The Bible Edge
Everyone needs an Edge, Believers can have a Bible Edge
James 4:10
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
I Peter 5:6
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
In this short series of “Life lessons learned from Great People” James and Peter agree on one life lesson that all would do well to learn. That is the lesson that if we will humble ourselves, two great results will take place.
One result of humbling ourselves is found in today’s verses. He shall lift you up. That is what James stated. He may exalt you… that is that which Peter wrote. The Lord God has designed things in such a way that promotion comes from humility. It could be said that for a Christian “the way up is down.” This is one of those great paradoxes of the Christian life. We die to live, we give to get, and we are promoted through humility.
Another result of humbling ourselves is that by doing so, the Lord will not resist us. On this James and Peter also agree. James wrote in James 4:6, But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Peter says it like this in I Peter 5:5. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. This needs no explanation; it is clear…God resisteth the proud.
The Lord gives a tremendous example of a man who humbled himself. It is found in Luke 18; there the Lord relates this story. His words tell it better than I ever could. Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Luke 18:10-14
This one life lesson, the lesson of humbling oneself was given to us by James, Peter, and Jesus. These three have given to us an edge, a Bible edge for promotion. According to them, promotion comes through sincere self-induced humility.
William T. Howe, Ph.D.
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