BETTER TO BE INVITED UP THAN TO BE ASKED DOWN

PROCLAMATION

“But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’  Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests.  For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  Luke 14:10-11 (NIV)

EXPLANATION
These words are from the gospel, the good news regarding Jesus, The Christ, which were spoken by Christ according to Luke, the physician.  On one Sabbath day, Jesus was invited to eat at the home of a prominent Pharisee.  While He was there, He saw a man who was suffering, and He asked the Pharisees, “Is it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath day?”  They did not respond to Him, and so He healed the man. (Luke 14:1-4)  Then He asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that fell into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?”  Again they were silent. (Luke 14:5-6)  When He noticed how the guests picked their seats at the places of honor at the table, He told them the following parable.  “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited.  If so, the host who invited both of you will come to you and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’  Then humiliated, you will have to take the least important place.  But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’  Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests.  For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  (Luke 14:7-11)

APPLICATION
Our pride can cause us to needlessly suffer.  One whose pride causes him to exalt himself will be humiliated and embarrassed.  One who truly humbles himself will be exalted.  The proud in heart are an abomination to The Lord. (Proverbs 16:5)  Everyone who is proud and lofty, who lifts himself up, shall be brought low. (Isaiah 2:12)  The Lord God resisted the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. (James 4:6)  It is better for us to be invited up to a place of honor than it is to be asked to move down to a lesser place.  “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:11)

 

OBEY THE LORD GOD AND HE WILL EXALT YOU

Proclamation:

“And The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so that they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses.’”  Joshua 3:7 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Joshua under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After The Lord God had encouraged him, (Joshua 1:7-8) Joshua told the Israelites to get ready because in three days they would cross the Jordan River and enter the promise land. (Joshua 1:11)  The people answered him by saying that would do whatever he says for them to do, and they would go wherever he says for them to go.  They said they would obey him just as they had obeyed Moses. (Joshua 1:16-18)  Then Joshua sent two spies to go scout out the city of Jericho and they went to the house of Rehab. (Joshua 2:1-24)  Then Joshua told the priests to take up the Arc of the Covenant and pass ahead of the people and step into the Jordan River. (Joshua 3:6-8)  When they stepped into the river, the waters stopped flowing. (Joshua 3:13)  Just as Moses had led the Israelites across when The Lord God parted the Red Sea, so Joshua led them across the flooded Jordan River when The Lord stopped the flow of the river and it piled up. (Joshua 3:15-17)

Application:

It is not necessary for one to brag, or to boast, or to puff one’s self up in order to impress people.  When we humble ourselves and follow The Lord God, and do as He says for us to do, then He will exalt us. (Psalm 37:34, Matthew 23:12 and Luke 14:11)  He can work a miracle in our lives and cause the people around us to respect us.  We may not be well known throughout the nation but we will be well respected by those within our sphere of influence.  People who push their way to the front in order to be first, will end up being last in the minds and hearts of the people that they pushed aside and those who saw their behavior.  The Bible says that the first shall be last and the last shall be first. (Matthew 19:30, Mark 9:35, and Luke 13:30)  When we lift Him up, and do His will, He will lift us up. (Psalm 37:34)  

BE HUMBLE AND GOD WILL EXALT YOU

Proclamation:

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s might hand, that He may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”  1 Peter 5:6-7 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the apostle Peter, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, to the believers who scattered after the crucifixion of Christ. (1 Peter 1:1-2)  Peter began this fifth and final chapter of his first letter by telling the elders of the church to be good shepherds of God’s flock. (1 Peter 5:1-4)  Then he tells the people to submit to the elders and to be humble because God shows favor to the humble. (1 Peter 5:5-6)  He reminds them that they have been called by God.  He said that they may suffer for a little while but that God Himself would restore them and strengthen them. (1 Peter 5:10)  To God be the glory. (1 Peter 5:11)

Application:

Some of us have too high of an opinion of ourselves.  It is hard for a proud person to humble themselves and grow in grace.  When we think too highly of ourselves, we tend to lose our focus on The Lord God who is above all of us. (Romans 12:3)  We need to learn to humble ourselves before God has to humble us, as He did to the apostle Paul with that “thorn” in his flesh. (2 Corinthians 12:7)  Self pride or vanity is not a good thing. (Job 35:13, Psalm 4:2, Psalm 94:11, Ecclesiastes 6:4, Ezekiel 13:8, and Ephesians 4:17)  God does not look kindly on the proud. (James 4:6 and 2 Peter 5:5)  Be humble.  Whoever shall humble himself, God will exalt. (Matthew 23:12 and Luke 14:11)

THE HUMBLE WILL BE EXALTED

Proclamation:

"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Matthew 23:12 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of Jesus, The Christ, which He spoke to the crowd and to His disciples warning them against hypocrisy as recorded by the Apostle Matthew under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God. 

Application:

Some people do things just for show, to be seen by others, to draw attention to themselves, to make themselves appear to be much more important, greater, or whatever, than they actually are.  Don't do things just to be seen by men and praised by men. (Matthew 23:5)  Do what you do because it is the right thing to do, not to get the praise of others for doing it.  Whatever we do should not be done to glorify ourselves in the eyes of others.  We should do things in such a manner so as to give God the glory. (Matthew 5:16)  Whosoever lifts himself up before others will be humbled, and he who humbles himself before others will be exalted.  It is better to be invited up to a seat of honor than to sit in a position of honor and be asked to move. (Proverbs 25:6-7)   Everyone is not who they claim to be.  There are even some people who claim to be a Child of God but they are not one.  Jesus said that there would be those who claim to be His followers but He will tell them to leave because they are evil and He does not know them. (Matthew 25:33 and 41)  We should not think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. (Romans 12:3) 

BE HUMBLE AND BE BLESSED

Proclamation:

“But He gives us more grace.  That is why Scripture says: ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’”  James 4:6 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of James, the half brother of Jesus, as he quotes Old Testament Scripture. (Proverbs 3:34)  He is trying to convey to the people of God that pride promotes strife and does not please God.  He states that whoever loves himself and the world is an enemy of God. (James 4:4)  Then he tells them that God gives more of His grace to the humble individuals and withholds it from the proud non-believers.

Application:

Most of us think too highly of ourselves.  As believers we are encouraged to live in harmony, to be sympathetic, to be compassionate, to be humble, and to love one another as brothers. (1 Peter 3:8-9)  We are to be a blessing to one another, especially to the less fortunate.  It is hard to be a blessing to someone when we do not think very highly of them.  We are to be sympathetic to the plight of others, and humble in our dealings with them.  We are not to think less of them because they are different.  Treating others in a non-Christian way may cause us to miss out on a blessing.  We should not look down our noses at others because of their situation because, but for the grace of God, we could be in that situation.  God does not forget the cries of the humble, He remembers them. (Psalm 9:12)  “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12)  A man’s pride shall bring him low; but God will hold up the humble spirit. (Proverbs 29:23)  Therefore let us humble ourselves before God and let Him bless us and exalt us in due time. (1 Peter 5:6)

God Gives Grace To The Humble

"... All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'  Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time."  1 Peter 5:5-6 (NIV) 

These words were recorded by the Apostle Peter, who wrote them under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After addressing the elders, and then the young men, Peter addressed all of the believers and told them to be humble.  He said that The Lord God did not like the proud person, but He blesses the humble individual.  Those who humble themselves before God, will be lifted up by Him in due time.

People who exalt themselves will be put down, and those who humble themselves before God will be exalted. (Matthew 23:12)  We should not think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. (Romans 12:3)  Too much pride in ones self will lead to destruction. (Proverbs 16:18)  The proud shall be brought down low, but the humble shall be upheld. (Proverbs 29:23)  Pride is one of the things that comes out of the heart and mouth of man that defiles him. (Mark 7:20-23)  Pride is not of God, it is a worldly thing. (1 John 2:16)  Believers, therefore, should pray for, and practice humility.  We need to humbly submit to The Lord God and obey His Holy Word.  He will end our suffering, and He will lift us up and graciously bless us, in due time. 

The Humble Will Be Exalted

"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."  Matthew 23:12 (NIV)

These are the words spoken by Jesus, The Christ, to His disciples, to the crowd, and to the Pharisees and Sadducees in the temple in Jerusalem, as recorded by the Apostle Matthew.  He said this after telling them not to do things just to be seen by men.  He also said that they should not seek lofty titles, or call themselves "Rabbi", or "father", or "teacher".  The man who exalts himself will be brought down, and the man who humbles himself will be exalted.

We should not promote or exalt ourselves, true promotion and exaltation comes from The Lord, He puts up one and puts down another. (Psalms 75:6-7)  He will honor and bless whomever He chooses, for whatever purposes He chooses.  The proud shall be brought down and the humble shall be honored. (Proverbs 29:23)  It is better to be invited up to a position of honor than it is to be asked to move or step down after taking a position or seat on your own.  It is better to be humble than to be proud. (Proverbs 16:19 and 1 Peter 5:5)  If we humble ourselves before The Lord, He will lift us up. (James 4:10 and 1 Peter 5:6)