08-22-2021 – Humility: An Attitude of Gratitude
Links from Our Website:
Bulletin (pdf)
(AM insert) - Sermon Notes (pdf)
August Calendar (pdf)
YouTube Video Sermons
Upcoming Events
FBCW Website Calendar
08-22-2021 - Humility: An Attitude of Gratitude
1Peter 5:5-14
Pastor Mike Hale
Last week, in 1Peter 5:1-4, we studied Peter’s exhortation to the elders of the Church to submit to the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ, as they themselves live as examples among the members of the Family of God, of whom they have the responsibility to lead, teach, manage, protect, and care for.
Read 1Peter 5:5…
Now Peter turns his attention to the congregation of believers and followers of Christ, who he has already instructed (1Peter 2:13-20) to submit to governmental authorities, and (1Peter 3:1-7) to submit to civil authorities, employers, and also within the marriage relationship.
Peter speaks to the need for church members to submit to the elders who have been appointed into that office. Peter singles out the young men (1Peter 5:5 a) exhorting them to respect the elders (probably because the biggest push back to the authority of the elders would most likely come from the young adult men in the congregation). The phrase “to be subject to” is a military term meaning, “to line up under,” or next to, according to rank, i.e., they are to willfully place themselves under the leadership of the shepherds.
1Thessalonians 5:12-13,
“We request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another.”
Christians submit to governmental and civilian authorities, but also to the leadership of the Church
(Ephesians 4:11-12),
“And He [Christ] gave some… as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.”
Peter goes on to say in 1Peter 5:5 b, that all believers should have the proper attitude of humility, and it should be evident to those around us, just as the clothing we wear can be seen. We are to have and to express humility toward one another. Why? Because (1Peter 5:5 c), “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble [pp. Psalm 138:6].”
Read 1Peter 5:6-7…
“Therefore" refers to the last statement, i.e., because that is true, we all need to have the attitude of one who willingly serves, even doing the lowliest, most mundane, tasks.
In John 13 Jesus removed His outer garment, tied a towel around his waist, and began to wash the feet of His disciples, after which, He explained to the importance of what He had done
(see John 13:3-17).
Mark 10:45
expresses the biblical standard for humble service, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Why did Jesus come to pay for our sins, and how did He accomplished it (See Philippians 2:3-11).
Pride, not humility, sets you against God
(1Peter 5:6),
“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.”
Our last few times together in 1Peter we have studied how trials and hardships and persecutions come upon those who
(2Timothy 3:12),
“desire to live godly [lives] in Christ Jesus.”
God will indeed lift you up at the proper time, but until then we must
(1Peter 5:7)
“cast all [our] anxiety on Him, because He cares for [us].
Read 1Peter 5:8-9…
In the midst of trials and persecutions we must “Be of sober spirit,” i.e., remain self-controlled in our mind, body, and spirit; because the devil (God’s enemy, our enemy) is seeking to destroy our witness for Christ. Satan is prowling around looking for weaknesses among God’s people, like a lion hunting for the young or injured among a herd of antelopes.
Satan and his demons want to separate and silence us, to disable and destroy the lives of those who are serving God. The devil uses the perverted world system to attack and undermine God-ordained sexual relationships, marriage, family, and the Church
(1John 2:15-17),
“Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”
We must remain on the alert, sober minded, so that we don’t fall victim to the devil’s schemes and temptations, like most of the world that is captive by godless thinking because they reject the Word of God and the gospel of Christ.
2Corinthians 4:3-6,
“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. “For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
Look again at 1Peter 5:9.
We must take a stand, draw a line in the sand, not give in or be pushed back; we do that by holding firm to our faith, all that we know is true according to God’s Word
(Jude 3),
“the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints,”
(2Timothy 3:16)
“All Scripture is inspired by God [Godbreathed, i.e., its origin and authority are from God] and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.”
Christian throughout the world are suffering and struggling amidst the flood of godlessness, and the attacks of the devil and those who serve him. Our faith must be in God and in His eternally sovereign Word.
Colossians 2:8-10,
“See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”
Read 1Peter 5:10…
God does allow us to suffer, at times, in fact God has allowed some of His children to be put to death for the sake of Christ; Stephen was the first Martyr mentioned in the Book of Acts (chapter 7); many Christians in the past were put to death, just as many today are killed because of their professed belief in Christ.
The truth is, the world system hates us because of Christ, and therefore we can expect to be persecuted. But we can also trust God to see us through whatever troubles and sufferings we may experience; we know He is faithful to comfort us, so that we also may comfort others
(2Corinthians 1:3-5),
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ,”
(Hebrews 10:23b-25)
“For He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”
What do we have to fear? Nothing!
John 10:11,
“I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
John 10:27-30,
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
Romans 8:35-39,
“Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, ‘For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’ But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Nothing can ever separate us from God’s love, because through Christ we have God’s Spirit living in us, we belong to God
(1John 3:2),
“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.”
2Corinthians 4:7-11, “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”
2Corinthians 4:16-18,
“Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
God alone deserves ultimate praise, honor, glory and worship. He is eternally all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving, no wonder Peter declares in
1Peter 5:11,
“To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Revelation 7:11-12,
“All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, ‘Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.’”
Read 1Peter 5:12-14…
Peter closes this letter by mentioning his loyal friend, faithful brother in the Lord, and servant of God, Silvanus [Silas] who had previously traveled with Paul (cf. Acts 15:40; 16:25; 1Thessalonians 1:1; 2Thessalonians 1:1), but now was assisting Peter by delivering this letter to the believers throughout the Roman Empire (1Peter 1:1), “To those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.”
Peter exhorts the believers to hold firm to the living and enduring grace of God and to “Stand firm in it!” Then speaking specifically to those believers in Rome he says
(1Peter 5:13),
“She [the church] who is in Babylon [Rome].” Peter uses an alias, so as not to put the church in Rome in any more danger than it already is; for it was being heavily persecuted at that time.
Peter wrote this letter from Rome, and he sends greetings from the believers there to those who are scattered throughput the Roman Empire. Peter sends special greetings also from his son in the faith Mark (John Mark, cf. Acts 12:12), who was also the author of the Gospel According to Mark. Mark had earlier traveled with Paul to Antioch and Cypress, and later came to help Paul when he was imprisoned in Rome (cf. 2Timothy 4:11).
Peter signs off by encouraging the believers to greet one another with a holy kiss (this was customary in the early church, just as handshakes, hugs and pats on the back are customary in the church today).
Peter then says (1Peter 5:14),
“Peace be to all of you who are in Christ,”
meaning of course, those who are genuine believers and followers of God’s Son, Jesus Christ: crucified, resurrected, and coming again.
In Peter’s early years he was anything but humble; he was strong-willed, outspoken, and impetuous to a fault; but during his 3+ years traveling with Jesus, he, as the designated leader of the Twelve, found himself being humbled on several occasions by the Lord Himself.
Peter writes under the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit, as one who has personally experienced being humbled.
(1Peter 5:5-6),
“clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.”
Godly humility should be experienced, expressed, and exalted by all those who are in Christ; those who have repented of their sins, confessing Christ as Lord, and believing in Him as Savior; those who read and study God’s Word, allowing it to change their hearts and minds so that they become more and more like Jesus, as they now live for Him on this earth, looking forward to living with Him in heaven, for eternity.
When we consider all the blessings we have been given by God, in and through Christ, both for our present life on earth, and our eternal life in heaven; even though what we deserve is God’s wrath; He chose to forgive us and took love us as His own children, that should cause us to become and to remain humble, constantly showing our gratitude to God in heaven, through our humble service here on earth.
Next week we’ll begin studying the second Letter, written by Peter, to the Church. But today, I want to close our time with
1Peter 5:14 and 2Peter 3:18, where Peter writes,
“Peace be to all of you who are in Christ.”
[And may you]
“grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory for now and forever, Amen.”
Pastor Mike
>’(((><