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There is a story about the great May Day parades on Moscow long ago. All of the Communist leaders were lined up on the dais far above the masses who paraded past. Every year each leader knew quite well exactly where he would be seated, and sure enough, he would find his name tag on the chair in the order of the peck where he expected it. One year one of the leaders who was far down in the order of the peck arrived before the parade to find his seat. He looked where he expected to find it, and it was nowhere in sight. He panicked, politely excused himself, and went and blew his his brains out. The usual explanation for a name tag missing was that that official was being purged, and that in turn meant being given an assignment in Siberia managing a hog farm or such things. |
The truth was extremely pathetic. That official had come in for special notice because of his loyalty to the Communist Party and for favors done for the General Secretary of the Party. His name tag was put on the chair right next to the General Secretary that year to send a signal that loyalty was rewarded in spite of the usual order of the peck.
Does the Bible believer, no matter how significant in the order of things, have any business participating in this sort of game?
Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
Luke 14:13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:
Luke
14:8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest
room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;
9 And he that
bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with
shame to take the lowest room.
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.
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If you want to see how
modern Russians have changed their biggest annual parade event, They moved it to May 9 which is the day the USSR army defeated Hitler's Nazi army that invaded the USSR. Twenty seven soldiers lost their lives in that single invasion, and today they have been raised to great honor. Note the many old soldiers on the platforms. Sorry the video is in Russian, but you should be able to see the contrast with the horrible order of the peck long ago. |
Heile Salassie, Emperor of Ethiopia, once instructed his personal secretary to invite one beggar to a state dinner where all his state ministers and elite would be attending. When the beggar arrived for the dinner, the elite instructed him to sit at the farthest point away from the Emperor. When Heile Salassie arrived at the dinner, he was very angry that the beggar was treated this way. But, the Emperor was famous for saying very little but using gestures to communicate. He sent a servant to escort the beggar to join him behind the screen where the Emperor ate meals so that people did not see him eating. This was a very old custom in the Middle East, and he perpetuated it. For anyone to be called behind the screen was an extremely high honor, and it was done very rarely. The Emperor made his point, and the beggar had quite a story to tell his family when he got home. Is it any surprise that the Ethiopian people respected him highly-- even those who did not like his policies?
Think not higher than you should think of yourself
Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
How high do you think when YOU are the topic of your thoughts? It is human nature for men to lift themselves up in their own eyes. They may be prudent enough to not do so openly before others, but this mind set will drive you to people who either lift you up higher, or exalt you because you are up the organization.
How about these pastors who, when preaching, say something like this, "Your pastor has been researching this cult for months now, and your pastor believes this is urgent for you to understand blah blah blah." What crass arrogance to talk of oneself as "your pastor." Then there is the jerk who keeps talking about "we" when he is referring to himself. If this dim wit in the Godhead, or maybe he is on Queen Elizabeth's Privy Council where every one is a "we."
How did Paul refer to himself?
1 Corinthians 9:19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.
20 And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law;
21 To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law.So, get off of your high horse buster. God will throw you away if you do not get on down where you came from.
All things to edifying
Romans 15:2 Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
1 Corinthians 8:1 Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.
1 Corinthians 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.
Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:Who is being edified in the Body of Christ by your lust to get up the Inner Ring to the top? If you think that you will "be able to reach more people with the message" while you drag your big grip to all those pastor's rallies and while ruling as President of the Illinois Baptist Regional, you are damned wrong buster. Those Inner Ring men are as useless as tits on a boar hog. I have made a study of them. They learn to NEVER be controversial, and they bury themselves in administrative nonsense and endless "coordination."
God chooses the plain people
1 Corinthians 1:27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.The next time you are given one of those verbose blasphemous introductions in a meeting, think !! If there is ANY glory and credit flung your way God is not in it. You are a fraud if you do not clearly reject such flattery. Jack Hyles thrived on the flattery. After some self-seeking Hyles graduate gave the heretic a long gushing introduction, he did that cute trick of disclaiming the introduction in such a way that he even flattered himself more. I hate it.
Then there is that old trick of parking your wife next to you, and she regularly tells you that your wise thoughts just amazed her again, and you are the wise man who brought her from utter stupidly to sit in the heavenlies with wisdom personified.
Thus, the video >>>>>>>>>"Shine on me," says Jack.
James 2:5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
6 But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?
7 Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?Read the story on this journal of one very ordinary man who bore far more spiritual fruit to righteousness than the church leaders surrounding him. ARTICLE HERE
Whom does God promote?
Psalms 62:8 Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.
9 Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.A man who promotes himself is a liar or vain, no matter how high or low his position in men's eyes. But, experience tells us that the fool of high degree is a lot more likely to strut his stuff in public and demand the adulation of the masses and asses. If you honor such high toned snobs you are party to anarchy against God himself who craves all the glory.
King Herod started bragging about himself one day, and the people screamed, "It is the voice of a god." Herod got the promotion of a fool by God-- death. He was eaten by worms according to the Bible. Maybe the next time you deworm your dog you should take a dose yourself. What do you thin?
Acts 12:20-24Luke 1:50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
51 He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.God, according to verse 52, promotes from the bottom. Man promotes from the next ring down. If you are half way up the ladder, at a middle ring, you will be passed over by God. You are too far from the bottom where God works. You got yourself up yonder, and God wants ALL the glory for promoting you. He will NOT promote you from half way up because then you will boast that you are self-made man.
James 1:9 Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:
10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.I worked in a Baptist church in Whittier Hills, California during my last year in college. The pastor there was a man of wisdom and zeal for Christ. A very rich Armenian businessman was born again and began to attend the church. He was rich beyond my imagination. I went with the pastor to visit his home, and in the living room I saw a large curious wooden box in the corner. I asked the wife what it was. She said that it was the tea chest of some king of England long ago. I was in awe and said so, but her response was, "Those things don't mean much to us anymore since we became Christians."
After a couple more Sundays, when the offering was collected, I saw the Armenian businessman go forward as an usher to help pass the offering plates. He stood there during prayer holding the plate and trembling. This man probably handled millions of dollars a week in real estate transactions. This man was in the worldly status with people who had two new Cadillacs, one for him and one for his wife. But the pastor wisely gave him a low degree responsibility as his first participation in the assembly, and the man was right where God wanted him. He never showed any sign of craving power in the church as long as I was there. I hope he went on from grace to grace.
1 Timothy 3:13 For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
You see, men who are promoted by God are NEVER approved by God unless they USE the office or degree God gave them. And, how do they use their office? Answer: SERVE! A deacon is a servant. The Greek word for deacon was the same word used during Christ's time in roadside eating places for the waiter of tables. So, preacher, do you really crave a promotion by the Lord? Get to work doing what he has given you to do-- wait tables. You may get a promotion after all
Psalms 75:5 Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
6 For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
7 But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.Stop tooting you own damned horn my friend. It is the horn of an egomaniac, and God may lay you low for your temerity. When, AND IF, you need a promotion from the Lord in order to get his work done, HE will do the promoting, not the preachers' or scholars' club.
Be not many masters
James 3:1 My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.
2 For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.So, do you crave to be called Master (fill in the title you crave), or do you want to be known as a "perfect" (complete and mature) man in Christ? You cannot lust for both at the same time. They cancel each other out.
Give place to.....
Ephesians 4:27 Neither give place to the devil.
So, why does this verse apply here, you ask? Who is the first one who wanted to climb into the Inner Ring of the Godhead in heaven? Read about it again in Isaiah 14
Isaiah 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.You who climb, connive, and finagle your way up the order of the peck to the top..... are you even born again? If your gut instincts that drive your alleged "dedication to Christ" are engineered to make you a famous Amos with the preachers' fellowship, I have a hard time to believe you were ever born again. You act like some tricky politician who uses every event and epoch of his life to exalt himself. And, you are climbing right up to the throne room of Satan, NOT Jehovah God.
Restore such an one in the spirit of humility
Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
The instinct of Jesus, Paul, and Moses was to arrest and restore those who wander and fall into sin and defeat. One sure proof that you have no interest in the sheep is that you are a total failure at restoring wandering sheep. This is because you USE the sheep to promote your career, and if they wander off, you give them a kick as they go out the door. They are an embarrassment to you because you want all the numbers on your résumé to shout SUCCESS.
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