True Humility Rewarded

“He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” (Luke 18:14)

It ought not to be difficult for us to humble ourselves, for what have we to be proud of? We ought to take the lowest place without being told to do so. If we are sensible and honest, we shall be little in our own eyes. Especially before the Lord in prayer we shall shrink to nothing. There we cannot speak of merit, for we have none; our one and only appeal must be to mercy: “God be merciful to me a sinner.”

Here is a cheering word from the throne. We shall be exalted by the Lord if we humble ourselves. For us the way upward is downhill. When we are stripped of self we are clothed with humility, and this is the best of wear. The Lord will exalt us in peace and happiness of mind; He will exalt us into knowledge of His Word and fellowship with Himself; He will exalt us in the enjoyment of sure pardon and justification. The Lord puts His honors upon those who can wear them to the honor of the Giver. He gives usefulness, acceptance, and influence to those who will not be puffed up by them but will be abased by a sense of greater responsibility. Neither God nor man will care to lift up a man who lifts up himself; but both God and good men unite to honor modest worth.

O Lord, sink me in self that I may rise in Thee.– Charles Spurgeon

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

GOOD WORKS
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”–Ephesians 2:10       

Notice how carefully he puts works in the right place. You  don’t obtain anything from God by working for it. You never deserve  anything but judgment at His hand. If He gave us what we deserve, we  would all end up in hell. No, we receive His grace, His mercy, His love. But these result in good works. That is the point. They are designed to produce good works. It is a marvelous manifestation of God’s ability.

The word workmanship is really the word poem. We are his poem…. We are his masterpiece. God is working out in our lives a tremendous exhibition of His wisdom,  His power, His love, His life, His character, His peace, and His joy. He is teaching us, training us, bringing us along, applying the paint in  exactly the right places, producing a marvelous masterpiece to be put on display. This is to result in good works: kindness, love, mercy,  compassion, help to one another, meeting one another’s needs.( Ray Stedman)

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

Facing Temptation
“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good”– Romans 12:21

What a powerful, concise exhortation this is! In just a few words, Paul sums up the mission of Christian living.

First, be not overcome of evil! There are a thousand different ways in which Satan seeks to tear down our Christian testimony. It may be a temptation to sexual sin, or a tendency toward despair, or a disposition toward anger, or a longing for personal advancement or recognition.

But for all the temptations that may come our way, the remedy is the same, simple command: do not allow evil to overcome you. Stand fast in the Lord and in the power of His strength. Do not give in; do not be puffed up; do not allow your pride or lust or pain to overwhelm you.

And, second, overcome evil with good. The Christian’s posture is not a defensive one. We are to be overcomers, not merely survivors. Not only are we not to give up in fighting sin, we are to counteract the sin in the world by our good lives and conduct. We are to overcome evil.

How can we do that? Not by fighting fire with fire, but rather by overcoming evil with good. There is no other way to successfully battle evil in the world. The goodness of our Savior must be reflected in the good words and works of His people. The more His goodness is displayed, the more sin loses its strength and subtlety.

Don’t be overcome by sin; rather, overcome sin with the goodness of God.(Baptist Bible Hour)

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346