Clothed in Humility

You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves in humility toward one another, for GOD OPPOSES THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.

1 Peter 5:5

No I am not shouting...that is the NASB way of quoting another scripture passage, in this case Proverbs 3:34. But it is worth shouting about. Having God on the team you are fighting against is not a great place to be. The definition of resist is to exert oneself to counteract or defeat! It is not just sticking His hand up to keep you from passing, it is taking that hand and pushing you back, or taken a step further, to wipe you out...scary stuff.

But I digress!

Clothed in humility...not Him clothing us, in this case, but us clothing ourselves. This term, I am told, is different from other terms of clothing...it is wrapping a servant's apron on oneself. It is not dressing for regular daily purposes, but making oneself the slave and servant to those around us. This is serving one another...and in the context of being subject to the elders of the church, it is serving God's people. We are not to consider ourselve more highly than we ought Phil 2, but put on the garments of truly doing whatever we are called to do to serve God and His people. It is humbling. It may be menial. It could get dirty. But however we are called to serve, we must do it. We must say, We are only slaves to you, Lord, and only doing our duty. We are not worthy to serve you AT ALL, and are humbled that you consider us worthy of even being your servants. That passage kind of puts us in our place. We as people think at times that we deserve stuff, respect, payment, or some sort of reward for what we do on a daily basis. God reminds us that that is nonsense! He allows us to work to earn a living (try getting sick and disabled and see how much of a blessing being functional is!). He gives us every breathe we breathe. He allows us to continue living when the wages of sin is death. And yet we moan instead of praise. We are a sorry lot.

Even though we are not worthy of serving, we are called to honor those that God has put into positions of spiritual authority in our lives. It is not that they deserve it, but that we are called to it. Again, we think we are the exceptions to these rules...and He reminds me daily how I fail in this area. I judge instead of honor. Do they deserve my loyalty? My admiration? My devotion? Good grief, girl! So when those under MY authority rise up and question me, I get mad, and then I realize that this is a picture of ME doing that to others. And the humbling process begins. It is painful. It is hard to see the sin in others and realize that we do the same thing. And that is where the rubber meets the road.

Pride is a terrible thing and it is such an ingrained part of us that it goes back to Eve listening to the immoral words...you will be like God. We think we know what's good for us...we think we can know more...and we think we are right and righteous in our own judgements. It is overwhelming. There is no thought that I can think that is not tainted with it. If I think God tells me something, I start to think that maybe it is I who is clever or smart...or that I am special because God honored me with this knowledge. There is nothing I can think that is not tainted with pride. We think of ourselves, and that is where we get into trouble.

I think of the 12 apostles...there they were, just ordinary guys who were honored and probably a bit taken aback by having Jesus chose them to train in His little traveling seminary. How could they not begin to think of themselves more highly than they ought, at least amongst themselves? They probably didn't consider themselves as good as priests or Pharasees, but they fought for positions of power amongst themselves a few times that we are told of. And that is when Jesus opposed them. He even rebuked Peter with severe words, calling him Satan, when he decided that Jesus didn't know what He was doing and gave him a little advice. He tried to tell God what to do, and that is not usually a good idea. Peter didn't ask how he could serve the Lord during the upcoming trial...he considered himself smart and a leader of the group...he would voice his opinion loud and proud, showing the others that he had things in control...that he would call the shots when Jesus had His priorities and plans a little mixed up. The shame he faced over the next few months was excruciating, but shaped him to be a leader in the church. His pride got him in trouble later with Paul, so even then Peter thought about himself, and not about the people he was serving. That is when the troubles mount and God works His humbling.

So here I sit, computer on the lap, hoping to be humble, and knowing that it is impossible to think any thought that is self-free. I write because God is gracious, not because I am smart or insightful. I write because I am amazed at what God has to say to me in scripture that I have not seen before by using the clothing and fabric words. I ask that you bear with me if I show through, because it is God's Word, and His thoughts and revelations that I want to ponder, not to promote myself or any agenda.

The only confidence I have in any of what I say is that it is based on God's Word, and that is infallible, not me. I fail, my interpretations may not always be gospel truth, but it is what I see when I open the Word that day. And I hope it gets you to search the scriptures to see if these things are so. Don't take my Word for it...take His! He will speak to you without my assistance if you just read it instead of this blog. That is the only authority...and it is your humble service that you can clothe yourself for.