Pride’s Distracting, Self-Made Issues – KAU#285

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IN THIS ISSUE
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-RECENT SERMONS (AUDIO)

-PRIDE’S DISTRACTING, SELF-MADE ISSUES!

-KINGDOM NEWS

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RECENT SERMONS (AUDIO)
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See them all at: http://www.kingdombaptist.org/sermons.cfm

-”Mama And The Kids: In The Lion’s Mouth!”
(05-14-06 Sunday Morning)

  

 [Play Sermon] [Download Sermon]

-”Pride’s Distracting, Self-Made Issues.”
(05-07-06 Sunday Morning)

  

 [Play Sermon] [Download Sermon]

-”Women Preachers.”
(05-17-06 Wednesday Night)

 

[Play Sermon] [Download Sermon]

-”Women’s Hair: Up Down Or Away?”
(05-10-06 Wednesday Night)

[Play Sermon] [Download Sermon]

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PRIDE’S DISTRACTING, SELF-MADE ISSUES!
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TEXT: Luke 22:21 But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table.
22 And truly the Son of man goeth, as it was determined: but woe unto that man by whom he is betrayed!
23 And they began to enquire among themselves, which of them it was that should do this thing.
24 And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest.

Notice this terrible distraction! They were given the opportunity to grow in knowledge and understanding. They were forewarned; and fore-armed! The Lord had been discussing His betrayal and death! Yet, after only a brief moment of consideration, they leave this serious topic, and proceed to argue over who is the greatest! What a silly distraction!

How blind! How immature! How silly! How foolish! But don’t blame them too much! Modern Christians are not immune to this problem. Churches are split, or at least hindered in their work in this same manner. Families are thrown into turmoil. Single people wander aimlessly, tossed to and fro.

“Hey man your clothes are on fire! Your house is on fire! Your soul is on fire! Your family is on fire! Get focused, wake up and MOVE! RUN!”

But they are too busy walking in delusion!

You have likely observed older kids involved in some serious project. But here comes the Terrible Toddler. It is coming!…coming!…and with a completely different plan and agenda, it brings down the whole edifice or ruins the project!

He was a self-consumed Toddler. He or she could care-less about the bigger projects.

But what happens if toddlers never grow up? Absalom did not get attention, so he lit Joab’s field on fire! He was not concerned with anything but seeking his own glory, and becoming the center of his own world – even at the expense of his own father, or God’s will!

We are going to examine what lies behind this immaturity; this distraction among God’s people. It is no longer a mystery. The Word of God has brought this issue to light for us!

Why did the disciples miss the truth about the betrayal, and the Cross? Why did they later sleep when they should have been watching and praying for what was about to occur? How could they be so blinded to the big, spiritual picture?

It is no mystery! SELF will blind us to God’s wisdom and God’s will! The middle of PRIDE is “I.”

Proud people are so filled with self, and their own, self-made issues and battles, that they cannot see anything else:

Proverbs 13:10 Only by pride cometh contention…

Proverbs 19:13 …the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.

Proverbs 27:15 A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.

You can re-scramble the letters of PRIDE into DRIPE! A “dripe is a continual dripping! And proud people will always have CONTINUAL issues and strifes! They will always be an irritating source of trouble:

Proverbs 26:21 As coals are to burning coals, and wood to fire; so is a contentious man to kindle strife.

Luke 22:24 says the disciples had STRIFE among themselves. If strife comes from contentions, from whence come contentions? From PRIDE!

There may be revival; souls may be saved; truth may be poured out from God’s Spirit; sinners may be cleansing their hands; the Lord’s church may be moving forward; breeches are being repaired; the heavens may be shaking; and signs of the Lord’s coming may be abounding!

But then, at the very time you would least expect it – some people get distracted about things that are carnal and worthless. They miss the big picture. They do not see as others see. They are not able to look down from a mature perspective and see how childish they are becoming. The child is often unaware of the big picture.

Jesus likened a whole generation to children playing games in the marketplace? What were their concerns?:

Luke 7:31 And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like?
32 They are LIKE UNTO CHILDREN sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept.

In the big, adult picture, are these very serious concerns? No. They are ridiculous concerns. But for children, these problems, these issues, are significant. THEY are the center of their little, make-believe world. This is okay for children. They can play games. They can worry about things that are absurd to worry about, as they are guided and trained up by their parents.

But what is perverse and saddening to behold is when adults become so blinded by their own make-believe world that they miss the real issues and problems; they miss what God is doing. They don’t have the maturity or sobriety to discern the times!

They are DISTRACTED. Like a magnet, DRIPERS need GRIPERS to “drip” with!

There is this ability of some people to get sidetracked into absolutely ridiculous issues, and not care WHO they cause to jump track with them!

The strangest thing is how deeply; how religious; how emotional adults can become about things they should not even be concerned about. But to them, the whole world will blow up if they are not heard and obeyed! To them, the earth is going to open her mouth and swallow up the church in two weeks, and THEY are God’s prophets called to deliver the message!

Childishness! This is how that generation of leaders seemed to Jesus! In spite of His works; in spite of His words, they got themselves all stirred up because He came eating and drinking with repentant sinners, and they accused Him of gluttony. Yet, they would not hear the former preacher (John the Baptist) because he was more private, and had a strange diet!

Jesus rebuked them for being like children! The things they were striving about were silly! The things that concerned them, and occupied their time and energy were asinine!

Some people afflict themselves with strange, science-fiction fantasies. Folks who have spent their lives consuming fiction novels and Hollywood movies, may too easily paint themselves into the center of a self-created drama! They use this drama and emotion in an attempt to get their way.

Remember, the children in the marketplace were PLAY-ACTING about weddings and funerals, and other social events they had witnessed in their communities. They didn’t have video games, videos and DVD’s of every sort to delude their brains from linear thinking and book reading. They didn’t have chemical dope to turn them into zombies at a desk. They actually liked to run and play. And weddings and funerals were exciting events for such children.

But don’t forget that they were ARGUING about other children not participating in their make-believe world! They had set the stage, and others were not jumping in to play the part. There is leadership among children. And often there may be bossy children, who probably learn it from their parents.

But the point is that these children were STRIVING! “We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept.”

A spiritually-minded adult, passing by, might smile at how important such problems seem to the bossy, little ones. But if he then observed bossy adults striving over similar issues, and distracting themselves from the most important issues of their day, would he not say they were mad?

How foolish it must have seemed to Jesus, the Creator of the Universe, who was about to die for the sins of the whole world; who was about to be betrayed by one of His own disciples; how foolish it must have seemed to see them striving about who is greater!

“I deserve to sit first.”

“No, I am the one who walked on water with Jesus…for a few seconds, at least…”

“But I was called a son of thunder.”

Oh the fits and fusses of modern Christians are no better!:

Luke 9:44 Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.
45 But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.
46 Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest.
47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by him,
48 And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

Mark 9:31 …he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day.
32 But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.
33 And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way?
34 But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest.
35 And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.

It is pride that seeks to compete with others and to outdo them in significance or power. It is pride that longs to be in the center of everything. It is pride that causes dissension and strife. The strife is over who is the greatest; and to argue over such a thing is pride.

At the root of almost all problems among Christians is this issue: “You will do things MY way, or I will mess up everything. And if I can’t do that, I will hang myself:

2 Samuel 17:23 And when Ahithophel SAW THAT HIS COUNSEL WAS NOT FOLLOWED, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.

“Do things my way, or I will destroy myself and curse my family. I do not care what I put my family through.”

We get exalted by humbling ourselves and letting another praise us and call us higher:

Luke 14:10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.
11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

When two women have a cat fight in church, pride is at the center of it! Humble people pity proud people, who must meddle. They may be grieved. They pray for them. But proud people will seek to punish the proud, and dominate them. This is where the STRIFE comes from!:

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.
2 I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that THEY BE OF THE SAME MIND in the Lord.

Philippians 2:5 Let THIS MIND be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

“Oh no you don’t! I knew you would try to recline in my seat! Move out of the way.”

“No you move. I was here first.”

Meanwhile, the Lord is trying to tell them that this is His last night with them before He dies for the sins of the world!

Christian, what do you miss by your pride? What do you miss because of your contentions? What do you miss because you must have things your way? What opportunities for fruitbearing have you lost?

What do you miss because of self-importance? What do you miss (and cause your FAMILY to miss!), because you think the world will end if people do not play with you in your fantasy?

If you can’t be controlled and fall in line IN THE PROPER TIMES, you will never be fit to lead others in any degree.

The issue that so concerned these disciples was not given to them by the Lord. It was given to them by the Devil. Their pride created it.

They were all equals in authority. Yet they sought to dominate each other. Pride that strives with equals is bad. But pride that strives with higher authority is even worse. But in every case, issues are created, and they distract from the important issues at hand.

Miriam and Aaron once strove with Moses is Numbers 12. The self-created issue was an Ethiopian woman. But God judged Miriam and exposed that the real problem was her pride. Her pride had created something to strive about:

Numbers 12:1 And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
2 And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it.

Zipporah is another example. She created something to strive over, and blew it out of proportion. In her prideful contentions she had to go back, and she missed the glories of the Lord’s deliverance of His people. What did she do? She was filled with amazement! To her, Moses was a bloody man! A murderer! He had mutilated her boy!:

Exodus 4:26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.

Settle down Zipporah! You are so concerned about how circumcision is causing your husband to become “a mutilator,” that you missed the fact that God is about to use your husband to become one of the most important figures in all of history, and deliver his people! She missed it all. She was sent back, unaware of the glorious deliverance!

To Zipporah, the need for her son to be circumcised was the world-shaking issue! She couldn’t just obey and let it go, and get on with the big picture.

No, she could see nothing but her own will being denied. She obeyed outwardly; but she was not submissive in heart.

She created the issue. If she had had a submissive heart, she would have went along with circumcision, and she would not been sidetracked and missed everything. She turned a simple, but important command, into a grievous legality!

She was sure (just as Miriam was later), that the earth would open its mouth and swallow her family if SHE did not arise and SAVE IT by her rebellion and contentions! This is far from the noble Abigail spirit. It is rebellion, pure and simple.

Those who walk by the Spirit fulfill the righteousness of the law; they establish the law. But those who walk after the flesh kick against God’s will, and in their pride they become consumed with certain issues. They inflate them. They magnify them. They strive over them.

In Zipporah’s world, the redemption of Israel out of Egypt by her husband was totally set aside by her own sense of self-importance. God had called Moses to circumcise his son so he would be a fit vessel. He must establish the outward sign of the covenant.

But pride, in its rebellion, must be filled with amazement! It must strive and kick like an ass that must be bridled by the law of restraint:

Proverbs 26:3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool’s back.

What is it that causes immaturity? What is it that inflates issues? What is it that misses the big picture, to argue about childish things?

It is pride! “Only by pride cometh contention.”

SOMEONE doesn’t want to fall in line and be reproved! Someone will not dare be corrected.

To argue with the proud is almost pointless. They must meet with the rod. They must have their fall. They will not hear until they fall. They must meet with the woodshed – even if it is forty years (God-forbid!). The backside of the desert will be their home – until the Lord has worked maturity. Then they will be useful to Him again. Then they will be able to use their gifts and profit from them – IF they repent under the rod.

Peter did not watch and pray. He fell. THEN he was ready to hear.

The messes that proud people make of their lives can be used by God to open them up to hear His truth:

Psalms 119:67 Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

Let us learn from the disciples. How distracted they were by their pride and petty strifes. How hard they fell. What a wilderness time! But the Lord restored them. Zipporah was restored also. But it was much later, after the glories of the deliverance had already transpired. Miriam was restored. But it was after a time of banishment to work her fear and repentance. How silly circumcision must have seemed to Zipporah when she was restored at a later period. She could have taught Miriam a thing or two about pride’s self-made, emotional, distracting issues. But Miriam would not have listened. To her, the Ethiopian woman WAS the issue. It would take leprosy to open up her eyes to the fact that she was lying to herself. She envied her brother, and was not happy with the wonderful place the Lord had given her (remember Korah?).

May the Lord open your eyes to do what you need to do – before you waste any more precious time.

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KINGDOM NEWS
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-Sumner has included another article against Kingdom Exclusion in his latest issue of “The Biblical Evangelist.” It is an article by George Zeller of Middletown Bible Church. I have responded to it months ago. Actually, Zeller, in this first part, is attempting to refute those who teach that unprofitable believers will go into outer darkness – yet still be IN the Kingdom (i.e. Dillow, Hodges, Charles Stanley, Tony Evans, etc.). I teach that unprofitable believers (though eternally secure) go to outer darkness during the Millennial Kingdom, and that outer darkness is outside the Kingdom (not just the city or banquet table). Why don’t we just believe the Lord Jesus, and quit all the tricks of men?

-We appreciate your prayers at Kingdom Baptist! Please remember us.

-I have been out of town, off and on, over the past month or so. That is one reason for the scarcity of Kingdom Alerts lately. Also, I will be speaking on the subject of the coming Millennial Kingdom, the week after next, at a conference in Mississippi with brother Franklin. Email me at pastor@kingdombaptist.org for more information.

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KINGDOM BAPTIST CHURCH
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All articles are by Pastor Joey Faust unless otherwise stated. The Kingdom Alert Update is a ministry of Kingdom Baptist Church. Please tell your friends about this newsletter, and please pray that the Lord would use it for His glory.

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