence on him. Circumstances in life have not gone the way you like. Welcome to the human race. All of us Live our lives.
under the sovereign purposes of God. I don't know all the purposes of God for my life or your life, but I do know this: that the Lord is sovereign. He's in control. He does as he pleases. He's got his purposes for your life and mine.
Often of which we don't know, we don't understand. But in that, I am to acknowledge my complete dependence on God. That's called. Face. And without faith, it's impossible to please God.
That's called trust in God. I don't understand this situation. I wish it were different, the Lord, but I'm going to trust you because you are God, and I am your creature, and you have redeemed me with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, you're my Heavenly Father, and you always care. Yeah. Me.
It's to acknowledge as well our helplessness before God. When we're humble. We acknowledge we don't have the solution to all of our problems. When we're humble, we don't try to impose our agenda on God. You find yourself doing that.
Don't we? I've said before, that's what Martin Luther said. We must think God a very poor student because we keep trying to teach him. You're praying and you instead of praying, Lord. I'll do your will.
We find ourselves trying to impose our will on God. This is what I think is best for my life, for the best of my family, and so on, rather than humbling ourselves under the mighty hand of God, and at the proper time. He may exalt us.
Now what are we to do? You're to cast. You're to throw. You're to unload is there Picture. All of your anxieties On God.
Now will you do that? Will you do that? Peter helps us here. Because God not only has a mighty hand, He has a caring hand. Casting all your anxieties on Him.
Because He cares. For you, how beautiful. Our great sovereign God, who's in control, not only can handle all of these anxieties and problems and sufferings and difficulties, he really does care for us. He's all-powerful, but he's also all-loving.
Some of you have read, as I have, Winston Churchill's account of World War II. Uh in his second volume It's called the finest hour. And he said, it's a subtitle: How the British People Held the Fort. Alone. It's nineteen forty.
and London. And the Nazis are blitzing London. They're doing terrible destruction with their bombs. The tiny island of the United Kingdom is standing alone. The Americans have not yet joined the war.
And they're standing alone as Night after night, these horrible bombs are dropping on London. in the blitz. Winston Churchill Is the Prime Minister? And he records In that volume, their finest hour. There he went one morning.
After the destruction. to visit the site. Of the bombing. And does he want that the area was in ruins? He said there were a few pathetic little union jacks stuck in the ruins trying to encourage people.
And as he went, got out of his car, the word soon got round that the Prime Minister, the great Winston Churchill, was there. And he said, a crowd of about a thousand people. People gathered. around him as he was inspecting. the damage.
And Churchill, the great leader. Wept. when he saw the destruction. And he records that this old woman said. about the Prime Minister.
You see, he really cares. He's crying. It's not wonderful to know. The the great all powerful Eternal God. is with us.
Peter has talked about sharing Christ's sufferings. Verse 13. And that in this mysterious way, that when we suffer. Christ is suffering with us. We see an example of that in John chapter 11 as Jesus goes to raise Lazarus from the dead and here's Mary and Martha, his brothers, and they're suffering.
And the great Christ who's going to raise Lazarus from the dead in His mighty power. In His compassion and His love. He groans. And he weeps. Remember.
Brother, sister, not only has God God, a mighty hand. He's got a caring hand. We humble ourselves under his mighty hand. But we also know. That hand is an all-loving hand.
He loves us. with an everlasting life. I find that very comforting, don't you? that he cares for me. We're not very likable sometimes.
We often don't respond very well to the difficulties and the disappointments of life. And we sometimes complain, and we sometimes get bitter, and we sometimes look to other people to blame.
Well, how wonderful to know. That God is in control. and that he cares for us. Cast all of your anxieties All of your burdens on the Lord. Who's the great burden-bearer?
Our Saviour. Peter is said in chapter 2, verse 24, regarding our Savior, he himself. Bore our sins. in his body. on the tree.
Do you wonder if God can deal with a burden of yours? Of course he can. Our Lord Jesus has done the difficult thing, as it were. He took our sins. The burdens of our sins in His own body on the tree.
He is the great, magnificent, unique burden-bearer. There is no burden, there is no anxiety, there is no problem too difficult for our Savior, whatever it is. We cast it. On the large. Why are you carrying that burden?
Why are you carrying that anxiety? Why have you not cast it on the Lord? He cares for you, He died for you. Psalm 55, verse 22 says the same thing, and perhaps Peter. He's alluding to it.
Psalm 55, 22, cast your burden upon the Lord. and he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. When you cast your anxiety, when you cast your burden on the Lord, You will not be shaken. Why?
because we rest on the steadfast, immovable Unchanging and unchangeable rock of our great God. There is no greater power, there is no greater love. And so, in that difficulty, when that anxiety comes, and when you wake up in a sweat at three o'clock in the morning, worrying about whatever it is on your mind, what are you to do? Cast The anxiety. On the Lord, throw it off.
Give it to him. You say, Well, I don't know what will happen. No, you don't know what will happen. That's why you're too. Trust them.
Little boy trusts his dad. A little girl trusts her mother. Why don't we trust? The Lord. One day the disciples We're on the Sea of Galilee.
Some of us have been there in that beautiful sea of Gennesaret, but while it looks beautiful at times, we know storms come and the disciples in this little boat find themselves in the storm of their life. And they're afraid and they're fearful. Talk about being anxious. And they look at Jesus. Remember what he's doing?
He's asleep. Asleep in the middle of a storm, this is when we need them. What a picture, isn't it? Do you think God's asleep? Do you think he's forgotten you?
But they wake him up And they ask a very silly question, but a very understandable question. And a question I've asked God, and a question you've probably asked God: do you not care about me? Lord, do you not care that we're perishing? Remember what he does? He stands.
Supreme in that boat. And he does something which only God can do. He speaks to the winds and the waves. Peace. Be still.
And there's a great calm. And the disciples say one to another, What kind of man is this? But even the winds and the waves. Obey her. What kind of man is he?
He's no mere man. He's true man, he's true God. And this is the one. in the middle of our storms of life when we think God has asleep. And when we think that God has abandoned us, and when we think we can't live another day and we don't know the future, that He still, in the middle of the storms, says, peace, be still.
Isn't that isn't that Psalm forty-six, verse ten? Be still. and know that I am God. The point of the be still, the point is stop fretting, stop worrying. Be still.
It's not that you're doing nothing. No, you are resting in God. Be still. And no. that I am God.
Does Jesus care about your problem? Of course he does. He is a mighty hand. becomes the storm. He is a caring hand.
Peace. Be still to anxious hearts. Pride Self-reliance, self-pity. make us anxious. And faith.
Today, cast all. of your problems. On the Lord. Be humble, second, trust in God. Very Quickly, thirdly, because we have to break bread and I'm watching the time.
Third, resist. The devil Verse 8. Be sober-minded. Be watchful. Your adversary.
The devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. Resist him. Firm in your faith.
So I live my Christian life every day. I have to be humble. Every day I'm to trust in God. deliberately, intentionally. They cast that anxiety on the Lord.
And every day I am to resist the devil. Peter tells us the devil is our enemy. He calls him the adversary. We have a formidable adversary, and therefore, Peter says, I want you to be sober-minded. I want you to be disciplined in your thought.
Allow your mind to go all over the place. Be sober-minded. And be watchful, you're in a battle, and Satan is totally opposed to the kingdom of God. He's totally opposed to you and me living a life for the glory of God. He is the adversary.
Diabolos is the Greek word. He's against us. He deceives us as a serpent.
Sometimes Paul says He disguises himself as an angel of light. Think of all of the error and the false. philosophies and religions and thoughts in the world. and to the Christian. particularly to the Christian Who's trusting in God?
Yeah. is out to devour us. as a roaring lion. That's a pretty graphic picture, isn't it? These early Christians knew about the roaring lions and the gladiators.
This picture is of the devil prowling around like a lion. A lion's roar can be frightening, can't it?
So in the midst of our difficulties, when we're vulnerable, In that self-pitying mood. And that discouragement. The devil often attacks, doesn't he? Have you found that? He's ruthless.
Talk about kicking you when you're down. He is 100% evil. Therefore, Peter says, be Watchful. Don't be deceived. Resist the devil.
He is our enemy. Resist them. Notice what? Peter says verse 9, resist him, firm. in the faith.
No, we don't go looking for him. We don't bind them as some people say. No. We are to resist him. Turn back a few pages to James, and you'll see the same thing in James chapter 4.
Verse six. But he gives more grace. Therefore, it says, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. I hope that sounds familiar. James Ford.
Verse 6, Peter and James are together on this. Submit yourself therefore to God. See the context? I'm humbly. Trust in God.
Resist the devil. and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. There's two. 10, humble yourselves therefore before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
James is doing what Peter is saying and putting these concepts together: of humility, of trust, of submission, of resisting the devil, and he will flee from us. Do you do that? One of his favourite tactics is discouragement, isn't it? And said that the favorite weapon of Satan. Against Christians, particularly those that are leaders, is discouragement, whatever it is.
You know how the devil attacks you. Be watchful. Cast your anxieties on the Lord, trust in God and resist the devil. This is the verdict with Pastor John Monroe, and the conclusion of a message titled Humble and Watchful. John will be back shortly with closing thoughts.
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Now, with his closing remarks, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? We demonstrate our humility by trusting in God. by casting our cares on him. If we're proud, we're self-reliant. We think we can solve our own problems.
So I love how Peter is emphasizing humility. and trust.
So are you anxious? Do you think life is unfair? Cast your cares on the Lord. Because he cares for you. Not only does Jesus die on the cross for our sins and rise again, He's all-powerful.
Cast your anxieties and cares on Him? and he will give you rest. Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
