The Shelter of Humility
John the Baptist died humbly as a martyr, that Jesus might increase and he might decrease. (John 3:30)
To all those who would first live with their Lord, and long for Him...
To all those who would sow kingdom seeds, and bear fruit for the Lord...
To all those who bend their knee and not turn backwards, be warned for:
pride is a man's greatest enemy, the author of all sin.
Pride precedes a fall. Hence, spiritual resilience must begin with the loss of pride, and the choosing of humility.
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18)
Humility is:
- that unseen refusal to establish my merit
- the learned true appreciation of self. I am no more than a rascal drawn to the throne of grace.
becoming what I had despised and so realizing that I was wrong.
Two humble men have wisely reflected:
- 'Without personal honesty I can easily construct an image of myself as rather impressive'. ~ Brennan Manning
- 'You will never have real mercy for the failings of another until you know and realise that you share the same feelings in your soul'. ~ Bernard of Clairvaux. It is in despairing that I learn no longer to despise.
- 'The knowledge of truth is to be paid at the summit of humility'. ~ Bernard of Clairvaux.
God is close to the humble but far from the proud, hence it is the humble who find truth. The proud can neither receive the truth about themselves, nor the true knowledge of God.
The garment of humility dresses the wearer for God's presence, the only home of all truth. There is only one source of truth, it comes from only one shepherd. (Ecclesiastes 12:11, John 14:6)
The Christian life safely lived, is first seeded in the promotion of Jesus contrary to the promotion of self.
Humility is a divinely appointed shelter from both self-deception and the world's aspiring deceits. It is Heaven's first protection against falling.
Today's Soul Snippet:
"It is better to deserve honors and not have them, than to have them and not deserve them". ~ Mark Twain
ENJOY too - Introducing 5 Friends of Spiritual Resilience, The Seeking of God's Face, The Thirsting of the Soul, The Crucifixion of the Soul & The Guarding of the Heart
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