Too High - A Lesson in Humility

  1. INTRODUCTION

    1. Many men in this world think too highly of themselves to even associate with the lowly.

      1. In their arrogance and pride, they have believe they have exceeded others because of their knowledge, talents, strength, appearance, power, wealth, and other traits.

      2. In some cases, men elevate themselves even above God Himself.

    2. In truth, we are all lowly, and it is God is too high for all of us.  Thankfully, He has condescended in His grace and mercy so that we may know Him and have a relationship with Him as children to a Father.

    3. In this lesson, let us consider the dangers of thinking too highly of ourselves and the truth that it is God who is too high for us.

       

  2. A HAUGHTY SPIRIT

    1. If you have a haughty spirit, then you are on a path to certain failure.

      1. The word "haughty" means "high."  In the Old Testament, this same word is used to describe places that are high in elevation, men who are tall in stature, and persons who are arrogant.

      2. A man with a haughty spirit or heart is one who thinks too highly of himself.

        1. He thinks that he is wiser, stronger, holier, and more righteous than he really is.

        2. He believes a lie about himself and is self-deceived.  He defies the instruction of Galatians 6:7, which says, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap."

      3. Scripture is replete with warnings against having a haughty spirit, a haughty heart, and haughty eyes.  Consider a few proverbs on this matter:

        1. Proverbs 6:16-17 -- 16There are six things which the LORD hates, yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: 17haughty eyes...

        2. Proverbs 16:18 -- Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling.

        3. Proverbs 18:12 -- Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, but humility goes before honor.

        4. Proverbs 21:4 -- Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin.

      4. Every soul would do well to listen to these warnings, for those whose spirits are haughty and proud will not stand before God.  1Corinthians 10:12 says, "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall."

    2. Therefore, don't think too highly of yourself, but instead have a true understanding of who you are.

      1. One definition of humility is an accurate opinion of oneself. It is not thinking too highly or too lowly, but instead it is knowing the truth about who you are.

      2. This is exactly what Scripture prescribes in Romans 12:3, which says, "For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith."

      3. If we examine ourselves closely, then we will all learn to be humble because the truth about us is humbling.  We "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23), and therefore we are all worthy of death (Rom. 6:23).

         

  3. GETTING A PROPER PERSPECTIVE

    1. You cannot think too highly of yourself if you think correctly of God.

      1. To realize the highly exalted position of God is also to realize the very low position of man by comparison.  Consider God's own words in Isaiah 55:8-9:

        8"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD.  9"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts."

      2. The more we exalt God in our hearts and in the eyes of others, the more we are likely to think correctly and humbly about ourselves.

      3. Therefore, let us praise God so that we may realize how far exalted He is above us.  Consider a few passages of praise that give us a proper perspective:

        1. Psalm 34:1-3 -- 1I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.  2My soul will make its boast in the LORD; the humble will hear it and rejoice.  3O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.

        2. Ephesians 3:20-21 -- 20Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever.  Amen.

        3. Isaiah 40:22 -- It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.  (See vv. 21-31 for the full context.)

    2. Realize how little you know when compared with God.

      1. God's knowledge and wisdom are beyond measure.  Consider another praise passage that expresses the wonder of God's knowledge in Romans 11:33-36:

        33Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!  34For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?  35Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to Him again? 36For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things.  To Him be the glory forever.  Amen.

      2. God's knowledge and wisdom are too great for us, and He reveals to us only a minute fraction of what He knows.  All we can say is, "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it" (Ps. 139:6).

      3. Job learned the lesson of his own inferior knowledge when God inundated him with questions that he could not answer (Job 38-41).  Job's only replies for these questions were as follows:

        1. Job 40:4-5 -- 4"Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You?  I lay my hand on my mouth.  5Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; even twice, and I will add nothing more."

        2. Job 42:3 -- "'Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?'  Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know."

      4. Let us learn the lessons learned by Job.  God knows infinitely more than we can ever know. How then can we ever think highly of ourselves?

    3. Let the word of God give you a true view of yourself.

      1. The word of God not only reveals truth to us, but it also exposes truth about us.

        1. Hebrews 4:12 says that "the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

        2. The Scriptures are like a mirror that reflects our traits, good and bad, so that we may see who we really are.  Consider James 1:22-25:

          22But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.  23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.  25But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

      2. From the Scriptures, we learn the truth that we are "but dust" (Gen. 18:27; Ps. 103:14).  Consider some further perspective from the Scriptures:

        1. Luke 17:10 -- "So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, 'We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.'"

        2. Ephesians 2:1-3 -- 1And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.  3Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

           

  4. CONCLUSION

    1. A fitting thought to close this lesson is found in Psalm 138:6, which says, "For though the LORD is exalted, yet He regards the lowly, but the haughty He knows from afar."

    2. How shall the exalted God of heaven regard you?  The answer will depend upon whether you are lowly or haughty in spirit.  Which are you?