Listening to the Holy Spirit:
Remain in Me, and I in you. In great power I Am clothed, and the majesty of all that is created exists not without My will. Yet, where, as I walked the earth, was arrogance displayed? Even with those opposed to the Kingdom, they did not find a boastful spirit, for he who boasts is not of My Spirit. One cannot be haughty with the mind of the Spirit, for the Spirit counsels in wisdom, and reminds each of the powerlessness of the frame of any man. Without My power, you can do nothing. In this knowledge, no boast can rise in the soul of the redeemed. Remain in me, and I AM humble of heart, counting even the creation to My service, that I would bend to their feet. So too, it shall be with you. Release the pride, for in it flows poison to your influence. Important to the earthy, but of great repulsion to those of your brothers. You possess what you have been given, even the light of life, that one day I will call back, that you would give an account of the deeds done in the shortness of your day, and in your great blessing. Live humbly before your Lord, that those before you will see a great and generous God who abides with you, and in that humble light, be drawn.
1Pet 5:6 (ESV) – Humble yourselves, therefore, under God ’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
Phil 2:3 (ESV) – Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.
Rom 12:16 (ESV) – Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Matt 11:29 (ESV) – Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Taking It to Work:
If you had all the power in the world, what would you do with it? What kind of person would you be if you were able to acquire anything you want? How about the ability to read the thoughts of others? You may not agree, but that kind of power would destroy most of us. We would become something very unbecoming, and it would likely happen very fast. We certainly would not need God. We could walk very independently through life, a get about anything we desired.
Now Jesus had that power. He had power over every situation, disease and everyone He met. He spoke life and death and could command demons, angels and the weather to do His bidding. He had the ability to have all the wealth and kingdoms of the world, from fish that bring gold coins, to far off kings that laid treasures at His feet when he was just months old. He could even speak directly with the infinite, eternal Father God, that we can barely grasp.
He was the King of Kings, and Lord of all mankind, and had every right to our absolute adoration, praise and homage.
And with all that, He was not a boastful, arrogant or a tyrant, but was a servant, gentle and humble of heart, who came to wash the dirt from our feet and our souls. How much power did that display? To have all that command and authority, but walk so unassuming among men; men that thought themselves so high and mighty. Even to the point of allowing Himself to be belittled, mistreated, and humiliated, He still kept His power bridled, and remained humble and gentle to the very end.
That’s something we have to keep in mind as imitators of Jesus. As we grow confident in our own eyes, the more degrees we earn, awards we receive, the older we get and the more experience we gain, the higher positions we fill and the more pay and prestige we obtain, the harder and harder it becomes to be or stay humble. God reminds us today of His incomprehensible, all powerful, holy majesty, and yet how He carried Himself so modestly when He took on flesh as our Lord.
We will never hold anywhere near the power Jesus had at His disposal, nor the authority over creation, but with the power and authority we are given in our careers and lives, let’s never let it go to our heads, or ruin our hearts, as His Word works in us, today.
