Day 12: Walking Humbly with God Today's reading is drawn from Micah 6:8. OUR GOD REQUIRES that we do what is right, that we love mercy, and that we walk humbly with Him (Mic. 6:8). We must remember these three things as believers in Jesus Christ. Of these three, walking humbly with God may be the most challenging. It conflicts with something that lies deep within every one of us: an abiding, constant, relentless desire to have our own way and to come out on top. We are by nature proud. God calls us instead to humble ourselves, to let ourselves come out on the bot-tom. This is very difficult, but humility is among the greatest of all virtues. There is a raging battle within us. It is a fierce battle between the sin of pride and the virtue of humility. It’s a battle of the desire for significance against the goal of being like Christ. It’s the drive to be powerful or famous against the willingness to be obscure. In this daily battle, Jesus invites us to come and learn from Him. He draws us with seven simple, easy-tounderstand words that speak directly to the issue: “I am humble and gentle at heart” (Matt. 11:29). He promises that if we let Him teach us, we will find rest. The great temptation when you are in this battle is to find reasons to vindicate yourself, to defend yourself so that you can hold on to your pride. But it just may be that it is the Lord at work in the crushing and the breaking, and it is all designed to bring you to the place where you can, as the great hymn encourages us to do, “pour contempt on all your pride.” My hope is that we will begin to see pride as the enemy it really is. It isn’t a friend or good companion. Though it is all around us, it doesn’t fit the lifestyle of the believer in Christ. May we embrace humility as our best friend. I’m talking about genuine humility—a genuine understanding that I am what I am by the grace of God and that I’m gifted as I’m gifted because of the grace of God. I should use my gifts by His grace and for His purposes only. It is not about me. I am not the one who is important here. You won’t read words like these in today’s media. You will not see humility modeled among the rich and famous, the significant, the powerful, the bosses, and the politicians. In those contexts, humility is conspicuous only by its absence. But you will find it in Jesus Christ: “I am humble and gentle at heart.” He came and died so that we might live. He paid the price for our sin that we could not pay ourselves. One of the reasons that God allows us to be hurt deeply is to humble us. The greatest people I know have been humbled through the crushing of hard experience. Maybe you have been through the mill and are saying, “I’m at the end of my rope.” If so, you need deep spiritual healing. Could it be that you’re there because of pride? Could it be that the “I” is just still too important to you? In Christ you can let go of the “I” of pride and instead take up His gentleness and humility. Learn from Him. [call out text: The greatest people I know have been humbled through the crushing of hard experience.] | 
No comments:
Post a Comment