"My Soul ... Is Humbled In Me”
Deuteronomy 8
2 And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.
3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.
16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;
——————————
Lamentations 3
18 And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the Lord:
19 Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall.
20 My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.
21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
22 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
——————————
James 4
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?
6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
——————————
1 Peter 5
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
——————————
——————————
I would like to write this as someone who knows what he’s talking about. However … in very realistic ways, I am seeing more-and-more my need to work in concert with God as He does His work of grace within me.
It appears to me that the pathway towards humility (being humbled) always starts, always continues, and never ends. It’s a lifelong progressive (and at times regressive) journey towards our conformity to Christ-likeness.
Is it fair to conclude that humility is the beginning, middle, and ending of our walk with God? Said another way: Will we ever be fully and completely humble? Will the need to be humbled ever reach its end?
I trow not so.
——————————
My reading in Lamentations chapter three triggered my mind down this line of thinking.
The captivity had become an ever present reality to God’s people at this point. As Jeremiah contemplates all that has happened and is still going on, he speaks for himself (and I assume) for the people themselves when he says in 3:20:
“My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.”
When I read that it resonated within me … right now at this very moment — all on a personal level. And …
Such was the case with Jeremiah and all the people that were presently feeling the hand of God upon them. For them, it was a time of deep reflection, soul searching, confession and repentance.
All of which are steps in the right direction.
——————————
I laid out the above verses in progressive order on purpose. It didn’t start out that way though. I had started with Lamentations first.
But as I did, I noticed that which I referred to above …
That humility IS the beginning, middle, and ending of our walk with God.
Humility was paramount in the Deliverance experience of God’s people as expressed in Deuteronomy.
Humility was paramount in the Dispersion experience of God’s people as expressed in Lamentations.
And,
Humility is paramount in the Developing experience of God’s people as expressed in James and 1 Peter.
Meaning:
At the beginning, in the middle, and at that end of the Bible, humility is interspersed and interconnected throughout.
But …
It’s also a continually repeating cycle within our linear progress.
Meaning:
As we progress in our walk with God we, as needed, will be returning to the initiation point of being humbled, regularly.
——————————
But where does humility start? How does one know where to begin? What is the source?
Philippians 2
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, HE HUMBLED HIMSELF, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, showed us the journey He took as an inspirational template to follow.
He “left” His Heavenly position to become a servant who willingly humbled Himself unto death. In doing so He laid out the path we are to tread until … Death.
——————————
——————————
I’m wondering if the times we now find ourselves in aren’t meant (at least in part) to bring us to our knees in order to assess our spiritual walk and development with the Lord.
Could it be we have (at least in part) been stimulated to fixate on what is happening around us so we won’t stop to ponder what needs to be done within us?
At a certain level I do believe that’s what’s happening. I’m not blaming us or pointing a finger of accusation at us. I just think it’s something we need to consider.
Why?
It’s very easy to get so caught up in the swirling reality around us we forget that …
We have an Adversary known as Satan. He’s walking about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Like a lion on the prowl, he looks for our weak and vulnerable areas and then pounces.
—————————-
*Remember:
Satan wants us to fall through pride. 1 John 2:16 states: For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
*Remember:
God wants us to rise through humility. Christ humbled Himself (i.e., no pride of life) unto death and God rose Him up on the third day.
Let’s all place ourselves at the foot of the Cross and —
“Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” (Hebrews 12:3)
That’s a good place to begin, to stay and to finish.
Trow so?