He Who Humbles Himself Will Be Exalted

So I have a curious question for you before I get started, just because David said something about worshiping once a week. And I want to know how many of you guys listen to podcasts? If you take the kids out, that's about half. How many of you would say that listen to podcasts, that you listen to some sort of Christian podcast, some sort of teaching, some sort of something? So can I suggest to you? That the reason you do that is because you want to be taught more than once a week? So can I invite you to men's and women's group then? Make it a priority? Just saying. Huh? And your friends, yeah. You know other people who are listening to this stuff. And you know, I thanked Levi for coming into Sunday school today. And I told him the difficulty that I always face in Sunday school. And it's that the recorder picks up my voice well.

But part of what I want to do is have you guys interact. And so when people sitting out interact, the recorder doesn't pick it up. And so I'm always living in this tension of, do I interact primarily with the people who are in front of me, or do I also have an ear to the mind to the people who are going to listen to the recording? Because people who listen to the recording say, could you restate their questions or their comments so we know? Because there's just this awkward silence, and then it comes back, and they're not sure what happened. I'm always trying to navigate that. I fail at it sometimes. Sometimes I decide, you know, the people in front of me, they're the ones who get the priority, and so if it doesn't make sense for me to restate it, then I'm not going to. And if you can't be at Sunday school, then, especially if you're serving, then I'm sorry. If you're not at Sunday school because you got to sleep or you need to do your hair or whatever, then you should come to Sunday school. Figure that other stuff out. Did I just? No, there we are.

So just think about that when you listen to podcasts and think, do I listen to my podcasts? Do I give preference to the one-on-one real live interaction of teaching in real time? Or do I prefer it canned? And I think in every other circumstance, if I asked you, would you prefer to have your meal hot and fresh and right on the table? Or would you prefer it tossed in the microwave from three days ago? We'd all say, I'd really rather have it in person. In real time. And I say, well, teaching is the same way. So give yourself to that. It's a sacrifice, I know. It's a sacrifice for me too. But I love it. So I invite you to sacrifice with me. Now, two weeks ago, we started in on this long scenario going on in a Pharisee's house on a Sabbath. Jesus was invited over for a meal. And the Pharisees invited them in.

to his home and they're watching him closely to see what he might do, see if they can catch him in something. And so when he goes into this Pharisee's house, there's a man with dropsy, which is like swelling, you know, big swollen legs, swollen arms, just visible discomfort and sickness. And Jesus has already healed on the Sabbath once. He did it in the synagogue and the synagogue official opposed him and he shamed the synagogue official. And so these Pharisees already know about that. And then he goes into their house and there's this guy with dropsy. And the question is, what's Jesus going to do? And so before he heals the guy, he says to them, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not? And they all keep silent. And he heals the guy. And he sends him away. And then he goes on to restate to them, you'd have mercy on your children. You'd have mercy on your animals. Why not have mercy on this man? And they keep silent again. And so this is what Jesus does as soon as he gets into someone's house.

And so two weeks ago I said, one of the things we can learn is that for Christians to expose or initiate a hidden conflict is well within the scope of biblical Christianity. If someone's upset, if someone doesn't like you, if someone's got a beef with you, it's perfectly normal to go to them and say, what's the deal? And so that's what's going on right now. And then Jesus continues on. in this house. And this week and next week, we're going to be studying what he does, what he says while he's there. Would you please stand now for the reading of God's word from Luke chapter 14, verses 7 through 14. This is the word of the Lord and it is eternally true. And he, Jesus, began speaking a parable to the invited guests when he noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them, when you were invited by someone to a wedding feast, Do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by them. And he who invited you both will come and say to you, Give your place to this man. And then, in disgrace, you proceed to occupy the last place. But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, Friend, move up higher. Then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. And he also went on to say to the one who had invited him, When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they may also invite you in return, and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. since they do not have the means to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated. So for a little more context before we really jump in, I want us to think for a moment about what the Pharisees are like, what we know of their character. Because these are the men who've invited Jesus into their home. These are the men who are watching him closely to catch him in something. And ultimately, these are the ones who put him to death. And so Jesus has gone into enemy territory, going into their house.

So what do we know about the Pharisees? Well, we know that they loved honor. They loved being honored. In Mark 12, 38 and 39, it says, Scribes, Pharisees, lawyers, they're the upper crust. of the religious people of the day. They're the leaders. And they're accustomed to being honored. They're accustomed to, oh, oh, you're one of those guys. And they're used to being treated that way, getting that sort of deference shown to them. They were aware of their position, and they made a habit of enjoying its benefits. This is the character of the Pharisees. They grasp for honor. And Jesus is in a house filled with men like this.

So how could we describe the house? If you could describe the character of the men in the house, how would you describe it? Describe it as proud. That house is filled with pride. Every man in it, his cup is overflowing with high and lofty thoughts of himself. This is where Jesus finds himself. So think for a moment what you would do if you felt that sort of stuff going on in a house. You walk in and it's just pride. It's wealth. It's beauty, it's art, it's high end, it's marble, it's crystal. Whatever it is, all of a sudden you walk in and you're like, oh, these people, they know, they care. These are the important people. What would your inclination be? If you knew they didn't like you, but they invited you out of obligation. Wouldn't you just want to just fade into the cracks in the couch, the cushion, just sort of melt down into them and go away? What's that?

Sit at the kid's table, yeah? You want to go sit at the kid's table with your peers? You note that that's not what Jesus does. And you already knew that. You're like, okay, so Jesus, my inclinations are probably not in line with what Jesus does. Jesus doesn't just know his place and shut up and play along. He heals the man. And then he began speaking a parable. He's already gotten everyone's attention. They're all looking at him. They're all... Scandalized in various ways, but keeping silent. And then he says, you know, while I've got all your attention, I've got something to say. And he goes into this parable of a wedding. And this message is very simple to them. Jesus warns them not to assume a position of inappropriate honor. When you go to a wedding, don't assume you're the most important person there. Because you may well not be.

That's it. If you were to sum up this parable, that's what he says. You're not as important as you happen to think you are. It would be better for you to not be disgraced publicly because of your foolishness. Now, when you go to weddings these days, the places of honor have been shrunk down. How do you know who's honored at a wedding these days? How should you know? With assigned seating. Assigned seating is nothing more than deciding who's more honorable than who. That's it. And so you have the wedding party table, wherever they're at, and they're the most honorable. How do you know they're the most honorable? Well, because maybe they're elevated and they get to eat first. And then there's other tables near them. And who's seated at those tables? The family, right? The bride and groom's family. They're seated there.

And then in most weddings, beyond that, it's a free-for-all. Sit where you want. First come, first serve. And all of us who are in the common group, you know how we decide where to sit? Who's going to get fed first? Which one of these tables is going to be dismissed? Because my hunger is more important than their hunger. And so we take the places of honor even though they're not assigned to us. No one wants to sit at the last table. And so the bride and groom have decided we're not going to do the work of figuring out who deserves to eat first, who's more honorable. And then when we show up, we go, well, I'm honorable. I'm going to sit as close to the food or the bar or whatever, not the bathroom. And it's all a question of honor. But we don't think of it that way. Because if we thought of it that way, we'd go, that's gross. That's not right. You shouldn't do that. And yet we all do it. We all want to sit in the place of honor.

It's just wired into us. And we've been taught not to discipline that we might be honorable. What we've been taught is that honor doesn't exist anymore. There's no honor. Everyone's the same. There's no difference. And so in our culture, it seems strange to act like there are different degrees of honor, that anyone's due more respect than another. One way you see this is, In the way that children address adults. Are children to honor adults? Yes, that's what the fifth commandment requires of them. You say, if it says honor their father and mother, and I say, that's right. But the heart of that commandment is that they honor authority. And historically, there's been question of whether that commandment refers to how God relates to man, or I'm sorry, how man relates to other men, or how man relates to God. Whether it belongs in the first table of the law or the second table of the law.

My conviction is that it belongs in the second table, but it's a bridge between the two. That the principle of the fifth commandment is that you honor authority. Well, to honor authority, you have to have eyes to see it. And so when children are taught, when you teach your children how to address you or how to address an adult, you're teaching them whether or not to honor that person. And you're like, well, what do you mean? I say, well, are they supposed to call me Dave? Are they supposed to call me? Mr. Abusar or Pastor Dave. And just so you know, it feels gross to me to say you should call me Pastor Dave. You should teach your kids. Because I don't feel like I should be any different than you. I don't feel like I should get that sort of honor. But you know what? You should have them call Mary Ann Mrs. Meyer. You should teach them to respect, to honor the differences between them and an adult. We should be looking in our society to establish the honor.

that God has invested this world with. The different positions that he's set up. So you should teach your kids not to be like, hey Dave, you should teach your kids to wait. Not to come and interrupt, but to come and touch your hand, put their hand in your pocket, do something to get your attention, but that's not disruptive. When you're doing that work, you're teaching them that honor exists in this world and that they need to know their place. What you're teaching them is humility. Because if you don't teach them humility, they're going to end up disgraced like Jesus is warning these Pharisees. And none of us want that for our children, now do we? Then teach them about honor. This world that God's made is not flat. It's not without hierarchy. I'm not talking about flat earth. I saw it. That's not what I'm talking about. He didn't create a world where everything is even. He created a world of hierarchy, a world of honor, of varying degrees of honor.

And we ought to teach our children, first we have to learn ourselves, and then we ought to teach our children that that's the sort of world God's created. It's not flat, it's horizontal. I'm sorry, it's vertical. And so we should teach them to honor parents. And we should teach wives to honor husbands. And we should teach children to honor students. And we should teach one another to honor police officers and government officials. We should learn to honor our elders, our bosses. All of this is to say that... With regard to the Pharisees, Jesus is not rebuking the fact that they would have any honor. He's rebuking the fact that they have taken too much honor. They've thought more highly of themselves than they ought to. I mean, it seems monstrous that Jesus would teach his disciples not to honor their leaders, right? And so we ought to have a biblical understanding of how honor works and that it's not intrinsically a bad thing. And we ought also to hear Jesus' warnings that

when we pull honor to ourselves and respect, and we think more highly of ourselves than we ought to, what's underneath it is pride. It's our pride. Pride leads to thinking of yourself more highly than you should. And it's always at the expense of other people. It seems pretty obvious to say, but whenever you elevate yourself, you lower someone else, or a whole group of people, or everybody. It's not something that happens in a vacuum. You have to think, well, would the Pharisees going into this house, would they know about the potential for being dishonored? The answer is yeah. Proud people are generally very aware of their surroundings because they're always measuring themselves against other people. Where can I sit? What's the highest I can go? They're reachers. And so they're acutely aware of where they belong and they're trying to get as high as they can without disgrace.

So pride has a self-protecting element to it. It doesn't want to be humbled. And so it's aware not to go too far. Pride is acutely aware of its surroundings. It's always trying to determine the pecking order. But the reality of pride is that while it tries to figure out where it belongs, it's a corrupt pursuit because pride is blind. Pride lies to you. It deceives you. It misleads you. Proverbs 29.23 says, A man's pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor. Proverbs 16.18, Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before stumbling. 1 Corinthians 10.12 says, Therefore, let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. So the testimony of Scripture is that pride leads to destruction. And Jesus says nothing more in this parable other than, This is its end. Someone more distinguished than you is going to show up and you're going to be disgraced publicly.

If you grew up in a house with siblings or if you have children, you know that they're always vying for their position, whether you did it yourself or whether you watch your kids do it now. And what you see at work is their pride. And so I had this long talk with my three oldest sons yesterday about the rules of Foursquare. And it was all about honor. And it was all motivated by pride. The question was, if the ball is, you know, the ball has to bounce in your square before you hit it. We all know the normal rules for four square, but we don't play by the normal rules at my house because they're not competitive enough. And so the question is, you know, sometimes you try to hit the person with the ball. You know, they're up too close to the line. Instead of bouncing, you just shoot it right at them. Well, what if the ball is going to go out and you call out and you catch the ball so it doesn't roll halfway down the street?

Is that allowed? Well, in my house, it is allowed. But what if you can't get the whole word out first? Then does it count? And me being a dad, I'm thinking, okay, the 10-year-old's going to hurt the 7-year-old eventually and not on purpose. And what's going to happen is that ball is going to hit him in the face. So we need some sort of a rule or a governor, something to govern the play to where it still can be fun. It can still be competitive, but someone's not going to come in with a busted nose. At least there'll be the potential that you'll be out if you break someone's nose, right? And so we stood in there for, what, Joseph, 20 minutes debating about what the rules should be, about how you could hit someone and how you couldn't. And the argument was between the 10-year-old and the 7-year-old. And the 7-year-old's going, that's not fair, that's not fair. And what he's saying is, I can't win with the rules like that. So I want the rules to be tipped towards in my favor so I can win. Well, what motivates that? It's his pride. I'm not telling you guys anything I didn't say right there and tell them yesterday. I said, it's your pride, honey, that makes you think that this game is made for you to win. You need to know your place. Your older brothers, they're 20 pounds heavier than you. They're two to four years older than you. They're stronger than you.

They're faster than you. You're probably not going to win very many games you play with them. Now, is that appropriate for me to say to my son? What am I teaching him? I'm teaching him his place. I'm teaching him humility. You, son, should not go through your whole life thinking that you're the best and that when it dawns on you that you're not the best or the fastest or the strongest or the smartest or the toughest or whatever, that you can just change the rules to suit your pride. you, son, are probably going to lose most of the time. And that's okay. It's good for you. And it is good for him. So what do I say to the oldest son? He wants the rules. He just wants it full throttle, open. He wants to be able to throw the ball. I said, well, I think the line should be here. If you hit somebody in the chest, you're out. Because we want to avoid the head. And he says, well, I think it should be the neck. I think we should be able to hit him right up to the neck.

And I go, but you're the only one who's going to do it. Right? The 10-year-old's much more likely to hit somebody with a ball than a 7-year-old is. So he in his own way has pride and wants the rules tipped in his favor. And we all sit and laugh because they're kids. But we're just like them. We're just like them. We walk into a room and we figure out where we belong. And we figure out how much higher we can scratch and claw up before somebody notices. And so Jesus... corrects these men's behavior. He said, it says, he noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table. And he says to them, when you're invited, do not take the place of honor for someone more distinguished will come and you're going to get displaced and it's going to be disgraceful. And so I want you to think for a minute, how does a proud man hear what Jesus says up to that point? What would be the number one thing they would not want to happen? Well, they don't want to be disgraced.

They would rather sit in their place, even though they think they deserve better, rather than be disgraced. And then what does Jesus tell them to do? Go sit in the last place, and then you'll be moved up. So what does a proud man do? A proud man says, well, fine. I'll go sit in the last place. I'll make a show of my humility. I'll go sit in the last place and wait until the honor that's due to me is given in the presence of all. You think, I don't know what you mean, Dave. And I say, well, again, let's talk about our children. Let's talk about kids and what they do. I come home from work. Hugs and kisses abound from all my children. Daddy, daddy, daddy, here's what I did today. I did this for my mom, and I did that for my brother, and I did this for my sister, and I did their chores, and I, and on and on and on. And it's really encouraging what my son's done, right? It's like, well, good, son, that's good. I'm really glad. Now, what's he doing?

He's boasting. That's right, Ian. That's absolutely right. He's boasting. And you know what I say to my kids when they do that? Let others praise you and not your own lips. Because that's what Proverbs says. You do something good, let other people recognize it and let them commend you for it and not yourself. Because what my son is doing is his pride has not been touched. Or at least I don't know if it's been touched until I see how he responds to me. And whether I give him the honor, whether I say friend, Move up higher. And what would that look like? Well, it would look like me going to his siblings and saying, how come he did all this work and you didn't? How come he was doing your chores instead of you doing your chores? And he's sitting over there just basking, oh, it's so great. Look at all this honor. Look at all this great. I'm so much better than you. Daddy's given you. He's reading you the riot act, and here I am, the best, the chosen one. Is that not pride? Is that any better than,

The one who says just plainly, well, I want the rules to favor me. There's no difference. And so I don't want you to listen to this parable that Jesus is teaching and go, oh, it means I'm supposed to just take myself as I am and go sit at the back. And that's going to fix everything. That won't fix anything. What's wrong is not necessarily where they sit. It's why they sit where they sit. You guys like roller coasters? Theme parks? Places with long lines to do fun things? Naomi does. What's the temptation when you're there? What can you spend extra money to avoid? The lines. You can spend more money because you're more important. And you can get in the fast track line. Or if you're cheap and proud, you can have your friend wait in line. You can go get the food and they'll hold your place. And then you can come up there. Well, what happens when they find out that you're cutting in line because that's what you're doing? Do they remove you to your proper place? What happens when you cut in line? Where do you end up?

The end of the line, right? Let me walk you all the way back. No, I was standing there. No, I don't care if you were standing there before. You went up beyond where you were supposed to, so now your place is back here in the last place. And so proud people have to be careful of thinking, well, if I reach higher, I'll still have my right place of honor because Jesus says, no, that's not what's going to happen. You're going to reach, and then you're going to be removed to the lowest place, the last place. Something beneath what's appropriate. And so at a wedding, where do you think the Pharisees should have sat? Would they have belonged according to who they were at the last table? No. Do they belong at the first table? No. But they probably belong in the top quarter. Wouldn't you agree? That's not where they end up though, is it? Pride goes before destruction. And so they fall all the way back to the last place. And this compounds their disgrace.

Not only are they disgraced for cutting up and seeking places of honor, their disgrace is compounded by being removed beneath where they actually belong. So who's sitting at the lowest table? Not anyone the Pharisees want to spend time with. It's all people beneath them. So how do you know if you're proud or not? Where should I sit? Pastor, you've just confused me. You told me not to reach up, and you told me not to sit beneath my spot, but I don't know where my spot is. All you have to answer is, are you willing for other people to determine your place? Are you willing for them to determine the amount of honor you deserve? Is your boss allowed to determine your value to the company or not? You say, but my boss, you know, it rises up. But my boss, and it's like, yeah, I get it. I know your boss, but Scripture tells you to honor him and to work hard for him as unto the Lord.

Let's not have our first thought be, but my boss. Are you content for other people to determine what honor you're worthy of? Or do they have to agree with your opinion of yourself? Vanessa and I were in premarital counseling for seven months. We got the deluxe version. And we used to quarrel quite a bit, three, four times a week. And we'd go to counseling, and they'd say, how's it been? And we would rehearse. the arguments of the previous week. And each week, we would be sent away and told, you need to read James 4. And we'd read it, and we'd repent, and we'd work at it, and we'd fight more. And we'd go back to counseling the next week. How was it? It was like this. I think you need to read James 4 again. So James 4 became very familiar to us, to me anyway. Do you remember this? Yeah?

So what's James 4 say? Well, it says, What's the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source of your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. You're envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives so that you may spend it on your pleasures. You adulteresses. Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the scripture speaks to no purpose? He jealously desires the spirit which he has made to dwell in us. And you go, well, I don't understand what this has to do with what you're talking about. This is just practical nuts and bolts, like motives underneath why people fight. And I say, you're right. And what's underneath all of their fighting?

But he gives greater grace. Therefore, it says, God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. So what's underneath all the fighting and quarreling and asking with wrong motives and spending it on their pleasures and all their lust? What's down under all of it? It's their pride. You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. You want something you think you deserve, and someone's not giving it to you, and so you bite and devour one another. Because you think more highly of yourself than you ought to. And God is opposed to the proud. We could all marvel at Jesus' boldness in standing in a house of his enemies and taking them to task for their pride. But that's not the point of it. The point of it is for us to examine ourselves and to see where we're proud and to repent at that point.

Jesus doesn't go on flattering them and talking about encouraging them to be humble and all the benefits of the humility. No, he corrects their pride. And next week you're going to see how they respond to it. And it's so us. It's so us. One of the guys is like, well, can't we find some common ground? That's basically what his response is. Blessed are all who will drink wine in the kingdom of heaven. Can't we all agree about that? And Jesus just goes on. But that's next week. So he addresses the crowd, the guests, those who have been invited, those who are vying for places of honor. And then he turns to the man who invited him, and he corrects him. He says, when you give a luncheon or a dinner, you know, like this, right here and right now, the one you invited me to, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbors. And can we draw any other conclusion except that that's who the room was full of?

brothers and neighbors and friends and the rich people. Do not invite them. The people I just got done rebuking for their pride, don't invite them. Otherwise, they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. And we think, well, isn't that kind of the point? I'll scratch your back, you scratch my back. I'll have you over, you'll have me over. I'll give you a little bit of my goodies and you'll give me a little bit of your goodies and we'll all be great. And Jesus, you know, implicitly the answer to that question is no, that's not the point. That isn't how it should be. So is Jesus telling you you can't have fellowship with any of your friends and relatives or rich people ever? No. He's just saying it doesn't demonstrate any humility in you when you do it. By all means, have fellowship with them, love them, care for them, feed them, honor them, but don't act like that's the hospitality that demonstrates your humility. It doesn't. Instead, when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed.

since they do not have the means to repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. Now, the bit of tension here is that Jesus just healed a man with dropsy. He just healed someone who was lame. And yet Jesus is rebuking the host for not having any love for them and not actually inviting those people. And so that man was there most likely out of obligation because he was family and had to be there, had to be invited. Maybe he was a servant. in the home. But you see the way Jesus rebukes the host, and you understand the host didn't have a category for loving people and caring for people, the humble. He only wanted to do business with or entertain those that were of the same station. And so Jesus uses exactly what's right in front of him, and he says, this meal that you've had, you didn't do it the right way. You didn't do it the right way.

You're in a position of power. You're in a position of influence. You have the ability to bless people. You have the ability to be generous and to care for those who can't care for themselves. Here we sit and eat in extravagance. And the poor sit outside begging. And this is not as it should be. So what are we to learn from all of this? Well, there are applications to who we should spend our time with, who we should bless with the resources that we have, certainly. We should be seeking out where the pride is alive and well in our life, where its roots run deep. There's something I want you to consider. I want to frame those thoughts this way. Jesus starts off this parable with a wedding feast, and that there's places of honor in the wedding feast where people will be seated. And when Jesus returns, there will be a wedding feast.

And there will be places of honor. And there will be at that time people who, as we just studied a couple of weeks ago, think they're coming. And knocked on the door. And the masters closed the door and said, get away from me, I never knew you. And so there's a distinction there. They're dishonorable, right? They're being disgraced. That's their disgrace. And it's an eternal disgrace. And there's no changing it. But the judgment that Jesus will offer. that he will execute when he comes is not simply at the door, who comes in and who doesn't. He'll then go on in the wedding, in the wedding feast of the Lamb, to judge us according to our works, according to what we've done or have not done. Whether we've built with precious stones and gold and valuable things, or whether we've built with hay and straw and stubble, as the Apostle Paul says. We will be judged as Christians.

And some of us will be receiving more honor than others. And some of us will get in just barely by the skin of our teeth. Now, who wants that to be true of them? As long as I'm in, I'll sit at the last table. Who wants to sit at the last table? You want to sit at the last table? I don't want to sit at the last table. And it's not because I'm proud that I don't want to, only because my pride doesn't want to sit at the last table. But there's other motivations that cause me not to want to sit at the last table. So will we do, will we prepare ourselves?

for that judgment as Christians. Not simply am I a Christian or am I not a Christian, but okay, I'm a Christian. So how's it going? How about that Christian pride and the way that it's still working itself out? Are we working to put that to death? Are we growing in humility? And really the answers to these questions, I mean, it would be appropriate for you to go home and to reflect, examine yourself. The last week. things that come to your mind. But the question is really a question of your life. What's the trajectory of your life? Are you proud? Are you getting more proud? Are you becoming more humble? Are you doing things that are aimed at killing your pride? I was talking to Daniel this last week, and I was talking to him about Facebook. Daniel's not on Facebook. But I was telling him about a conversation I was reading.

and the question was, what do Reformed churches have to do to reach the working class? Whatever the working class is in your mind, that's fine. Blue-collar working class. Generally, Reformed churches don't have a bunch of blue-collar people in them. They usually have professionals, white-collar people. So the question was, what does the church have to do to reach the working man and his family? And my answer was, well, first they have to stop despising him. Because there are sins that are acceptable and there are sins that are not acceptable. There's pride that's like, oh, well, well. And there's pride that's like, oh, yuck. And the example I gave was, you know, the working man, he smokes three packs of Marlboros a day. And we all just go, you stink. Your car stinks and your house stinks and it stinks. And cancer and secondhand smoke and all the rest.

But the reformed man, the refined man, he carries his pipe around in his breast pocket. And he's sophisticated. He's a man of culture and of taste and of whatever. I don't know. I don't smoke a pipe. I'm not him. At least not in that way. And yet, which one do you think is probably more humble? It's probably the guy who smokes three packs of marbles a day. And I'm not commending that to any of you. Right? Don't learn the wrong lesson. You know, when I see a guy who's got a pipe in his... pocket. And he's got his little tools that you use and his little lighter. And I just go, ugh. It's like your pride. I don't yuck. I'd rather be around a guy who's just smoking a cigarette. And so I want you to know that when you're assessing yourself and trying to determine where your pride is, don't have your pride go from being simple to sophisticated. Have your pride go away. Sophisticated pride is just as wicked as simple pride.

Children have simple pride. Adults have sophisticated pride. Blue collar working men have simple pride. White collar professionals have sophisticated pride, generally. The goal is not to refine your pride. The goal is to kill it. That's the point. And in that way, you'll be prepared for the wedding feast of the Lamb. You'll have humbled yourself. And you'll know of yourself that you don't deserve the table of honor. You don't deserve to be moved up. You're not even convinced that you deserve to get in. And then the Lord of the house will come to you and he'll say, friend, come and move up higher. And it's absolutely appropriate that we as Christians would seek that honor, that we would seek to hear on the final day when it's all said and it's all done, well done, good and faithful slave. You have been faithful with little. I will put you in charge of much. Enter into the joy of your master. Come on in. I've prepared a place for you. We ought to...

seek that. We ought to look forward to it. We ought to hunger and thirst for it and strive after it. That's our place. That's what a humble man does. A proud man thinks he's already deserved all that, and why should he have to do anything else? So sit in the last place because you're humble, because you know your sin, and trust other men and ultimately God in his time to raise you up and to honor you. Let's pray.