James 4:8-10, Part 3—Humble yourself
Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you. James 4:10
Strife, contention, bitterness, jealousy, and pride. We’ve all experienced it, and many of us have probably stirred up a bit of it, ourselves. For anyone caught in the tangled web of strife, James presented a prescription—not just to be nice again—but to utterly eradicate the poison of contention from your heart.
Where do you turn when you’re in the middle of strife? What can you do to get yourself free? James wrote, “Draw near to God and volunteers4sport.fr viagra He will draw near to you” (James 4:8a). He then wrote, “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you” (verse 10).
For the http://ipr.utcluj.ro/jp/レビトラを購入する/ believers to whom James wrote, strife had erupted due to their jealousy toward one another. It escalated to what James described as waging war, fighting, and quarreling—all over pleasures and lusts. Whatever the cause of strife between Christians, it’s never pretty; it’s never edifying; it never glorifies God.
Are you in the middle of strife—whether of your own making or due to the contentious maneuverings of someone else? Either way, draw near to God. Resist the urge to find another disgruntled commiserator. This will only add fuel to the fire.
And then, humble yourself before God, whether you started the mess or not. If you were the aggressor, you must acknowledge it before Him—you’ve sinned, pure and simple. You must admit to the Lord your full contribution toward the chaos if you want to release it—after all, you can’t give away something you never owned: own it and then give it to Him. Make amends as He directs, and after that, don’t pick it back up.
If you were the recipient of a brother or sister’s jealousy or rage, draw near to God. Pour out your heart and your hurt before Him and receive His comfort and grace as He draws near—but refuse to take on the http://www.lindacihar.com/cheap-uk-viagra/ strife. You may think that you don’t need to humble yourself if you’re the victim, but that’s not what God’s Word says. Plead your offender’s case as a beloved brother or sister; recognize that they are a joint heir of Jesus just as much you are; and as far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people. Refuse to return evil for evil, cursing for cursing; but if you catch yourself slipping into bitterness, confess it as sin—don’t nurse it or pamper it. Put it to death because it’s a deed of the flesh—even if this whole thing was not your fault.
This what humbling yourself before the Lord is all about. Wherever you are on the strife spectrum, God calls you to humble yourself.
The Greek word for “humble” means to make or bring low or to abase (see http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G5013&t=KJV). Bringing yourself low doesn’t mean you belittle yourself or think of yourself as worthless. Instead, it indicates that you don’t insist on your own way—you are willing to put your desires and http://www.fysyfy.com/sale-uk-online-levitra-tablets/ plans aside to minister to someone else—or to obey the Lord.
You are called to maintain an attitude of humility before the Lord throughout your life. The humble man acknowledges God in all his ways; he’s not afraid to acknowledge his shortcomings or sin, either; and he’s well aware of his continual, daily need for the Lord. The humble man seeks to obey God in all his ways.
Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.
When you draw near to God, He will draw near to you. When you humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, He promises that He will exalt you, or lift you up. Do you have desires, hopes, and dreams for your life? According to James, humility is the way to exaltation—or to fulfillment of those dreams. As you draw near to God with a humble heart and seek Him, He will lift you up. He’ll fulfill the plans He has for you; your part is to trust Him and stay humble.
James’ people erred by contending with one another in their attempt to fulfill their desires. However, James wrote that the Lord would exalt the humble, not the most persuasive contender. In light of this, Psalm 75:4-7 is interesting: “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not boast; and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn; do not lift up your horn on high, do not speak with insolent pride.’ For not from the east, nor from the west, nor from the desert comes exaltation; but God is the Judge; He puts down one and exalts another.”
If you’ve grown weary while facing delays in the fulfillment of your dreams, draw near to God. Resist the snare of getting jealous of others; refuse to enter into strife. Don’t let yourself fret over how long things are taking. The apostle Peter wrote a message similar to James’ when he urged, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time” (1 Peter 5:6). Timing is involved with the course of your life; therefore, press on and continue to humble yourself in the sight of the Lord. In due season, He will exalt you.
There is no better place to run than to the Lord when you recognize the festering of strife or of sin in your life. Instead of covering your tracks, make tracks to God! Humble yourself before Him, and He will lift you up.
Dorothy