James 4:6 (NKJV)
But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
"God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble."
10Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
I Peter 5:5-7
Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of
you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for
"God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble."
6Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt
you in due time,

Today the message will be about humility, in modern terms you could call it keeping your feet on the ground.
In the book of James he is addressing Christians scattered abroad, his epistle is about practical Christianity, he has noticed a few digressions in some of the Christians and he is correcting it.
He has noticed that they were becoming respecters of persons, in other words they would treat you according to your status in life, your wealth, your position in society ect, James warns them of becoming worldly minded, becoming Christians only by profession and not by your life
Warns them not to be proud or worldly minded for God resisteth the proud, do not think to highly of yourself or else you must very soon expect a fall.
When you had little you would cry out to God but now your needs are met, you do not need him so much.
God will resist even you if you are proud because pride goes before destruction.
Let us learn humility, everything we have is from God, even the very breath is on lease, it will return to God who gave it.
Peter also repeats almost exactly the same words, in closing of his first epistle, it is clear they went to the same bible college, the Jesus institute for three years.
Peter said we should clothe ourselves with humility.
Not Saville row, or Ben Sherman, Ted Baker Suits
But humility.
It was pride that brought the destruction of Sodom and Gommorah.
Ezekiel 16:49 (NKJV)
Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
Maybe you have been given promotion, so now you think you are special.
We are in a time that is so similar where the pride of the world is coming into the Church we believe that gain is Godliness, we believe it to be the blessing of God.
The bigger the car you have, or the bigger the house, you must be blessed we say.!
Preachers are no longer humble self effacing men of God they are now big personalities, arrogant, full of themselves.
They even redefine the word humility.
How close they are to a fall
I took the kids to the fair in Staffordshire the other day, there was a ride called the apocalypse, it would bring you up about 100 feet and then come down at such a speed.
That is just how a proud person is, they will go higher and higher and higher, until God says no further then fall down at such a speed.
In II Chronicles 26:16-20 we can learn a lesson from a King called Uzziah also known as Azariah
He was a King in Judah from the age of sixteen, one of the qualities he had was that he sought the Lord. He put God first, her was marvellously helped by the Lord.
He sought the Lord in the days of Zachariah who had an understanding of Visions.
In other words he looked to the church, he stayed close to the man of God and consulted with him.
He made great inventions, weapons of war. He made archery weapons that could fire maybe ten arrows in one go.
He made shields for all his soldiers
He was a good farmer, he knew how to irrigate, his Kingdom was second only to Jehoshaphat and Solomon, his fame even reached Egypt, and there was not any CNN news or satellite TV.
God made him to prosper
He was truly a blessed man, but there is a tremendous lesson to learn about the deceitfulness of pride.
His heart was lifted up, this king James terminology was mentioned about so many people in scripture.

When he became strong, self sufficient….these words are keys to defining pride and humility.
Are you strong in yourself, are you self sufficient.
He probably thought I am so established I can do anything, just like the ride at the fairground he is about to take a drop at such a speed.
He thought one Day why do these priest have special access to God, surely because of what I have done and who I am, I can surely do this, he takes a censor with incense and proceeds to Go into the temple, 80 priests men of Valour try to stop him, they know the Law, it was not even any Levite , but only the Lineage of Aaron.
He begins to push them out the way. Then God gets involved, he gets a visitation, but not the kind of visitation I would like.
Leprosy breaks out immediately, how foolish we are, now he can never even go near the temple, he is a leper until he dies, he has to live in a separate house. Oh if he could wake up today he would say be humble, "stay in your place." When God blesses you, be humble, condescend to men of low estate.
Pride is the forerunner of Destruction.
Nebuchadnezzar was humbled by God, he was brought low.
Even Worst His son Belshazzar, was snared by pride.
Daniel 5:17 Then Daniel answered, and said before the king, "Let your gifts be for
yourself, and give your rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king,
and make known to him the interpretation. 18O king, the Most High God gave
Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and majesty, glory and honor. 19And
because of the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages
trembled and feared before him. Whomever he wished, he executed; whomever
he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he set up; and whomever he
wished, he put down. 20But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was
hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory
from him. 21Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like
the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass
like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the
Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He
chooses.
22"But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you
knew all this. And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They
have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your
wives and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised
the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or
hear or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your
ways, you have not glorified. Then the fingers of the hand were sent from
Him, and this writing was written.
25"And this is the inscription that was written:
MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
26This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your
kingdom, and finished it; 27TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and
found wanting; PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes
and Persians."

Let us learn from these men and remain humble, let us stay in a position of dependence and seeking God for direction.
The way up is down, remain humble simple, do not lust after the world, neither the things of the world.
If riches increase do not set your heart upon them.
Thayer Definition:
1) the having a humble opinion of one's self
2) a deep sense of one's (moral) littleness
3) modesty, humility, lowliness of mind
to put down one's pride
1c2) to have a modest opinion of one's self
1c3) to behave in an unassuming manner
1c4) devoid of all haughtiness