our studies on the topic of humility as the prerequisite for honour using as our text that found in 1 Peter chapter 5 and verses 5 and 6. 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. We've been looking at this subject for the last couple of weeks. We've introduced it with a setting of the scene in considering the issue of pride and the problem of pride that we have in our lives. It's a battle that to a lesser or greater degree, we all are fighting and it's one that we must gain the victory in with the help of the Spirit of God. We looked at what humility is in contrast to pride and the way that Jesus Christ himself demonstrated humility in his own life. And then last time we were looking at how we are to display humility before our God. This evening we'll be looking at humility before others, how we relate to others in a humble way, before going on next time to a set of three studies in which we will look at how we develop humility in our lives through the renewal of our minds, through the providences of God in our lives and through our own self-discipline in applying the truth of God's Word to our lives. And then we'll conclude our studies on this topic as we think about the relationship between humility and honour that forms the conclusion to that verse that I just read to you from 1 Peter 5. And so this evening we're thinking about how we are to display humility before others. And again, I'm indebted to Wayne Mack in his excellent book on humility, the forgotten virtue for the pointers that he makes in this important topic. And we're answering the question this evening, what does humility look like in relation to others? What does humility look like in relation to others? As we interact with others in our homes, in our church, in our communities, how are we to be humble in our relationship to those around us, and I want to give seven answers to this question. We're covering quite a lot of material as we did last week, and so I want to make the same suggestion as I made last week, and that is that rather than turning to every scripture that I mention, make a note of those scriptures, and over the next week, spend a day each day thinking about one of these answers to the question, what does humility look like in relation to others? Think about the answer that's given, think about the texts that are presented in supporting these answers and meditate upon these truths over the coming week and ask the Lord day by day to help you to to be able to display humility in these ways, in your own relationships to those around you. And in this way, may the Lord help you to make progress in putting pride to death and clothing yourself with humility, as is the exhortation of the Apostle Peter. So the first answer to this question, what does humility look like in relation to others, is that it is not selfishly ambitious and greedy for honour. It is not selfishly ambitious and greedy for honour. for honour. James writing in James chapter 3 verses 14 to 16 says, If you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. So James is exhorting us to avoid a selfish lifestyle, an ambitious lifestyle where the focus is oneself. He's saying that that kind of lifestyle will produce disorder, it will produce vile practice, it will produce an earthly, demonic way of living, rather than a spiritual, heavenly way of living. And so this idea of selfish ambition, of putting one's own desires before other things, is... thrust of what James is saying there. And that is part of what humility is. It's saying, my desires, my ambitions are not what's most important. What is most important is honouring the Lord Jesus Christ. It is putting Jesus Christ first. And if we're putting Him first, we must put to death our own ambitions. Paul, writing to the church in Philippi, in Philippians chapter 2, verses 3 and 4, says, Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. that each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. So Paul is saying the same thing as James says, and we find this consistency then in the Scriptures. There's a consistent note being sounded throughout the New Testament that selfish ambition is sinful. that we need to have a serving attitude towards others rather than being self-serving. Now this is said in contrast in the scriptures to others. And we can think in the Old Testament of the prime example, I suppose, of someone who was selfishly ambitious, and that's the man Haman in the story of Esther and Mordecai in the book that bears Esther's name. In chapter 5 and verses 10 through 12 of Esther, We read that Haman sent and brought his friends and his wife Zaresh, and Haman recounted to them the splendour of his riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had honoured him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. Then Haman said, even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared, and tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. It was so full of himself, was Haman, and he was ready to applaud himself before his friends and his wife. and to announce to them the honours that the King had given to him and that Queen Esther seemed to be pouring upon him. This is a man who was greedy for honour. He was a man who was ambitious, ambitious for his own glory. In contrast to Haman is John the Baptist, and in John's Gospel, chapter 1, verses 19 through 27, we read of the testimony of John when the Jews sent priests and bivites from Jerusalem to ask him, who are you? He confessed and did not deny, but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, what then? Are you Elijah? And he said, I am not. Are you the prophet? And he answered, No. So they said to him, Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself? And he said, I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, Make straight the way for the Lord, as the prophet Isaiah said. Now they had been sent from the Pharisees, They asked him, then why are you baptising if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet? John answered them, I baptise with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie. John was asked, who are you? And he didn't launch into a recital of his pedigree. He didn't say, I'm a Levite of the tribe of Levi, of the house of Aaron, the son of a priest. He didn't announce to them his identity in that way. He made a denial of the questions that he had regarding his identity as the Christ or as Elijah or the prophet who was expected to come. In response to the question, who are you? He simply said, I'm a voice crying in the wilderness. I'm no one, I'm just making an announcement that the Lord's Messiah is coming. And I'm unworthy of any honour. I'm not to be applauded. I'm not to be praised. I really am unworthy. Unworthy to untie the sandal strap of the one who is coming after me. And this then is the kind of humility that we should have. It doesn't seek the honour and praise of those around us. It isn't ambitious and striving for its own glory. This kind of humility puts a person down in the eyes of others, seeks to be a no one in the eyes of others, that all glory and honour should be Christ's and Christ's alone. What does humility look like in relation to others? Well, the second answer to that question is that it is not ostentatious. It isn't showy. It isn't designed to impress others. It's not ostentatious. Paul writes to Timothy in his first letter to Timothy in the second chapter in verses 9 and 10. Likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness, with good works. And Peter, writing in 1 Peter 3, verses 3 and 4, says, do not let your adorning be external. the braiding of hair, and the putting on of gold, jewellery, or the clothing you wear. But let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious." And Paul and Peter, both in agreement here, are not saying that women shouldn't dress nicely. They're not saying that they shouldn't braid their hair and wear jewellery. That's not the point of what they're saying in these passages. But what they're saying is that the focus shouldn't be on those things and the goal shouldn't be on those things. It's not a competition when you come to church. Who's the finest dressed? who's got the best hat, who's wearing the most glamorous jewelry. That's not what it's about. Who can fix their hair in the most impressive style? This isn't what God's looking for. And this isn't the attitude of heart that he wants. He's looking for good works. He's looking for a gentle spirit. He's looking for purity of heart. Those are the things that he looks on. He doesn't look on the outward appearance. He looks on the heart. And so, we are not to be concerned about the outward things, but about the inward reality. And the outward can certainly be a reflection of the inward reality and an ostentatious approach to dress will reveal a heart that isn't in tune with God's word and God's ways. And this is true not only for women, it is true for men as well. We remember that Samuel was told concerning David that God doesn't look on the outward appearance, he looks on the heart. And this was in terms of the appointment of a king, the anointing of a king. It wasn't to be someone who was head and shoulders above everyone else in stature. What was wanted was a man who was humble, a man who loved the Lord, a man who loved the things of the Lord. And so what we're to guard against is showiness, an attempt to impress. That is the opposite of humility. That is the fruit of pride. And so Jesus in Matthew chapter 6 verses 1 through 8 says, Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them. For then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they've received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, and your father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you mustn't be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Now obviously Jesus isn't saying that you mustn't practice righteousness. He's not saying that you mustn't pray. He's not even saying you mustn't pray in public. He's not saying that you mustn't give. He's not saying that these things mustn't be undertaken or that they mustn't be undertaken in the sight of other people. Where are you going to practice your righteousness if it isn't before other people? By their fruits, Jesus said, you shall know people. You shall be able to recognize them as lovers of God or lovers of themselves. And so there is a fruit of righteousness that is to be seen, isn't there? And when we gather together, we gather together in part to pray. And so we are to pray in public as well as in secret. The point that Jesus is making is that we're not to undertake these activities, these necessary activities for the praise of men. to be seen by men. That isn't the motive for undertaking them, to be honoured and praised by men. Oh, look how much they give to the poor. Oh, look how well they pray, how well they articulate themselves, what wonderful words they're able to string together in their prayers. That's not what it's about. It's about coming to God with humble hearts, seeking to honour him with our praying, with our giving, with our righteous lives. And therefore humility does this with respect to God and his honour, not with a desire to impress, to be shown. The third answer to this question of humility and what it looks like before others is that it is not arrogant and assuming. It is not arrogant and assuming. Haman was the prime example of the assuming man. He was asked to come in to the king and the king had a question for him. He wanted to know what should be done to the man whom the king delights to honour. Esther chapter 6 and verse 6. What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honour? And Haman said to himself, who would the king delight to honour more than me? It's incredible, isn't it really? That was the way that Haman thought. That's the way that he conducted his life. That's how he walked the streets. That's why he hated Mordecai so much. Because Mordecai didn't share this high view of Haman. And he didn't bow down to him as Haman thought he should. But as soon as the king asks him this question, what should be done for the man whom the king delights to honour? Haman is immediately thinking to himself now, that I must be that man. Couldn't be anyone else, now what would I like the king to do for me? And that was his assuming arrogance. Whereas in Romans chapter 12 and verse 16, Paul says, live in harmony with one another. Don't be haughty. but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Paul sees the treachery of a man like Haman, and he's saying this has no place in the church. This arrogant, assuming self-confidence has no place in the heart and life of a believer. We should be humble. we should be lowly and we should relate to those who are humble and lowly and not think of ourselves as better than they, not to be wise in our own sight. On the positive side, Paul writes to the church in Corinth in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 9 and he says, I am the least of the apostles unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. And in Ephesians chapter 3, in verse 8, he said to me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ. In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, he was unworthy to be called an apostle, By the time he wrote Ephesians chapter 3 in verse 8, some time later, he says he is the very least of all the saints. And at the very end of his life, when he writes to Timothy, he says that he is the chief of sinners. The chief of sinners. And that is a positive thing. That progression that we see in Paul's assessment of himself is a positive thing. He is seeing himself through the eyes of humility. He is making an assessment of himself through the lens of God's Word. And as he considers his life, he sees himself as unworthy of all the good and the grace and the mercy of God. And the longer that he's gone on in this world as a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, the less he sees himself as being worthy of any of the favours that Jesus Christ has bestowed upon him. That is a positive way of viewing ourselves to downgrade our view of ourself, and as we go on in our lives, to see ourselves more clearly through the light of God's word, and to glorify the Christ who would save such a person as me. It is not arrogant and assuming, but it humbles itself before the living God. and that is evident then in relation to the people around, a willingness to associate with the lowly and to not to blow one's own trumpet. A fourth response then, a fourth answer to this question of how humility looks in our relationship with others is that it is not scornful, contentious, or violent. It is not scornful, contentious, or violent. Asaf, writing in Psalm 73, in verses 6 through 9, says, concerning the wicked, Pride is their necklace. Violence covers them as a garment. Their eyes swell out through fatness. Their hearts overflow with follies. They scoff and speak with malice. Loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens and their tongues struts through the earth. Pride is a necklace, violence is their garment. That was Asaph's assessment of the wicked that he saw around him. This is the result of the kind of arrogant and assuming heart. And we see it reflected in Haman again. We come back to this man in Esther chapter five and verses nine through 14. We're told that Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart, but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife, Suresh. And then we have that recounting of all that the king has honoured Haman with, and even Esther has honoured him. And yet, he says in verse 13, yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate. And his wife, Zeresh, and all his friends said to him, Let a gallows fifty cubits high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mordecai hanged upon it. Then go joyfully with the king to the feast." This idea pleased Haman, and he had the gallows made. We've spoken about Haman's assuming and arrogant spirit, and now we see the fruit of that. in his scorn at Mordecai and in his violent response to Mordecai's humble status. He will not have Mordecai in his sight and he's happy to build the gallows and to seek his execution simply for his own pride. Paul writes, to the church in Ephesus in Ephesians chapter four and verses 31 and 32 and he says, let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and slander be put away from you along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you. This is the kind of heart that humility produces, one of kindness and tenderness, one that recognises the mercy of God and seeks to respond to God's forgiveness by forgiving those around her. Unlike the unjust servant of Jesus' parable who, even though he was forgiven a large amount, refused to forgive his fellow servant a small amount. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3, verses 8 and 9, Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil, or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. And so Peter confirms what Paul has stated, that a humble heart is a loving heart. A humble heart is a tender heart. A humble heart is a kind heart. A humble heart isn't scornful or contentious or violent. A fifth way that we display humility in our relationship with others is to not be willful or stubborn. Humility is not willful or stubborn. When we think of the children of Israel, during the days of Moses in particular, we think of them as a stubborn people. That was the repeated description of them, wasn't it? That they were stubborn. that they were a stiff-necked people. And that description of Israel that was repeated in the writings of Moses over and over and over again is something that continued throughout their history. So that even in the days of Isaiah, God said through Isaiah, in Isaiah chapter 30 and verse 1, our stubborn children, declares the Lord. who carry out a plan, but not mine, who make an alliance, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin. Ah, stubborn children! They were willful They were stubborn in the way that they wanted to live. They were arrogant and proud of themselves. They had their own ideas, their own thoughts, their own plans, their own dreams. And God didn't fit into those. They didn't bow to him. They didn't submit to him. They wanted to go their own way and do their own thing and that was characteristic of Israel then, wasn't it? Paul writes to the church in Corinth and he says in verse 19 of chapter 9 of 1 Corinthians, that I might win more of them. Though I'm free, I've made myself a servant, that I might win more of them. A little later in verse 23, he says, I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. For the sake of the gospel, I have made myself a servant to all. In the next chapter, chapter 10 and verse 33, he says, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many that they may be saved. That was the hallmark of Paul's life, wasn't it? In contrast to the Israelites, whose lives were marked by stubbornness and self-will, Paul's life was marked by self-sacrifice. He served others. He put others before himself. Their well-being, the well-being of their souls, he put before his own well-being. Because he loved them. As he wrote in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and verses 4 and 5, love is patient and kind. Love doesn't envy or boast. It isn't arrogant or rude. It doesn't insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful. Love is patient, it's kind. Love seeks the good of others. It doesn't focus on oneself. It isn't stubborn in pursuing its own ends, its own agenda. But it always desires to be of service to others, to do others good. That's what humility looks like. A sixth way that we can view humility in relation to others is that it recognises and submits to authority. It recognises and submits to authority. Humility does this. In relation to those in authority over us in the world, Paul says in Romans chapter 13 and verse 1, that every person be subject to governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Paul was writing in a Roman situation with the Caesar in ultimate authority. And we know that the Roman Caesars were not nice men. and Paul himself would experience the horrors of their cruelty. And yet he was able to write these words that we are to be subject to governing authorities because they have come from God. They've been instituted by God and we must recognise and submit to those authorities. Colossians 3 verse 22, bond servants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye service as people pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. We are to serve those in authority over us, our employers and so forth, with an eye to the glory of God. Not to simply be people-pleasers, man-pleasers, not simply to curry the favor of those who are over us, but because this is God's will. This is the Lord's will. And so, Paul writing there to men who were slaves, he's saying to them, you need to honour those who are your masters. You need to submit to them. And so we are to submit to those in authority in society. Likewise, we're to submit to those who are in authority in the home. In Colossians 3, verses 18 to 21, Paul writes, Wives, submit to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. And so, within the home, there is authority. And that authority is to be recognised, and that authority must be honoured. Wives, submit to your husbands. Children, submit to your parents. Husbands and fathers, submit to the Lord. He is your authority, and you must submit to him. Humility recognises this and submits to this authority. Within the Church, there is authority by God's design. 1 Thessalonians 5, verses 12 through 13, Paul writes, we ask you, brothers, to respect those who labour among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. be at peace among yourselves. And so there's an authority structure within the Church that has been placed there by the Lord of the Church. And we are to submit to that authority structure for his sake and for the honour of our Saviour who has instituted it. And God takes a serious view of the undermining of authority and their questioning of the authority that he has put in place. And we see an example of it in Numbers chapter 12, where in verses one through three, we're told that Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. And they said, has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also? And the Lord heard it. Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all the people who were on the face of the earth. And as the story goes on, we see that Miriam is struck with leprosy as a punishment from God. Moses was a man who honoured the Lord, but Miriam and Aaron had taken issue with the Lord's wisdom and the Lord's choice. and the Lord's appointment of Moses. They questioned it. They didn't like it. And the Lord responded and showed that he was not pleased with them. We are to submit to authority and recognise what the Lord has instituted. And then seventhly and finally, in answering this question of What does humility look like in our relationship towards others? It receives and benefits from biblical instruction, rebuke and reproof. It receives and benefits from biblical instruction, rebuke and reproof. Let's think about the wisdom literature. I'm getting some wisdom. Proverbs 9, verses 7 to 9. Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you. Reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser. Teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning. And so the compiler of Proverbs sets this contrast to us. He says the scoffer, the wicked man, he'll just hit back if you try and correct him, if you try and reprove him, if you try and instruct him. He's just going to fight. But a wise man, a righteous man, he'll receive your instruction, he'll receive your correction, your reproof, your rebuke even. And he will grow in righteousness, he'll grow in wisdom. Such a man will love you because he knows that this is good for him. The psalmist in Psalm 141 in verse 5 says, let a righteous man strike me, it is a kindness. Let him rebuke me, it is oil for my head. Let my head not refuse it. When a wise man receives correction, he sees it as a kindness. And this is humility, to take the word of God and to receive its instruction, to receive its rebuke, to receive its reproof. And yet how quick we are to put up the defenses, to try to excuse ourselves when someone comes along with the scriptures and uses them to try to help us, to correct us, to show us our sin and our foolishness. May the Lord give us the humility to receive instruction from his word by whatever agent he chooses to bring it to us. When the word of God is quoted to us, let us be careful how we receive it. Let us be sober in our judgment of ourselves. Let us be humble in accepting rebuke and reproof. The supreme example of the display of humility for us all is the Lord Jesus Christ in his incarnation and life and death. And it is to him that ultimately we must look. But we look to others as well, as Paul said, be imitators of me as I imitate Christ. We're to have the mind of Christ that doesn't grasp at glory, but is willing to be humble, willing to be a servant, willing to put others first, looking for their well-being before our own. This is the mind that should govern us. And having this mind, we will bear the fruit of humility, in our relationship to those around us. Let's bow together in prayer. Our Father, we do ask that you would indeed help us to be clothed in humility. Help us to work at these evidences of a humble heart. as we relate to those around us. Help us to put pride to death, we ask. We know that too often we respond in an arrogant and proud manner, particularly when people try to correct us, to reprove us and instruct us. Lord, forgive us for the many ways that we've hit back like the foolish, like the wicked, like the scoffers. Give us that humble and contrite heart that we desire, so that we may honour you, we pray. In Jesus' name. Amen.