Part One of The Way Up Is Down Series

 
EVERYONE IS HERE AND WANTS TO GET THERE

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” (James 4:10)

On Palm Sunday we remember Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. As Jesus approached the city riding on a donkey, the people cheered and waved palm branches in the air. They cried out: “Hosanna! Save us! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

It would have been easy for you or me to let all those shouts of praise go to our heads, but not Jesus. Many weeks earlier he had set his face toward Jerusalem, and nothing was going to deter him from his mission. He had come to humble himself and die on the cross for the salvation of all who would believe in him. And so the truth of James 4:10 would have resonated deeply with him even as the crowds cheered.

We’re going to talk about James 4:10 in a moment, but first I want to share a simple thesis with you. Ready? Here it is. “Everyone is ‘here,’ and they want to get ‘there.’” I don’t mean here in a room listening to a message. No, I’m talking in more general terms, in life terms. In terms of life, everyone is “here,” and they want to get “there.”

Now in order to prove my thesis, let me be sneaky and define my terms. “Here” is where you are right now, and “there” is where you want to be. So there you have it: everyone is “here,” and they want to get “there.” Furthermore, for most people the “there” where they want to be represents some type of improvement over where they are right now. Everyone wants something better out of life, not worse.

Let me illustrate this thesis with the image of a mountain. The “here” where you are right now, that part of your life that you would like to see change or improve, is located at the base of the mountain. The “there,” the place where you want to be is located at the top of the mountain. So how do you get from here to there? How do you get to the top of the mountain? That’s what this message is all about.

Next: The Top of the Mountain