Would to first Peter chapter three. Alright. First Peter chapter three. Oh, he's back. There we go.

Alright. First Peter chapter three. We're gonna be reading several verses from there in just a moment. I am gonna be reading first Peter five five and six here in just a second. If you wanna it's just a couple pages over and then flip back to chapter three.

Keeping yourself humble. We started this series last Sunday morning. The Bible actually commands us to humble ourselves, not our neighbors, but ourselves. And it is a responsibility that we have as God's children to humble ourselves as it says here in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. Rather than exalting ourselves, we need to be what?

Humbling ourselves. It tells us in first Peter five five and six, it says, likewise, you younger submit yourselves under the under the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another and be clothed with humility. For God resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you in due time.

Let's go to the Lord in prayer once more. Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord for this wonderful day that you've given us to honor your name. We pray that we indeed would bring you glory not only in our service but in the days to come. We pray Lord that you would help us to do so by humbling ourselves before our God in heaven by remembering who you are, what you've done for us, and what you have done for others that we might follow in your steps. In Jesus' precious name, we do pray.

Amen. If we want to see the grace and blessings of God abounding in our lives, abounding in our homes and in our churches, we must learn to humble ourselves. The opposite of putting ourselves and our ambitions and our wants on a pedestal. By the way, the latter is human nature. It is human nature to put who first?

Me first. Ourselves. It is divine nature to put others first for that, among other things, is what set our savior off from all others. So how does one humble himself or herself as we are commanded to do in first Peter here and in James? How are you to humble yourself?

Should you, you know, give yourself a time out? Should you, you know, hurt yourself? Should you deprive yourself of human necessities? No. No.

That's that's not what he means. That's not what God desires. What God desires is for us to learn to put the needs of others first, including the love of our savior, the one who gave his life for us and put our needs before before his. How how do we humble ourselves? Well, first of all, like anything else, you need to pray for it.

It is God's desire for us to humble ourselves, to learn to trust in him, and to to see a bigger picture than just me. That is God's desire. Therefore, I can know when I pray for humility that I am praying in the will of who? In the will of God, and he will answer my prayer. Now like praying for patience, praying for humility might actually bring some difficult things into our lives at time.

But if you really trust the Lord and trust what he's doing, if he is your father in heaven who has your best interest at heart, then it says you can count all count it all joy because the trying of your faith worketh, what? Patience. Changes your character and molds you to be more like Christ. Now, praying humility praying for humility and praying for patience won't always make the road the easiest, but it will help to bring God's blessing and strengthen your faith and your testimony. And in light of eternity, that is worth it.

So pray for humility. Number two, rightly, routinely, confess your sin before God. First John one nine, if we, what, confess our sins, he is faithful and just to cleanse us from our sins, to forgive our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We are taught told in first Corinthians 11 to examine who? Examine ourselves to see how our relationship is with the father, what our condition of it is, and how we are doing in keeping his will and his word and in being a light and a testimony for him in this world.

Again, it's human nature to examine everybody but ourselves. But if we're going to become more like Christ, it needs to start with us and not them. I told somebody the other day, before I get up here to preach any sermon, I preach to me before I preach to you because guess what? I need it as much as you do. And God can't use it, I don't think, to work through me and into your life if I'm not willing to consider what needs to change in my own.

Confess our sins. That that keeps you humble When you look inside and look for what needs to change, it helps to keep you humble. Number two, acknowledge our sins to to others. James five sixteen. Confess your faults one to another and pray for one another that she may be healed.

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. The conclusion of that often is that healing is talking, speaking of physical healing. But often the healing that we need is emotional and spiritual healing. And oftentimes, we we go through life day by day, week by week, month by month, stagnated our Christian growth because we're unwilling to examine ourselves and confess our sins and open ourselves up to anybody else that they might pray for us, that they might help us. We are not in this alone.

You are not in this alone. We are here together today. We are his church. We are a family in Christ. We are here for each other.

But you know something? It's hard to help each other if we all have a wall up and we don't let anybody in. It only makes us more proud as we pretend to be something sometimes that we're not. And you may not want and you may not need to air your issues with everybody in the church, but would you please find somebody that you can be honest with and share, whatever that is you're struggling with. Because God gave us each other.

Not only does it humble us, which we need when we're willing to share with others that we are not perfect. And what I mean by that is not just saying I'm not perfect, but by telling somebody what it is that makes you not perfect. Not only do does that humble us, but it also helps us when we have others that can pray for us. When we realize there are others that are going through often the same things we are, but we don't let each other know and can be there for each other. Why did the writer of Hebrews say, we need not forsake the assembling of ourselves together that we might exhort, encourage, and help each other?

And so much the more as we see the day approaching. This wicked world is not our friend. It is many ways it is our enemy. We need each other. We are we are we are not on the losing side and we are not alone.

But sometimes we need somebody to remind us of that. And sometimes we need somebody to pray for us and help us. So be willing to share. Pray for humility. Confess your sin.

Acknowledge it before somebody that can pray for you and help you. We covered that last week. Quick review, less than five minutes. That's not bad for the review. Number three, number four actually, take wrong patiently.

Take wrong patiently. That is when you are wronged. First Peter chapter three verse eight. First Peter three verse eight. Finally, be all of one mind, having compassion one to another.

Love his brethren. Be be pitiful or compassionate. Be courteous. Not rendering evil for evil or railing for railing or insult for insult, but contrawise blessing, knowing that ye are there unto called that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life and see good days, you want the blessing of God upon your life, let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips that they speak no guile or deceit.

eschew evil, that is avoid it, shun it and do good. Let him seek peace and ensue or pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous. His ears are open unto their prayers, But the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. And who is he that will harm you if you be followers of that which is good?

But if you suffer for righteousness sake, happy are ye. And be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled, but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts. Lift him up. Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear, having a good conscience that whereas they speak evil of you as evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation or conduct in Christ. For it is better if the will of God be so that you suffer for well doing than for evil doing.

Christ also hath once suffered for sins. The just, that being Jesus. For the unjust, that being who? Us. That he might bring us, reconcile us to God, being put to death in the flesh but quickened or made alive again by the spirit.

That entire passage teaches us several things, but largely revolves around this issue. Take wrong patiently. Be a peacemaker. Do not seek revenge. Instead, do that which is right even when others are doing wrong to you.

Now, again, is that human nature? No. It is not. It is divine nature. But do you not want others to see Jesus in you?

Do they see it in you when you react just like every other person does? The answer to that is no. And when we get up our guard, we get up our back, and we we punch back, are we demonstrating humility or are we demonstrating pride? When something is unjust, particularly when we are treated unfairly, falsely accused, or taken advantage of, we want to react immediately, vengefully, to rectify or even repay the injustice ourselves, but a humble person learns to be patient. Patient.

Not to have a quick temper, not to lash out, be patient. I know people suggested, you know, counting to 10. One, two, three, four. Count to 10, you know. But the the idea there is don't just react in what?

In anger. Be patient. Be compassionate. Be willing to absorb some injustice against yourself, leaving it instead in the hands of who? In the hands of God.

For oftentimes in our reaction, we make big mistakes, but he never does. Often we react in pride. It's not to say it's not difficult. It's not to say that we're not mistreated, for sometimes we are. I when I was a youth pastor, I took teens to camp in North Carolina called The Wilds.

And this one year, I took a bunch of kids. One of them was a young I guess he was like a freshman or sophomore in high school. And we went to camp and one of the the young ladies that had graduated from high school already and had been in my youth group at church, she was a counselor at this camp. And she knew this young man that I was bringing. And she told his counselor, who happened to be a friend of hers, about some of the problems this young man was having.

She told his counselor, not who? Not me. But her friend, his counselor decided to approach him about some of these problems that his friend, the young lady, had told him about. And guess who got blamed? I did.

We got back and his parents were livid because somebody had went out of their way to spread gossip about their son to his counselor. And I got blamed for it. And what is the natural response? How dare you accuse me? I didn't say I You get upset.

You get angry. But you know something? A soft word turneth away what? Soft answer turneth away wrath. You want to be a peacemaker?

You want to make a difference in people's lives? Get over yourself. Sometimes easier said than done, but something that has to be done in ministry or you tie yourself up in knots and you alienate people. You have to be willing to absorb a little injustice, a little name calling, a little gossip because if you're a public figure, then that's gonna happen. When you're in leadership, people are going to make assumptions.

And they also do the same about you whether you're in leadership or not. It happens. And sometimes you're on the other end of it. We assume things as well. So how do you keep yourself humble?

Learn to keep your mouth shut. Learn to react in a godly way, in a Christ like manner, and not in this defensive, how dare you do this to me? I will make you pay. That is not the way of Christ. How are we not to respond to one another when misunderstanding and accusations abound?

Well, we're not to respond in vengeance. In verse nine, it says, not rendering evil for evil or railing for railing or insult for insult, but contrawise blessing. How should we respond when we shouldn't respond by injuring the other person because they injured us? Turn the other what? Cheek, so to speak.

It doesn't mean if they've got you in a corner and they're beating you to a stew, you can't defend yourself. But just because somebody walks up and cusses you out does not give you the right to turn around and do what? And cuss them out. Just because they gossiped about you does not give them you the right to what? Gossip about them.

You are putting yourself you are allowing their evil to become your evil. And you're doing it out of pride because if they treat me this way, I have no. You do not have the right. That is pride speaking, not humility. We should not respond in vengeance.

That is the way of the world and not the way of the Lord. But we need to be trusting and following the Lord for that's not gonna happen. Romans twelve seventeen, you can follow on the screen if you want. It says, recompense no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

If it be possible as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. That doesn't mean give it your best shot and hey, if it doesn't work out, let them have it. No. What that means is, your side of the equation, you do everything you can to be at what? At peace with others.

Now some people don't want peace with you, and no matter how hard you try, they're still gonna continue to be your adversary, your enemy, and you can't change that. But you can at least do your part. That's what that means. But continuing on. Verse 19.

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place under wrath for it is written, vengeance is mine. I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him. If he thirsts, give him drink. For in so doing, thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with what? Good. Don't fight fire with fire. Yes, that works someone in a fire, but that's not the way to handle things in life. Fight the fire with water.

Don't return evil for evil. Return evil for good. And you will find that sometimes you'll turn your enemies into your what? Into your friends. That's what Jesus did for us.

He died on the cross. He allowed his enemies to hang him there, And he suffered for you and for me that he might make his enemies his what? His friends through faith in his sacrifice and shed blood for us on the cross of Calvary. So it is not our place to set everyone straight. It is not our job to return evil and make them pay.

It is not our right to defend ourselves at all cost. We must let God be God, and we must let some of those things roll off our back and trust our savior that he will take care of it. Instead, we're supposed to respond to one another with humility, with compassion, love, mercy, and kindness. Back in first Peter chapter three verse eight, finally, be of all of one mind having compassion one for another. Love as brethren.

Be pitiful, meaning compassionate. Be courteous or humble, kind. This is what humility looks like. And if it doesn't come natural, well, you know, to human nature, it doesn't. Draw close to the Lord and choose to live based upon the principles of God's word.

And as you do, God will also help to change your what? To change your heart. In Ephesians four thirty two, it says, and be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Consider Christ and all he suffered for you. Consider the wrong that you have done to him.

And yet, he has forgiven who? He has forgiven you. Yet, he took it as a lamb to the slaughter for your sake and for mine. And yet, he offers repentance and reconciliation to all who will receive him and his sacrifice. Verse 18 again, for Christ also hath once suffered the sins, four sins, not his, ours, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God being put to death in the flesh but quickened by the spirit.

God had every right to just wash his hands of us and let us go to the end that we had deserved. But God loved us too much. God loved you too much. So much that he allowed his son to come and suffer for you and for me that we might be reunited, that he might be the father of many and not just one in Christ Jesus. That is the example of our savior.

That is how we should respond to injustice, with compassion, mercy, and kindness, with with blessing and not cursing. Matthew five forty four, it's actually forty four and forty five and Matthew says, but I say unto you, love your love who? Your Your enemies. Bless them that do what? Curse you.

Curse you. Do good to them that hate you. Pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you that you may be the children of your father which is in heaven. For he maketh his son to rise on the evil and on the good and he sendeth rain on the just and the unjust. Jesus Christ came to die for the sins of the world, the unjust, which initially was who?

All of us. And he even pours out blessings, the rain from heaven, life, air, many joys even to those who are currently rejecting him because that's just what the kind of God he is. Not willing that any should perish but that all should come to what? Repentance. He is long suffering waiting to give maybe you this morning the opportunity if you have yet to receive him as your Lord and as your savior.

Peter then quotes in our passage from Psalm 34 as he continues in verse 10. For he that will love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips that they speak no guile. Let him shoe evil and do good. Let him seek peace and ensue it or pursue it. For the lies of the Lord are over the righteous.

His ears are open unto their prayers, but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. It doesn't say if you're doing evil because evil was done to you. It doesn't give you an owl. Do right. Honor the Lord.

Trust in the Lord. Stay humble. Run from pride. Don't be overcome of anger and hostility and eventual spirit because you're not going to fix things that way. You're just gonna make them worse for who?

For yourself. If you want God's blessing and his blessing is the greatest we can have, then let him help defend us. Continue to do right even when wrong is done to you, and God will stand up for you. You'll see, and we will have his blessing. The gist here is that if you can swallow your pride and bless those who curse you, you will receive blessing from God who sees and knows what you suffer for him.

A matter of fact, he said to his disciples here in Matthew five, he said to them, blessed are you when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven so for so persecuted they, the prophets which were before you. When others treat you like they treated the prophets of God in the past that the Jews in Jesus' day looked up to as great heroes, know that you are in good company. Amen. Because as you look up to them as heroes of the faith, when you take a stand for Christ, when you are being persecuted, when you injustice is being served you and you act like Christ with humility rather than pride and lash out in anger and take advantage of the situation to justify wrong when you choose humility.

God says, I will what? I will exalt you in two time. I will lift you up. But when we take matters into our own hands, when we do that which is evil because someone did evil to us, Then we're snatching it out of God's hands. And we're saying, God, I don't need you.

I got this. And we're bringing we are withholding God's blessing from ourselves. He will, in his time, take care of your enemies and his. Keep doing the right thing. Humble yourself.

It is not normal to suffer for doing right. In a lost world, it does happen. In verse 13, it says, and who is it that will harm you if you do if you be followers of that which is good? Certainly, it should be no one, and certainly, no man can harm us in eternity For God has us in his what? In his hands.

Nonetheless, as we're told and reminded in verse 14, but if ye suffer for righteousness for doing that which is right for for standing for the Lord, happy are ye. Be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled, but sanctify. Lift up God the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you through the reason of your hope. Do that which is right. Humble yourself.

And others might just ask you, why are you doing that? You know, I cussed you out. You didn't cuss me back. Why didn't you do that? I gossiped about you.

You're not gossip. Why are you doing that? Be ready then to let others know why because of what your savior has done for for you and what your savior has done for them. It will open up doors. When we do when you do suffer persecution for doing what is right and following Christ, do not be afraid or anxious but be prepared and ready to boldly speak up for Christ and declare why you live and act as you do.

Not in a proud or defensive fashion, but with humility and self control. Make it a matter of defending Christ, taking an opportunity to speak the truth. The fact is we have all gotten out of sorts at times, angry, bitter, hostile, maybe even violent when we were untrue when we were treated unfairly. Why? Because we were thinking about who?

We're thinking about ourselves. How hey, I deserve better than that. How dare they treat me like that? I deserve better than that. Hey, you can't talk to me that way.

Hey, how dare you treat me like that? It is my right to make you suffer as you made me suffer. Is that the way of Christ or the way of the world? Is that humility speaking or is it pride? It's pride.

We're not looking at the big picture. We're not thinking about anybody but ourselves. And what others may sometimes do to us may indeed be wrong, but that doesn't give us the right to do wrong. We should be concerned more about the reputation of Christ than we should be concerned about whose? Ourselves.

Our feelings and our pride, getting hurt. It happens. It will happen again. How will we respond? Out of pride or out of humility?

Consider my savior. The injustice and unwarranted affliction unwarranted affliction he willingly suffered at the hands of his creation, people like you and me, sinners, who would not acknowledge his authority, but instead cursed him and spat on him and hung him on a cross. And yet as he hung there, what did he say? Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. They don't know what they're doing.

They're blind. They're deceived. Forgive them. And you know, some of the people that that day who stood in that crowd and cried crucify him were saved, but days later on the day of Pentecost when 3,000 souls cried out to Peter and said, what must we do? When they realized that they had crucified the son of God and Peter said, repent and you too can be saved because Jesus died for his enemies.

But God commendeth his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, what? Christ died for us. So next time somebody jumps in line in front of you, I got a paddling for that in elementary school. Somebody jumped in front of me, and you know what? I got mad and I pushed back.

And guess who was the one that got the paddle? But I wasn't wrong. Well, I was wrong. Mean, they were wrong, but I caused a stew because being one person further in line was more important to me than anything else in the world in fourth grade. So next time somebody cuts you off in the car, when that space was yours, that that 20 feet up there that you would be in, that they deprived you of, next time says somebody says something unkind or even mean.

Put on Christ, his humility. Absorb it. Try to put yourself in the other person's shoes because sometimes it's me, maybe unknowingly cut somebody off or maybe knowingly. Be patient with them. Let God defend you.

You defend him. It will keep you what? It will keep you humble when you learn to be more like your savior. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, thank you, Lord, for what you did for us.

Lord, help us to take our eyes off of ourselves. Help us not to live as though we're the only ones that matter in this world. Strip us of our pride and close us with your clothe us with your humility, Lord. Help us, Lord, to be angry and sin not. Give us patience.

Open our eyes to a bigger picture. Help us to be the salt and light that we ought to be, and not just act like everybody else does because, well, that's my right. My privilege is to serve my savior Jesus Christ. My privilege is to suffer at times for his sake. My privilege is to be a testimony for him and to show the love of Christ.

Lord, grant us to see that privilege and take on that mantle of responsibility and cast aside our pride. And Lord, we pray if there's one here today that is yet to receive the Lord Jesus as the Lord and Savior of their life. We pray they would come this morning as we sing this hymn of invitation and receive the forgiveness of Jesus Christ who humbled himself for them and who offers them forgiveness out of his love and compassion and welcomes them into his family and into his arms if they will but receive him today by faith. And, Lord, I pray if you have spoken to any of us about the pride that is in our heart, that we would not leave this place today before we have had a conversation with you. In Jesus' precious name, we do pray.

Amen.