Archive for the ‘College Ministry’ Category
Humility
Tonight we are finishing our study of 1 Peter with 1 Peter 5:5-11. In preparing to teach tonight God has worked in my heart regarding the subject of humility. I wanted to share some of that here in hopes that it will encourage you and build you up in your walk as well.
“5 Likewise you are younger be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
“Humility follows God like a shadow.” John Piper.
Where are you in proximity to God? For those who are in close proximity to God they understand and embrace humility. Humility is born in our lives as believers through the work of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. Humility is essential to the Christian life and is a defining mark of a believer. We find in this passage incentive to be humble. (verses 5-7) God gives grace, exalts, and cares for the humble. And God also opposes the proud.
Humility is found in our hearts but seen in our actions. One way that humility is expresses is found here in 1 Peter 5:7, “casting all your cares on him, because He cares for you.” As believers our pride is often found in our self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Our attempts at being self-sufficient ultimately result in insubordination and a refusal to trust God. Christians trust God with everything! We place our anxieties about life, relationship, and the future on him because we know and trust that he is Sovereign and that He will’s and works to perfect and sustain us until the end.
(to be continued…)
