We are starting a new series for Advent where we're focused on humility. So counting today and Christmas Eve, we got five Sundays where we're going to look at humility. And normally we like to just have a text. Like, we've been working through the Book of James. We've been going pretty slow. We're going to have a text, we're going to drill into it. But sometimes we take a break and we're going to say we want to look at a topic in Scripture and we're going to try to look more broadly at the Bible. So I'm going to throw a lot of passages. You we're going to put them on the screen. I would encourage you to write them down. You don't necessarily have to feel like you got to keep up with it. Go back, look them up later, read them. But we're going to try to take a broader look at humility. And today when we're getting into try to better understand humility, let's start with trying to better understand the opposite of humility. So today we're going to talk about pride. And now I bet you wish you would have stayed in. You had the snow excuse, but you're here, so we're doing it pride. And I bet when I said we're talking about pride today, some of you thought, oh, I wish so and so was here. I shouldn't have let my child sleep in. You shouldn't have, you shouldn't have should have made them come. Or you think, that really doesn't have to do with me. And even that kind of thinking is pretty prideful. So this is something that we all need to lean into. Like we all wrestle with and struggle with pride. But pride is slippery. It's not like lying or stealing or adultery or murder. Like it's pretty clear. Like you sinned. Like it's clear cut. You can't really argue it. But pride is a bit more evasive. It's kind of like, am I struggling with pride? Was that pride? I mean, you might be mixed with some honorable motives, but yet still pride kind of exists in there and we can justify it. But pride is something that we all deal with. Now, pride can often be used in a positive term in our culture that we should have pride. Take pride in your work. You can be proud of your kids, and that's not wrong. It's not wrong to take pride in your work. In fact, we should work unto the Lord. We should be hopefully you can look at your son or daughter and say, I'm proud of you. Proverbs talks about an obedient son giving grace or bringing joy to a parent. Like, those are good things. But that's not the way the Bible talks about pride. The Bible talks about pride in a very negative way. In fact, it's not just that pride is wrong in Scripture, it's that pride is dangerous. In fact, I bet most of you in here know Proverbs 1618 without knowing that, you know, Proverbs 1618. And that is pride comes before the paul so you knew that. Well, not really, because that's not what the passage says. But that's a good summary or gist of the passage. This is what the passage says. Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. But the saying that, you know, pride comes before the fall, that's where that comes from. There's this warning of pride comes before destruction. Now, usually in preaching, I try to end with some vision. Like we'll get to like, hey, here's our hope. Or imagine if we did this. And you guys all know that because as soon as I start talking that way, you start packing your stuff up. But today I just want to give us some vision on the front end. Here's my hope, not destruction. That you wouldn't wreck your life, that you wouldn't have pride that ruins your relationships or destroys your marriage, or ultimately you wouldn't be destroyed before a holy God because of your pride. We want to avoid the destruction. If pride comes before destruction, I say we get ahead of this thing a little bit. Let's try to deal with this sin of pride. So I'm going to say it again. I might say it two or three more times because I want you to get it. It's not just that pride is wrong. Pride is dangerous. It's referred to as the mother of sins because it gives birth to so many other sins. It's dangerous. So how do we handle something so dangerous? How do we deal with it? Can you imagine if you lived in your home with a poisonous snake? And I'm not talking like in a cage, I'm just saying like free range, the free range snakes. I don't know it's with chickens, but say they do that with snakes too, just in your house, and you have to deal with it. I bet you would take some precaution when you climbed in bed at night. I bet you'd take some precaution, like before you sat on the couch, before you lifted a blanket that you'd check underneath. But if we said, hey, somebody's going to come to your home and they're going to teach you how to handle this poisonous snake. So if you need to get it out of your bed or if you need to put it in a different room, you would know how to do that. I bet you'd pay attention. Tension, right? Because you know the damage that it can do. But we have pride living in our heart, and if you don't handle it correctly, it'll bite, it'll cause damage. And maybe we don't see pride as a threat. We don't think that it's something that we really need to take seriously. Maybe because of pride, it's not my problem. Or maybe because you just don't know how. I don't know how to deal with it. It just is. I hate it. But I don't know how to deal with it. And maybe you've never taken the time to learn how to deal with it because you don't see how dangerous it really is. Like, pride can be one of those domesticated sins. Sometimes it's used in a positive way. It just exists in everybody. It's not that bad. We try to deal with it, but it's just been kind of this domesticated sin. There's so much clear talk in scripture about how dangerous it is, but for us in our everyday lives, maybe we don't see the danger of it. We got a pride month. Pride gets its own month in our culture, right? I always think, like, July should be humility month, let's just try that. But in pride month, it's like, don't be ashamed of who you are, you do, you whatever it is. Nothing's wrong with you. I think humility month should just be like, hey, something's wrong with all of us. Let's get back to that. But pride is dangerous. Pride will keep you from improving because anytime anybody tries to rebuke you, you don't have ears for it because of pride. Pride keeps you from confessing sin because it might make you look bad. So sin just lives in secret in your life and begins to take hold. Pride keeps you from extending forgiveness and anger and bitterness just kind of grows in your heart. Pride keeps you from apologizing. And a relationship that could be amended just with a confession and an apology just continues to sever and break. Pride keeps you from obeying, like obeying his word. Because I'll decide what's right and wrong for me. I'll do what I want to do. I'm the master of my life. Here. We don't bring our life under the word of God. Pride keeps you from connecting because you have this elevated view of yourself and you look down on other people and you see their flaws and you just can never connect because no one else is as good as you. And pretty soon you feel pretty alone. Pride is dangerous. Here's some verses that drive this home. This is James Four Six. We're in James now. We'll get to chapter four in the spring. But he says, but he god gives more grace. Therefore it says, God opposes the what? Proud, but gives grace to the humble. He opposes the proud. Do you want to be on the opposition to God? Anybody? See, this is what I meant, where you're kind of just struggling this morning. I'm going to need like five amens. To kind of help. I don't care who does it, where it comes from, but by the end of this message and we message you, get to five. Okay, it's on you. All right, next verse. For everyone who is arrogant in heart or proud is an abomination to the Lord and be assured he will not go unpunished. That's the come. Yeah. See, you're going to try to get him all the way. Now, I got some really good stuff coming, so hold them right. Here we go. Here's one more obadiah. You didn't guess we were going there. The pride of your heart has deceived you. You who live in the clefts of the rock and your lofty dwelling, who say in your heart, who will bring me down to the ground, it's like your pride's deceptive. It will lead you to think that you're okay and you're not okay. It'll lead you to think that you don't have a problem, and you have a problem. It'll lead you to think you don't need any help. And you need help. It's dangerous. Let me read to you what some smart dead people have said about this. C. S. Lewis said this it was through pride that the Devil became the devil. It is the complete anti God state of mind. Here is what Jonathan Edwards had to say on the matter. Pride is the first sin to ever enter our universe and the last that is rooted out. It is God's most stubborn enemy. Here's what John Stott had to say about it. At every stage of our Christian development and in every sphere of our Christian discipleship, pride is the greatest enemy and humility our greatest friend. Guys, pride's a big deal. This is something we should all lean into. And I know it's like, hey, I thought we're going to talk about humility. We'll get there next week. But before we understand that, let's understand the opposite of it. And pride is such a big deal. And perhaps we don't take the danger of pride serious enough. So how do we handle something so dangerous in our lives? How do we prevent pride from wrecking our lives, wrecking our relationships, and ultimately condemning us before Holy God? How do we fight and kill our pride when it rears up in our life? How do we do that? Before the service, Garrett saw my outfit and he's like, where's your axe? I said, It's right here and I'm swinging it today. So this is where we're going. And if any point in this message you feel like you kind of wounded, my pride, I missed because I meant to murder it. All right, so let's first try to define pride better understand it or at least simplify it so we get a good grasp on it. And I just want to give you a bunch of definitions, a bunch of examples, a bunch of passages until we're like, okay, I get it, and I'm going to give you some more just to drive it home and then we're going to get to, okay, what do we do about it? Sound good? All right. The dictionary will tell us that pride is deep pleasure or satisfaction from an achievement. That doesn't sound that bad, that doesn't sound that dangerous, that doesn't sound that threatening, and that doesn't sound how the Bible speaks of pride. So outside of Webster, what do we need to understand about pride in the Scriptures? Let me give us kind of three bite sized examples or definitions of pride in the Scriptures. In the Bible, pride is the ignoring of God. It's the ignoring of God. Let me show you some passages. Hosea 13 it was I who knew you in the wilderness. This is God talking in the land of drought. But when they had grazed, they became full and they were filled, and their heart was lifted up. Therefore they forgot me. He said, I took care of you in the wilderness. Remember when there was drought and you had no water? Remember when you had no food? I provided for you. But you get into this promised land and you can graze like you have all that you need, and what do you do? You forget about me. You're arrogant, you're proud, you forget me. Here's another one. Psalm ten four. In the what pride of his faith. The wicked does not seek him. All his thoughts are, there is no God. Like just an outright you don't recognize God. The root of that is pride. You don't seek him. You don't think you need him. In fact, you don't even acknowledge him. It's pride. Let me give you one more. Ezekiel 28 two son of man say to the prince of Tyree, thus says the Lord God because your heart is what? Proud? And you have said, I am a god. I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the seas, yet you are but a man and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a God. Then he goes on about destruction. He's saying, you got this false view of yourself, you have some success, and you just kind of forget who God is. And you start thinking you're a big deal. Like pride is the ignoring of God and the ignoring of God has consequences. Like when you don't acknowledge God and you ignore God, there's consequences to that. Like you might forget where your help comes from. And one expression of pride is fear and worry. Another expression of pride is you take God out of the equation and you just elevate yourself. Here's another way you could define pride biblically misplaced confidence. Misplaced confidence. Look at Jeremiah 49. Why do you boast of your valleys, o faithless daughter who trusted in her treasures, saying, who will come against me? Behold, I will bring terror upon you, declares the Lord God of host from all who are around you, and all shall be driven out, every man straight before him, with none to gather the fugitives. He's like, you got misplaced confidence. You trust in the valleys, like your location, your treasures. You think you're safe, the Lord of hosts or the Lord of armies? I'm coming, and there's no protection. Like you can't protect yourself. You have a misplaced confidence. You're ignoring God. Or here's another one you guys might recognize this one. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord, our God. So some trust in chariots and horses. What are they saying? You're so confident in your military strength you think you're safe because of your army. Like you have misplaced confidence. Now, I don't know how many of you have chariots. I'm guessing that's not a problem of like, I'm really good, my chariot is great. But you might say your bank account's really good. Might say your status is really good. You might say your job is really good. You might say your family is really good. Like you misplace your confidence in other things. You think you have value, you think you have dignity, you think you have security because of other things other than God. It's misplaced confidence. Some of you may even misplace your confidence in religion. This is John, chapter five. He says, you search the scriptures. This is Jesus talking. You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life. And it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. You study this book you attend, you do all your religious things because you think you're going to get eternal life in them, but they're pointing to me and you won't come to me. You have misplaced confidence and it's pride, it's arrogance. Do you have misplaced confidence? Here's another biblical picture of pride that we get, the inflated ego. You ever see that around? That people just start to think they're a really big deal. Here's some examples in our text. And Uzziah prepared for all the army shields, spears, helmets, coats of mail, bows and stones for slinging. In Jerusalem, he made machines invented by skillful men to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones. And his fame spread far, for he was marvelously, helped till he was strong. But when he was strong, he grew proud to his destruction. Because we know that pride comes before destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord, his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. Now, he was the king, but he was not the priest, and he couldn't be doing that. But he thought, I'm the king, I can do what I want. Like he had success, he had power, and he had this inflated view of himself. And he's like, I'm going to do what I want where I want. So he goes to burn incense, but the priests are like, you're out of your lane, king. That's not for you to do. But he got angry when he was rebuked. And because he got angry because of his pride, like, who are you to rebuke me? God stepped in and gave him leprosy. That's how that went. Here's another one. This is Daniel. Chapter four. All this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months, he was walking on the roof of his royal palace of Babylon, and the king answered and said, is not this great Babylon which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty pride? While the words were still in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven. This will freak you out, O King Nebuchadnezzar. To you it is spoken. The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beast of the field, and you shall be made to eat grass like an ox. And seven periods of time shall pass over you until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whoms he will. So when that happened, King Nebuchadnezzar up on his tower admiring his kingdom, getting a big head about himself, thinking he's the boss here. A voice from heaven comes and says, you got that one wrong. Let me teach you a lesson. And he goes mad and literally, like, lives among the ox, eating grass like a wild man until he learns you're not a big deal. God is a big deal. And that's a lesson he had to learn. But it was pride. It's this building up of yourself. Now, I know the room's full, but maybe you can be honest, at least in your own head. You ever deal with that? You ever start to feel like, does he know who he's talking to? You can't talk to me like that. You can't treat me like that. See, I know we're called to be a servant in the Bible, but when somebody starts treating you like a servant, you see how you like it. And you ever start to feel kind of puffed up on who you are and what you do and what you've accomplished or how you look or what your talent is? This building up of yourself. Now, here's where it gets tricky, because we live in a culture that is big on self esteem. You need to know how special you are, and you need to know how unique you are. And there's this pressure to think well of yourself. What if that's part of the problem, really? What if that's part of the problem? What if we don't need to be built up? Sometimes this building up can seem like that's going to come before what, fall? I mean, what if that's part of the problem? What if we don't need to be built up? What if we need to be brought back down to reality? And you don't need an inflated view of yourself or a padded view of yourself. You need an authentic, real, true view of yourselves. And not before other people, but before a holy God who if that would be helpful because that actually happens multiple times in scripture. Let me give you one of them. This is in Job. Job was a righteous man. God bragged upon his faithfulness. Long story short, Satan says, the only reason that he is faithful to you is because you're so good to him. God's, like, not so. So he gave Satan permission to kind of persecute him, took away his family, his riches, his wealth, like all kinds of trials. Job, towards the end, kind of questions, God like, Why is this happening? Ends up regretting that, because God's like, oh, you want to hear from me? Literally says, Then dress like a man, and I'll answer you. And he never really answers Job. He doesn't answer job's questions. He's just like, Where were you when I told the sea where to stop? Right? Where were you when I hung the stars in the sky? Basically, you're out of your pay grade, Job. You don't get these kind of answers. And Job's response towards the end is, I heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes. He's like, I'm sorry I asked anything. In fact, before this? He says, God, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. And God's like, I ain't done yet. And he gives him two more chapters of just talking to we'll just put it that way. And Job's like, hey, I heard of you before, but I was clearly out of my lane questioning you. And now that you have made yourself known to me, I just want to crawl in a hole and die. He was kind of put in his place. This happens to another righteous man in Isaiah. This is Isaiah, chapter six. It says, in the year of King Uzziah, we just read about him the year that he died. I saw the Lord seated upon a throne high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings. With two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said, holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory. And the foundations of the threshold shook at the voice of him who called. And the house was filled with smoke. And I said, this is Isaiah talking. Woe is me, for I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the king, the Lord of hosts. Isaiah was a big deal. He was related to royalty. He was high class. He was somebody important. But when he stood before a holy God, you know what he said? Oh, crap. Woe is me. I'm done for. And he was put in his place. And guys, Job and Isaiah, they're righteous people. But when they had this encounter with God, they were put in their place. They were put into a place of worship. Put it this way, they didn't leave there feeling better about themselves, but they did leave more in awe of God and a more accurate view of themselves. Here's how Paul puts an accurate view of himself. The saint is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of who I am the foremost. I know how big of a sinner I am. I get that. That was the view of himself. Here's one you're going to love. This is Isaiah 40 114. Fear not, you worm jacob, you men of Israel. I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord. Your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Fear not, you worm Jacob. Jacob's like, name for Israel. He's talking to the nation. Fear not, you worm. And I know, like, you want me to just say, well, in Hebrew culture, worms were really precious animals that were valued. It's like, no, a worm means what you think it means. You insignificant people. Who do you think you are? And you hear that and you just be like, God wouldn't say that. Well, he did. Well, I'm sure that didn't make them feel very good about themselves. No, probably not. I mean, I don't know if that's helpful, but what if it is? What if it's actually helpful? What if it's helpful for them to see who they are in light of God? Guys, pride is dangerous. Do you get that? Pride is dangerous. There is a self centeredness that is killing us because we were made to be God centered. You tracking with me on that one. Let me say it again. There is a self centeredness that is killing us because we were made to be God centered. And we really won't find the freedom of the gospel until we come to the end of ourselves. So let's get into how do we confront and fight the pride in our own heart? This is C. S. Lewis. He wrote you guys are probably familiar. The Chronicles of Narnia. Has anybody ever read all the books? All right, I would recommend reading those books. It's a great holiday read. There's been some movies made about them. But one of the books in the series is The Horse and His Boy. And I came across this recently and just really stood out. But Narnia is like this special place, and the animals in Narnia, it's a kid's book. And Kelsey, you're like, what is he talking about? The animals in Narnia can talk when there's this character in The Horse and His Boy named Brie. Brie is a horse. That's a narnian horse. But he didn't grow up in Narnia. He was kidnapped or captured when he was young, and he was raised outside of Narnia, where around a bunch of other animals that couldn't talk. So naturally, he kind of thought he was a pretty big deal until they're trying to make their way back to Narnia. But in that journey there's something happens where Brie shows himself to be a coward. So he's just feeling awful about himself and he gets rebuked by someone older. And this is what it says. My good horse, you've lost nothing but your self conceit. No, no, cousin, don't put back your ears and shake your mane at me. If you are really so humbled as you sounded a minute ago, you must learn to listen to sense. You're not quite a great horse, you had come to think, from living among poor dumb horses. Of course you are braver and clever than them. You could hardly help being that. It doesn't follow that you'll be anyone very special in Narnia. But this is great. But as long as you know you're nobody very special, you'll be a very decent sort of horse. I love that. Hey, as long as you know you're nobody very special, you're going to be a decent sort of person. Nobody's ever going to tell you that today. And church, we have totally Christianized this self esteem culture. Now I'm going to rock the boat a little bit, but stay with me here. We have totally Christianized this self esteem culture. All this talk about our identity in Christ. You're a daughter of the king. You are treasured and loved. You're an adopted child. Can I just throw a caution flag on the field? Are we making this too much about ourselves? I mean, those are some amazing truths. Yes, but our identity in Christ shouldn't lead to pride. It should lead to humility. And if our identity in Christ just produces a spiritual pride or a Christianized self centeredness, then we're missing something. I mean, leave it to prideful sinners to take something so beautiful as the gospel and then just be, look how much I'm loved. Look how much I'm loved. Rather than look at the lover, look at the lover. We just kind of make it about ourselves. Let me ask you this question. Do you love who you are in Christ more than you actually love Christ? And if so, are you missing something? Guys, the answer to self centered pride is not self centered religion. The answer to self centered pride is God centered worship. So here's our action. You can write this down. Fight pride with worship. Fight pride with worship. Worship just isn't an ought to thing. It's not just a ritual thing we do when we gather. You ever wonder, like, through centuries, why do Christians get together? We preach and we sing. We preach and we sing. That's what we do. Guess what we're going to do next week? Preach and sing. You want me to spoil it in four weeks? Guess what we're going to do. It's not complicated, right? And Christians have been doing this for centuries. Like, why do we do this? Why do we sing? Why do we we play instruments and. We sing and we shout and we praise God. Why is it so central to Christians? Worship is more than just an ought to thing. Worship. There's more going on in worship than just something that's due to God, and God is worthy of our worship and it is due to God. But there's something like happening for us in worship that we need. Worship is protection. Like when we're singing about God and his holiness and his greatness and his grace and his mercy and his salvation. It dethrones us. It says you're great. It's not about me. It's about you guys having a big view of God, maintains an accurate view of ourselves. It keeps our pride at bay. You cannot exalt and praise and honor and worship God and at the same time think you're a really big deal. You can't do that at the same time. And if you are not a worshipper, if you come here and just kind of like mumble along, like you don't worship and honor and express praise to God, you are vulnerable to pride. It's deceptive and it'll sneak in and you'll start to think you don't need it. Well, I don't need to do this, I don't have to do this. And you'll begin to think that you're a big deal. And pride comes before destruction. Worship is protection. Or put it this way, this is a twist fight. Pride with boasting. I thought boasting was a very prideful thing to do. I wasn't supposed to do that. It's true. Boasting is a very prideful thing to do. But when scripture tells us not to boast, it often offers us an alternative boast. Look at this passage. This is in Jeremiah. Thus says the Lord let not the wise man boast in his wisdom. Let not the mighty man boast in his might. Let not the rich man boast in his riches. We don't do that. But let him who boast like don't boast. But if you're going to boast boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast, love, justice and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight glares the Lord. This is one corinthians. This is awesome. He says, for consider your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise according to worldly standards. Not many were powerful. Not many of you were of noble birth. Here's what Paul's saying none of you are a big deal. When I came to you, I wasn't impressed with any of you. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised in the world. Even things that are not to bring to nothing. Things that are so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. We don't do that. And because of Him, you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God righteousness and sanctification and redemption. So that as it is written, let the one who boasts like, we don't boast, but if we're going to boast, we boast in the Lord. Give me one more. This is Psalm 34. I love this text. It says, My soul makes its boast in the Lord. Let the humble hear and be glad. My soul makes its boast in the Lord. Let the humble rejoice and be glad. Boasting the Lord is another way of saying worship. Because you can be confused like, what does that mean to boast in the Lord? It's another way of saying worship. In fact, let's look at the verse on each side of verse two. In Psalm 34, verse one I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. What's he talking about? Worship praise. Then he says, My soul makes its boast in the Lord. Let the humble hear and be glad. Hear what? My boasting or my praise. That's what he's referring to in verse one and verse two. Same thing. Let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together. Talking about worship. He's talking about giving praise to God. Now, notice that in verse two, boasting and humble are connected and normally think those two things don't normally go together, that I would both boast and be humble. How are those connected? Because boasting in the Lord or worship is a humbling thing. What you're saying is, god, you're great, not me. You're awesome, not me. This is about you, not me. This is what it is. I am boasting in the Lord. I'm worshipping him. And here's the thing. Notice that it's the humble worshipper that's glad. How does that work? Because here's the paradox. Pride often is an attempt to matter. It's an attempt to be important and to let everybody else know that we're important. And we think that when we matter, then we'll be fulfilled. But that's the lie. Because the thing is, pride is what often just steals our joy. Pride is exhausting. To try to work for other people, to know how important you are, to compare yourselves to others, to try to project your value, that is exhausting. It's exhausting and it robs you of joy. And here's the most freeing, loving thing I can try to convince you of. Life is not about you. You are not about you. You weren't made to be all about you. And when you make life about you, when you make your life about you, it is exhausting and it will steal your joy. Life is about God. You are about God. And the humble worshiper is glad about that. That the humble worshiper who realizes that this is about God and his glory is free and is fulfilled. Here's how Paul puts it in Galatians six, he says, but far be it from me to boast, we don't do that well, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. He's talking about death, but he's talking about freedom. I'm not bound to this world anymore. I don't have to prove myself in this world. I've been crucified to that. And he boasts in the cross. Now, think about that. That's a weird thing to boast in the cross, this form of execution. Why would he boast in the cross? I mean, the cross tells on all of us. The cross outs all of us. The cross is this public announcement. Y'all need saved. Y'all got problems, y'all got sin. You're all helpless, in need of a Savior like that's. The public announcement of the cross. The cross is also a public announcement of God's grace and mercy and love. You see how it both humbles us and makes us glad? Do you see how perfect and satisfying and freeing the cross is? Pride fights for importance and significance, but the Gospel gives it to you. But it gives it to you in a way that you can't boast. It doesn't puff you up. It gives it to you in a way that it just humbles you and stirs up worship. You guys know this passage. Ephesians two eight nine. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing. It is a gift of God, not a result of work so that no. 1 may boast. See, you have nothing to brag about with the cross, except for what Christ has accomplished on your behalf, except the way that he has saved you and who he is and what he has done. And faith is seen when you give up the fight to be a big deal and you join in the worship of the one who is a big deal. So when we take Communion, which we're going to do in a bit, and you grab this cup, maybe you already got it in your seat, and there's elements in here that are supposed to remind us of something. So it's like, what is this telling us? The sour juice and styrofoam taste and wafer? What is this telling us something really deep and spiritual. Here's the first message that you need to hear when you take Communion don't think too highly of yourself. You are a sinner, you needed rescued. You are a mess. You are helpless, lost in your sin. Don't think too highly of yourself, but be in awe of God. How amazing is his grace, how rich is his mercy. How deep is his love? Be blown away by God church pride is dangerous. It's not just wrong, it's dangerous. It will cause destruction in your life. It'll cause destruction in your marriage. It will damage your relationships. And ultimately, if you are proud, you will be humbled before a holy God. Because someday every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. And you can bow or you can bow, but you're going to bow. Pride is dangerous. It will destroy you. And here's how we fight. We magnify God, we bow down. Now, we worship God. We recognize that life is about God. We recognize his holiness and his greatness and we keep ourselves in our proper place by putting God in his proper place. And we do that in worship church. We need to be worshippers. And when we come to worship God, we're not just singing, we're fighting sin. And not just sin that's out in this world. We got to hate the sin that's in our heart. Like, I know the pride that lives in my heart and I hate it. I want to kill it. And the way that we kill it is when we acknowledge God is God, not me, oh, wretched man that I am. What a great savior that I have. Like, the disposition of our heart needs to be expressed in worship. Guys, when we worship, we go to war. We go to war not with sin out there, but with sin in here. And I hope and pray that every time we worship as this church, we'd be seen as soldiers for the gospel that care deeply about the glory of God and it puts ourselves in our proper place. Amen. Let's pray. Father, I pray that you would deed break our pride as a loving father would do. Forgive us for making this life about us being so self centered. And even though it's so normal, I pray that you would open our eyes to how offensive it is to you, how dangerous it is to our lives. And our repentance would be seen in our worship. Our repentance would be heard when we sing at the top of our lungs how great you are and not us. And that we would find gladness joy in surrender green to the place you've made for us as worshippers of you. We pray this in your name. Amen.