Nigeria - Part 2

Please turn with me to Matthew 23. Now this is speaking, Jesus is speaking about the attitudes he he does not like in the scribes and Pharisees and he is warning his own disciples not to have the same attitude. He speaks about the Pharisees and scribes and chief priests that they love the uppermost rooms at the feasts and the chief seats in the synagogues.

What is Jesus dealing with here? He is dealing with pride. The pride of leaders who love to be seen. Who love to have titles given to them and to be called out as though they are a holy man of God.

Rabbi, rabbi, teacher, teacher. We have spoken in the last couple of days about America's influence in Nigeria. This is another area where America's influence has been for the bad.

Because God is looking for truly humble servants but too often he finds people that want to be chiefs. Jesus told his disciples do not rule over the people like the Gentile leaders do. If you would be great in the in the kingdom of God you must be a servant to the people.

What do we find in the churches so often? We find men and women but especially men vying for power and position. You'll find sometimes there's an event and the the leaders care very much where they are seated or whether their photo appears in a certain place on the poster. My question is who are you serving? Who are you promoting and pushing forward? Is it yourself or is it truly Jesus? When people want to put titles on a man and put positions and call him something and bow and scrape to that man.

I'm embarrassed because this is the opposite attitude that Jesus always spoke about. I don't want to be a chief. I want to be a servant of God who risks everything to bring truth.

If I'm a man of God, a true man of God, I do not chase positions or titles or proudful positions. Here is the key to it all. Matthew 23 verse 12.

Whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased. Whosoever shall humble himself, God will lift him up. This is the exact opposite of what we're seeing in the church.

Men are lifting themselves up and saying, oh God bless me. God saying, you're not low enough for me to bless you. You have exalted yourself and I will not exalt you.

Everybody wants to call themselves a bishop. I do not want to call myself a bishop. I don't want to wear any special clothes.

I don't want people flattering me before I get up to the microphone. Why don't I want those things? Because if I'm a man of God, my reward is in heaven, not down here. And every time men are trying to flatter me and give me positions and titles, I feel like they're stealing away from my reward up in heaven.

I don't care if I get called nothing but just brother Andrew. You see, you either have the anointing of God or you don't. No amount of hype or promotion impresses God for one moment.

In fact, it disgusts God because it's pride. Now there are certain preachers who know how to act humble even though in their heart they're not. Sometimes you will see a man who is putting himself forward as a very holy person.

And in public, oh, they know how to look very humble. Oh, such a beautiful, humble person. No, God knows the heart.

God looks at the heart. He wants a humility that is not just outward, but totally who you really are. There are people who choose the low seats because they want to look humble.

This is not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about choosing the low seats because that is who you really are. Jesus in fact said to his disciples, choose the lowly place and let me promote you.

You're not promoting yourself. I want to ask you preachers of God today. Do you dare to do this? Are you going to let Jesus work a work of humility in your life? Or are you going to keep promoting yourself and everything you are? You see, then people have to go after false power because God does not give true power to pride, proud, full people.

Pride was the thing that caused Lucifer to fall. It is rampant in the church of America and I would say it is even more rampant here. What does selfish ambition mean? See, the Bible specifically speaks against selfish ambition.

There's nothing wrong with ambition for the kingdom of God to expand. But what the Bible is talking about is when we want us to expand. Selfish ambition will trample over other people to get where it needs to go.

Selfish ambition is like the love of money. It is the root of many, many evils. God is going to point to this thing in the coming reformation and revival and he is going to strip his leaders of selfish ambition.

He is going to search and search for the truly meek and humble of heart and he is going to raise them up. Now I'm going to leave this topic in about one minute so I just want to make a last point or two. Let me close by asking you a couple of questions.

When you are promoting your meetings or your church or your events, is it you that you are promoting or is it Jesus? Second question, have you taken for yourself position and title and a place of prominence through pride? Last question is this, are you willing to repent of these things? Leaders of God in the church in Nigeria, there is a call going forth to you for a new and different Christianity. It is the Christianity of the Bible and it is very different from what we see around us today. Amen.