The Lifting Power of True Humility by Apostle Joshua Selman

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One of the greatest needs in the body of Christ today and by extension in society is the need for discipleship.

• Discipleship is methodical mentorship that leads people to become Christ-like and to become responsible. At the heart of transformation is discipleship.

Discipleship therefore is the foundation for true and lasting transformation in individuals, families, institutions, and nations.

• To be uninformed is bad but to be misinformed is worst.
• We must examine the content of our doctrine and the doctrine used to mentor people.

The goal of this topic (the lifting power of true humility) is to connect believers to and with the grace for lifting by exposing the danger of pride and revealing to you from scripture the character and the excellence of a life of true humility.

James 4:6 KJV

1. God giveth more grace
   God resisteth the proud
   But giveth grace unto the humble

 Philippians 2:3 KJV

1. Nothing should be done in strife or vainglory.
2. But in lowliness of mind

1 Peter 5:6 KJV

1. Humble yourself therefore under the mighty hand of God
   That he may exalt you in due time.

The deceitfulness of Pride (Church Dimension and Psychological Dimension)

1. Pride leads to destruction
2. Pride leads to falling
3. Pride leads to all kinds of things

Pride is a killer and a destroyer of many destinies today.

The theory of motivation that leads to the theory of needs

Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:

Basic Needs:

1. Physiological Needs – Food, Water, Warmth, and Rest
2. Safety Needs – Security, Safety

Psychological Needs:

1. Belongingness and Love Needs (love and acceptance needs) (social needs) – intimate, relationships and friends
2. Esteem Needs (reputation and ego before yourself and before men) – Prestige and feeling of accomplishment

Self- Fulfillment Needs:

1. Self-actualization – Achieving one’s full potential, including creative activities.

The highest psychological need of all men is the need to be loved, accepted, celebrated, and appreciated. 

Pride is rooted in the feeling of deep insecurity, fear, a sense of powerlessness, and unworthiness.

Pride is an attempt to wrongly manage insecurity, and an attempt to wrongly manage fear, an attempt to wrongly manage a sense of powerlessness, and an attempt to wrongly manage unworthiness.

Pride:

1. A lust (ungodly inordinate affinity) for the praise of man.
2. A high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in conduct,
   When pride is expressed we call it boastfulness.
3. A feeling of being better than others on the strength of one perception or in the presence of obvious achievement.

Proverbs 18:12 KJV, Proverbs 16:18 KJV, Proverbs 29:23 KJV

2 Angles of Pride:

1. Spiritual Pride

   Revelation 3:14-19 KJV
   The Laodiceans syndrome is a luciferian syndrome.
   Luke 18:11-14 KJV
   You know you are been transformed by the Holy Ghost when there is humility connected to your growth. The moment you begin to treat humility for revelation, you are in trouble.
   There are 2 angles of spiritual pride:
   1. The one you create the people who praise you by yourself. You praise yourself.
   2. You don’t create the second one, but when you see it you will enjoy it like squeezing an orange until there is nothing.
   In the state of pride, there is nothing you will not believe, that is why you have to ask God for mercy.
   Simplicity is not humility.

2. The Pride of Life

   1 John 2:16 KJV
   Self-exhaustion based on obvious achievements.
   Jeremiah 9:23-24 KJV
   You can celebrate your wisdom but when you refuse to acknowledge God as the basis for your success is pride.

Deuteronomy 8:11-18 KJV

Pride according to the Bible is:

1. Your heart lifted up. Deuteronomy 8:14 KJV.
2. My Power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth Deuteronomy 8:17 KJV

Pride therefore is the refusal to acknowledge God before men as the doer of every good thing in your life either directly or indirectly.

Pride is an unusual passion for the attention of men, an unusual passion for self-glorification. A desire for men to keep singing your praises or to sing it to yourself.

Symptoms of Pride

1. When you begin to become embarrassed to acknowledge God publicly is a symptom of pride.

The most dangerous thing about pride is not that you will be fought, the most dangerous thing about pride is who will fight you.

When everything is fighting you, the hand of God is there resisting you.

It is dangerous for God to be against a man.

Rewards of Humility

• Proverbs 22:4 KJV

1. Riches
2. Honor
3. Life

• James 4:6 KJV

1. More Grace unto the humble

• James 4:10 KJV

1. Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

Humility is not denying what God has done in your life but saying and stating that God did it vocally, publicly, intentionally, and continually as the basis.

Never be too big to acknowledge Jesus and God.

John 3:30 KJV

1. He must increase
2. But I must decrease

How do you know you’re humble, when men look at you they remember Jesus not you.

When your tomorrow is worse than your yesterday, it is due to pride.

The end of a man who is truly humble cannot be predicted by any mortal man on earth.

Men do not just rise, God is the lifter of men.

One key to humility is found in Deuteronomy 8:18 KJV.

• But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God.
  Remember where God took you from and remember who took you.
  Anytime men forget, they stop moving forward

Anytime someone is proud, God gives them over to their enemies.