Beg God for the Miracle of Humility
God hates pride and demands that we recognize His infinite value and greatness in order to find true happiness and satisfaction.
This sermon emphasizes the dangers of pride and the importance of humility in the eyes of God. It highlights how God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble, as seen in Psalms 31:23, where the Lord preserves the faithful but repays the prideful abundantly. The message draws from Isaiah 2, illustrating God's opposition to all that exalts itself above Him, emphasizing the need to exalt the Lord alone. The call to war against pride is rooted in recognizing God's infinite value and seeking soul satisfaction in Him alone.
Full Transcript
The Lord preserves the faithful, but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride. Psalm 31 23. God hates pride.
The Apostle Peter said, clothe yourselves all of you with humility, for God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. And that magnificent description in Isaiah 2, where it says, the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is lofty, against all that is high, against all that is lifted up. And he lists things like the arrogance of the cities and the culture that they made and the ships of Tarshish and the high towers and the 45 cities.
And he says, the Lord of hosts will be exalted in that day. God hates pride. And there are two reasons.
One is God alone is of infinite value and greatness and beauty and glory and worth. God alone and man alone can find happiness, satisfaction only in this great and glorious God in exalting himself. He insists on doing what is righteous, namely himself being recognized as infinitely valuable and us being satisfied by not diverting our attention to anything lesser than what is all satisfying.
So for the sake of God's glory and for the sake of your own soul satisfaction, make war on every vestige of pride in your life and cry out to God every day for the miracle of humility.
Sermon Outline
- God Hates Pride
- Reasons God Hates Pride
- The Miracle of Humility
- God's Infinite Value and Greatness
- Man's Satisfaction in God
- Making War on Pride
- Crying Out to God for Humility
Key Quotes
“God alone is of infinite value and greatness and beauty and glory and worth.” — John Piper
“God hates pride.” — John Piper
“God alone and man alone can find happiness, satisfaction only in this great and glorious God in exalting himself.” — John Piper
Application Points
- Make war on every vestige of pride in your life and cry out to God for the miracle of humility.
- Recognize God's infinite value and greatness in order to find true happiness and satisfaction.
- Prioritize recognizing God's glory above all else in your life.