The Essential Grace of Humility, Part 3

The point: Bow before God from the depths of your inner being, acknowledging His ways are right, just, holy, and good.

Martin quotes Archbishop Leighton's commentary on 1 Peter, explaining that there is no striving against God's mighty hand; submission is the only course. God lays weights to 'depress' us, and when humility is gained, the weights are lifted. This illustrates the purpose of God's humbling hand and the difference between being humbled by force and becoming humble inwardly.

That fatherly chastisement often then God brings the humble child of God out into a place of exaltation and of greater usefulness. Archbishop Leighton whose commentary on 1 Peter is considered by almost every other commentator whom I have consulted in the course of these expositions as sort of a benchmark of the older commentators. He focuses upon this second aspect of the purpose for which God calls us to humble ourselves under his mighty hand. Listen to the good old Bishop.

8:08 - 8:45 Read in full sermon

The point: Consider your particular trials and aim at humble deportment, not quarreling or struggling against God.

Leighton's analogy of 'heaps of wool' (updated by Martin to a 'Nerf ball') illustrates how people humbled by force, but not inwardly, spring back to their original prideful state once pressure is removed. This highlights the need for genuine, internal humility.

Humbled by force. Humbled by force in regard of their outward condition, but not humbled in their inward temper. And therefore as soon as the weight is off, like heaps of wool, we would say, as Dr. Tripp did, like a Nerf ball, once the pressure is off, the ball fills up with air again and goes back to its original size.

10:05 - 10:26 Read in full sermon

The point: Consider your particular trials and aim at humble deportment, not quarreling or struggling against God.

Leighton's analogy of a child fighting a spanking getting more blows illustrates the futility and negative consequences of resisting God's chastisement, emphasizing that humble acceptance is our duty and peace.

What gain your children thus at your hands, but more blows? You see what he's saying? The child that fights the spanking gets more spanking. Nor is it so.

10:55 - 11:06 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It's either on their backs or on the colt's back. And the text says they cast them upon the colt. They threw them over the flanks of the colt. They got rid of them, and when the garments were off them, they were totally …

The account from Luke 19 of disciples throwing their garments upon the colt for Jesus to ride illustrates the verb 'casting' as a complete, physical transfer, emphasizing that anxieties cannot be on both us and God simultaneously.

In the Gospel of Luke, in the Gospel according to Luke, chapter 19, a lot of people next week will be reading this passage on what is called in the church calendar, Palm Sunday, that Sunday before the Passion Week leading to the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. And you'll remember that as they draw near to Bethany, that our Lord says to his disciples, go into that village, and there you're going to find a donkey, you're going to find a colt tied, whereon no man ever sat. Loose him, bring him to me. And then the Lord tells them, if anyone asks you, you just say the Lord has need of him...

19:47 - 20:49 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It's either on their backs or on the colt's back. And the text says they cast them upon the colt. They threw them over the flanks of the colt. They got rid of them, and when the garments were off them, they were totally …

The account from 1 Kings 19 of Elijah casting his mantle upon Elisha illustrates 'casting' as a total, visible, physical transfer, signifying a complete transfer of the 'mantle of anxieties' to God.

Let's look at one or two Old Testament uses of this in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, Peter's working Bible. In 1 Kings chapter 19 and verse 19, we'll still look at two, but we'll look at this one because, again, it's so vivid, illustrating the sense, the vigor of this word. 1 Kings 19, again familiar, I trust, to many of you, the calling of Elisha under the direction of God. Elijah comes, and we read in verse 19 of 1 Kings 19, So he departed thence, and found Elisha, the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth.

22:38 - 23:23 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It's because everything that causes legitimate anxiety for you. Is of deep concern. To Him.

Martin uses the example of a home where 'boys don't cry' to illustrate that if children don't believe their parents care, they won't bring their anxieties to them. This underscores the necessity of believing God cares to cast our anxieties upon Him.

If you were reared in a home where you were taught boys don't cry like men don't eat quiche.

30:30 - 30:37 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It's because everything that causes legitimate anxiety for you. Is of deep concern. To Him.

Martin shares a personal story from his childhood about crying after being excluded from playing football and his mother's comforting response. This illustrates the welcoming, caring heart of a parent, contrasting it with a God who might be indifferent to our anxieties.

You wouldn't come home from the football field. With your little. Carboard helmet and shoulder pads. The first set I got and we were poor.

30:52 - 31:00 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not believe the devil's slander that God doesn't care for you, especially when His hand is heavy.

Martin connects doubting God's care to the 'ancient lie' of the devil in the Garden of Eden, where Satan suggested God withheld good things because He didn't truly care. This highlights the spiritual warfare aspect of believing God's care.

How much more? How much more? Child of God, if the devil can get you to doubt, he cares for you. To some degree, you believe the ancient lie that he started right in the dark.

42:00 - 42:12 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Using the example of the disciples in Mark 4:35-41, who asked Jesus, 'Don't you care that we perish?' Martin illustrates the foolishness and tragedy of doubting God's care despite…

The account of Jesus' disciples in the storm asking, 'Teacher, don't you care that we perish?' (Mark 4) serves as a negative example of doubting God's care despite having witnessed His mighty works and compassionate heart. It illustrates the folly of such doubt.

I want us to look at an example in the Gospels of what happens when we don't believe that and the silly things we do and say. Mark chapter 8. Chapter 8. Now remember, this incident is an incident in which Jesus is with His disciples, those who have seen His mighty works.

44:25 - 44:51 Read in full sermon

The point: Humble yourself in self-confessed guilt and throw yourself upon the mercy of God, trusting in Christ for salvation.

Martin uses the analogy of owning 'a thousand exotic islands' and 'ten Lear jets' to emphasize that worldly wealth and power are nothing compared to the spiritual riches and relationship with a caring God that believers possess. This aims to make unbelievers 'jealous.'

in the midst of all of it to know He cares for me. My unconverted friend, we don't envy you for a moment. If you sat here with a legal title to a thousand exotic islands and you owned ten Lear jets and you had ten pilots at your beck and call, we wouldn't envy you for a moment. You sit here impoverished, but you don't need to be impoverished.

51:51 - 52:19 Read in full sermon