Outline
I. Introduction
II. Transition
a. CIT: Paul considers himself the least of all people to be chosen.
b. CIS: The most holy men are always the most humble men.
III. Exposition
a. Proofs. P.9
i. Job.
ii. Isaiah.
iii. Abraham.
b. Properties of Humble Souls. P.10
c. Purpose in why the Most Holy Must be Humble. P.26
d. Purpose to be Humble. (Motives) p.30
e. Perpetually Remain Humble. (Application) p.36
IV. Conclusion
“The Unsearchable Riches of Christ,” Part-1, Ephesians 3:8
Series Introduction
In the liturgical calendar of the Church universal, the first Resurrection Sunday marks the beginning of 8 weeks of Easter. These 8 weeks commemorate the 40 days of time which the resurrected Jesus spent They reported that He appeared to them during a period of 40 days, showing Himself to them by many "infallible proofs." Paul the apostle recounted that Jesus appeared to more than 500 of His followers at one time, the majority of whom were still alive and who could confirm what Paul wrote in I Corinthians 15:2-6:
“By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” (NIV)
For the next 7 weeks we, like those early Christians, are going to consider the unsearchable riches of our resurrected savior. We will do this by focusing in narrowly on just one verse that by the end of the sermon series I suspect we will all have memorized or at the very least become intimately familiar with.
Our method will be to dissect Ephesians 3:8. The manner will be to focus on each part for the purpose of Holy illumination for the sake of practical application. That is we’ll investigate the meaning of the passage so that we can find its highest meaning in applying it to our walk with Christ.
I am a student of the Puritans; those brilliant divines of the 16th and 17th centuries who dissented from and or sought purity for the Church of England. Men like Thomas Manton, Richard Baxter, John Bunyan, offer unparalleled insight into the Scriptures, the hearts of men, and the Christian life.
I will sometimes reference and often look to the book of the same name as the sermon series, by the English Puritan Thomas Brooks. As we move forward may the light of Christ flood our souls and the world around us through us!
Introduction
The greatest lesson for Christians is the lesson of the lessor. The mightiest virtue in the spiritual arsenal of the believer is that of the lowly. The highest lesson for us to learn is humility. There are many believers who seek and even find the heights of the intensity of the presence of God and yet do not find their zeal able to move them into the deeper places of holiness and spiritual power. For many people there is a subtle exaltation of self in the worship of God. We put our goodness on display in the name of His worth. We exalt our own righteousness in the name of submitting to His glorious will. If we would have the power of God it will only come through submission to God and a right, lowly, humble, estimation of self. Jesus said “The last will be first, and the first will be last.” (Matthew 20:16)
Transition
This morning we will begin our dissection of Ephesians 3:8 by looking at the first clause in the verse. “Although I am less than the least of all God's people…” This is a fascinating statement on the part of the Apostle who is responsible more than any other for my and your salvation, apart from God.
It was the Apostle Paul whom God used to spread the Good News to the Gentile world. It was the Apostle who is the greatest example of faith. Yet, he refers to himself as the least of all of God’s people. Why? How can we apply the answer?
CIT: Paul considers himself the least of all people to be chosen.
CIS: The most holy men are always the most humble men.
If you seek to be great, seek it not! If you seek wisdom, seek Christ! If you seek glory, prop up only the glory of God! What a dreadful day in the Church in our land when men and women seek the experience of God’s presence apart from a willingness to tremble in it! What a vile and wretched image of humility we display when we display for the sake of perceived piety. Let us proceed…
Exposition
The most holy men are always the most humble men. Consider the man Job. The Lord himself says of Job in chapter 1 and verse of the book which bears his name, “Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” (Job 1:8 NIV84) He was a righteous man who kept faith in trial.
Yet no man has ever spoken more abhorrently of himself. “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:5-6 KJV)
Consider the prophet Isaiah. As Paul is the greatest among the Apostles, Isaiah is chief among the prophets. He lifts up more of Christ than do any of the prophets. In Isaiah 6:1 he sees a vision of the glory of the Lord and in verse 5 he cries out: “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5 NASB) In some translations Isaiah says “I am undone!” The Hebrew underlying the text literally means “I am cut off!”
“Here you have the highest and choices among the prophets, as you had Paul before among the apostles, abasing and laying low himself.” The Apostle Peter echoes these sentiments in Luke 5:8 when he tells Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man. O Lord.” In the presence of the holiness of God the right response is humility! Flee from me O Lord for my ways are folly and iniquity!
Abraham is no different. In Genesis 18:27 Then Abraham spoke up again: "Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes.” (NIV84) Even Abraham, the father of God’s covenant people saw in himself nothing worthy of communion with the everlasting eternal God.
What are the properties of humble souls? (P.10) It may be well stated that humility is the queen of all the virtues but more accurately, it is the servant of all.
*A humble soul does not forget his former sinfulness. In other words, humility is the product of a right assessment of one’s holiness. It becomes terribly difficult to judge oneself as pure and good and righteous by one’s own merit when a soul remembers his former sinfulness.
How many believers, having passed from the darkness of personal sin into the light of Christ, make a mockery of that light by putting it on display as though it is self-evident? We are not like so many fireflies, having the ability to illuminate the darkness from properties possessed within. We are but mirrors of His light.
Consider the Apostle’s words in Philippians 3:8-10 “More than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things -- indeed, I regard them as dung! -- that I may gain Christ, and be found in him, not because I have my own righteousness derived from the law, but because I have the righteousness that comes by way of Christ's faithfulness -- a righteousness from God that is in fact based on Christ's faithfulness. My aim is to know him, to experience the power of his resurrection, to share in his sufferings, and to be like him in his death.” (NET)
*Humble souls rely totally and completely upon the righteousness of Christ. There is nothing that the human heart rejects more than this: to come down from its own righteousness. “Man is a creature apt to warm himself by the sparks of his own fire, though he doeth lie down for it in eternal sorrow.”
*Humble hearts will further submit to every truth of the Word of God. O that the Church in our land in our day would remember fondly her call to Christian duty!
When our hearts are warmed by the love of God we are compelled to duty for our savior. When our souls are flooded with the presence of God we are compelled to respond with action. When the divine glory of God takes up residence within us we are compelled to celebrate and display that glory.
Christian duty is not a means of grace. Our faith and trust in not in the keeping of duty you see. Not at all. Rather, the working of our hands, feet, and words of our mouth are very much like the flapping of the wings of the pair of doves who flew up to go aboard Noah’s Ark. The faith of the dove was not in her wings, but in the Ark. The flapping of her wings was evidence of her trust in the Ark to save her.
*A humble soul does prize even the least of Christ. That is a humble soul will crawl across the desert floor even to taste a morsel of the presence of Christ.
*A humble soul likewise grieves over sin, both small and great. *A humble soul gives credit to Christ in all things. It glories not in its own salvation as if it had anything to do with saving grace – either the seeking or receiving of it. It is common to refer to visitors in churches these days as “seekers” but it is woefully inaccurate. Do any seek Christ? They, like we, are the sought of God!
It is God who seeks us and the humble heart boasts only in Christ who has saved him, not in himself, who if left up to himself would reject Christ to the last breath.
There is a great deal more that could be said about the characteristics of humble souls but we must understand this: What is God’s purpose in why the Most Holy of God’s servants are also the most Humble? (P.26)
*The greatest servants of God are the most humble because they see themselves as the greatest debtors to God for what they do enjoy. It is a real tricky thing about humility. As soon as you think you have it you boast of it and it vanishes.
Friends, how great a debtor are each of us for grace?! How in shackles were we before the grace of almighty God broke in, saving us from a life of sin and an eternity apart from His presence! The humble heart sees all that he has – health, home, family, wife, husband, riches, food, children, a single friend in this world – as the abundance of the grace of Almighty God who is not bound to pour out anything to sinful humanity and yet pours out grace in abundance!
Apart from the sovereign grace of God pulling us to Christ are far worse than children of another father, we are enemies of God through sin and unbelief!
Thanks be unto Christ our savior for covering us by His blood and thanks be to God for the breath in our lungs to respond to the Holy Spirit in the faith which He gifts unto us! What does the hymnist say? “Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.”
The greatest saints of God are the least because they know that they are the most dependent upon God. In Christ they are high and lifted up because in humility they are low and bowed down before God.
We must purpose to be Humble. (p.30) The key to gaining the precious gift of humility is one of motives. There are many good reasons to seek humility. Here are three: (1) God singles out the humble for ostentatious divine service. Do you long to see God move? He moves in humble hearts. (2) Humility is a garment most befitting of followers of Christ. (3) Humility is a loadstone which draws both the heart of God and the heart of man to it.
Friends, in the day of thy prosperity forget not thy poverty. Perpetually Remain Humble. (Application) p.36. What a sad state of affairs does he who forgets the past affliction of sin find himself in when his pride has removed him from the source of his strength? What lowly estate it is to be rich in graces and yet so poor in humility as to recognize the source of those graces?
How dead do our senses become to the manner and depth of grace when forgotten is the treasure of our salvation! So prone to quickly forgetting the grace we have been given is man! So apt to cleave to his own worth, forsaking the worth of Him who calls, draws, and saves us!
Conclusion
Plutarch tells of a private soldier of Julius Caesar who fought so valiantly in Britain that by his means he saved the captains who otherwise were in great danger of being cast away being driven into a bog then marching with great pain through the mire and dirt in the end he got to the other side but left his shield behind him Caesar wondering at his noble courage ran to him with joy to embrace him but the poor soldier hanging down his head the water standing in his eyes fell down at Caesar's feet and besought him to pardon him for that he had left his shield behind him You know how to apply it He had done gallantly yet he falls down at Caesar’s feet after his brave service with tears in his eyes upon the sense of his leaving his shield behind him when we have done our best we have cause to fall down at Jesus feet and with tears in our eyes sue out our pardon.
The way to find and maintain the humility needed for God to move mightily in the lives of His children is to “look upon all that you have received, and all that you shall hereafter receive, as the fruit of free grace.” Amen.
