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  Read 2 Samuel 22 2 Samuel 22 NLT - David’s Song of Praise - David sang - Bible Gateway   2 Samuel 22:1-3, 28- "David sang this song to the Lord on the day the Lord rescued him from all his enemies and from Saul. He sang: 'The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. He is my refuge, my savior, the one who saves me from violence.' You rescue the humble, but your eyes watch the proud and humiliate them."   Yesterday we talked about the dangers and temptations of prosperity to lead us to be prideful and think of all we accomplished in our own power. Today we see the other side of the coin. This chapter is essentially Psalm 18 as well. Before David details his many near death experiences at the hands of King Saul, he joyfully and exuberantly proclaims his victory is from the hand of the living God. David wants everyone to know that in the midst of the wors...

  Read Psalm  138 Psalm 138 NLT - Psalm 138 - A psalm of David. I give - Bible Gateway   Psalm 138:6- Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud.   As we've seen over the last two weeks, the Bible has a lot to say about pride (it's against it!) and humility (it's for it). On occasion "pride" has a positive connotation, but it like when Paul speaks of "boasting in the Lord" or being grateful for God's people. On one occasion, for instance, Paul spoke with appropriate pride about particular people serving well in the church in Corinth: "They have been a wonderful encouragement to me, as they have been to you. You must show your appreciation to all who serve so well." (1 Corinthians 16:18). One of the most famous verses on pride is found in another 16:18 in Proverbs, "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." Here David affirms that God- in all of His goodness...

  Read Philippians 2 https://www.biblegateway.com/ passage/?search=Philippians% 202&version=NLT   Philippians 2:12b-13- Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.   In the verses just preceding this call to action, which was probably an early hymn of the church, Paul encouraged the people in the church at Philippi to have the very mind of Christ and to act with humility and love toward one another. Good works are very important on our journey of faith, but they aren't a substitute for sinners like us receiving God's grace and forgiveness. Paul wanted people to experience growth and fruit as a result of their faith. Grace precedes good works, but good works matter...a lot, and it all begins with a "go low" attitude as exemplified by Jesus Christ.   On the one hand, the Bible teaches that our good works don't change our status be...

  Read 2 Chronicles 26 https://www.biblegateway.com/ passage/?search=2% 20Chronicles%2026&version=NLT   2 Chronicles 26:4-5, 15-16- He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, just as his father, Amaziah, had done. Uzziah sought God during the days of Zechariah, who taught him to fear God. And as long as the king sought guidance from the Lord, God gave him success.  And he built structures on the walls of Jerusalem, designed by experts to protect those who shot arrows and hurled large stones from the towers and the corners of the wall. His fame spread far and wide, for the Lord gave him marvelous help, and he became very powerful.  But  when he had become powerful, he also became proud, which led to his downfall. He sinned against the Lord his God by entering the sanctuary of the Lord’s Temple and personally burning incense on the incense altar.    Today in all of our worship services we begin a Lenten sermon series on humility titled, "Go Low," and we'll ...

  Read Matthew 28 https://www.biblegateway.com/ passage/?search=Matthew+28& version=NLT   Matthew 28:17-19a- When they saw him, they worshiped him- but some of them doubted! Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore..."   In the final verses of Matthew's gospel we have the Great Commission, which serves as our marching orders as Jesus' church that as we are going through life we will help Jesus make disciples. But I am always struck by what happens before that call as well. The disciples- all of whom by now had been in the presence of the resurrected Lord- followed the directions of Jesus to get to the mountain where He told them to go. Obedience by definition is listening carefully to God and following through faithfully. They were in just the right place at just the right time, but as they saw Jesus, the resurrected Lord, Matthew tells us some of them doubted. Take note that it tells us they all worshiped Je...