We continue this week looking into the four requirements laid out in II Chronicles 7:14 for the Lord to heal our land. They are:
1. Humble ourselves
2. Pray
3. Seek His face
4. Turn from our wicked ways
These are what God’s people are commanded to do, not the heathen. So, we want to do these and not just understand them. This week, we will examine the biblical exhortations for humbling ourselves, looking for any way we have not yet applied this to our lives.
James 4:6 declares, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (NKJV). Could there be anything more valuable than God’s grace? Admitting we believe there is not, do our lives reflect this belief? Are we pursuing His grace more than any other treasure, relationship, professional success, or even our security? The priority we place on God’s grace reveals what we really believe.
Are we pursuing His grace in the way He instructs us to, by humbling ourselves? In Scripture, we are repeatedly told to humble ourselves, so this is something the Lord expects us to do. So how do we do this? There are a few ways Scripture tells us to do this, like in Psalm 35:13, where King David said he humbled himself with fasting. In Scripture, fasting is refraining from eating. This is something the Lord recognizes and honors in a special way. By this we declare we need Him and His grace more than we need food.
Since fasting food is contrary to the carnal nature, this is one way we can deny and break its power over us. We are told in I Corinthians 11:31, “for if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged” (NKJV). This is another way we can humble ourselves. If we humble ourselves, He will not have to humble us.
Yet another way to humble ourselves is to stop talking about ourselves so much. One barometer that reveals our spiritual immaturity is how much we talk about ourselves, even if it’s about spiritual things, like how God has used us. We should testify of the great things the Lord has done, but it is easy to tell when one is doing this to highlight themselves rather than to honor God.
We will not be changed into the nature of the Lord by being focused on ourselves. We are changed by seeing Him and His glory. When we do this, He will become the focus of our attention and conversation because, as He said, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (see Matthew 12:34, NKJV). Are we full of Him, or just full of ourselves?
How much more might we be used by Him, if when we meet others, we were not so intent on making ourselves look good as we are seeking ways to encourage and edify them? The Lord said, “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14, NKJV). Notice He did not say “many” or “most” who exalt themselves but “everyone”! Throughout Scripture we are exhorted to humble ourselves, and that God is the One who exalts. Being humble is our job; exalting is His job. If we try to do His job, He will do ours, and He can do both much better than us!
A self-centered person who tries to insert their story, their experiences, or just generally their perspective into every conversation is usually the one others try to avoid. Such people do not realize they are not as interesting to others as they are to themselves. Such people are also socially downgraded, and even ostracized, more than they realize.
As Christians, how can we who have seen and know the Lord be more infatuated with ourselves than with Him? How can anyone who has beheld His sacrifice on the cross be prone to talk about their own suffering? Christian maturity is revealed by Christ-centeredness; Christian immaturity is revealed by self-centeredness.
Because we speak out of the abundance of our hearts, let us resolve to be Christ-focused, Christ-centered, and with our hearts filled with love for Him. Resolve that He will be our conversation.
“You are what you think, and not what you think you are.” (Unknown)
© 2022 Rick Joyner. All Rights Reserved.
