The connection between humility and trusting God
Our country is gripped by fear. Fear about Covid, fear about political issues, fear about safety, fear of death, etc. But God tells us in His word to trust Him in every circumstance. He repeats this admonition so many times! It is clear we humans need to be continually reminded of this. But how do we trust God and not fear?
Over the last few weeks, I have been reading through I Peter and II Peter daily. It is amazing what you pick up when you read a book repeatedly. I have been struck by the contextual order of Peter’s commands to us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, cast our cares on God, and be on the alert for the devil’s prowling destructive ways. Here is the passage: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you. Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” I Peter 5:6-7
A basic rule of correct Bible interpretation is to pay attention to the context. The book of I Peter spends a lot of time telling us how imperishable and indestructible our salvation, inheritance, and hope in Christ is. That is followed by admonitions to behave in a way that honors this amazing privilege we have in Christ. In Chapter 5, Peter admonishes us inverse 5 to clothe ourselves with humility towards one another for God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. That leads us to the passage I quoted above. Why do we humble ourselves before the Lord? And what is the connection between casting all our anxiety on Him and trusting Him? And why the warning about the devil that immediately follows?
Why should we humble ourselves before the Lord? The passage says He is mighty and God. Those are 2 very good reasons. The beginning of I Peter tells us we have been “born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.” (I Peter 1:3b-4) God is our creator, our sustainer, our source of life and our redeemer. We are completely dependent on Him for everything. Without Him we have no life, no daily bread, no salvation, and no hope. Anything we can do, He allows us to do by giving us the strength and talent. All glory goes to Him. Not only that, but He is a good God. His lovingkindness is everlasting. His mercies are new every morning. He is faithful to His promises. We not only should humble ourselves before the Lord, but it is a delight to do so because of His excellent character. If we humble ourselves before the Lord, we can trust Him because He is such a great God. We are able to cast all our anxieties on Him and remember that He cares for us.
But we humans like to try to takeback God’s glory and give it to ourselves. We are proud. But when we are proud, we think we can fix problems ourselves, and don’t need God. We think we know best how to handle things. We do not humble ourselves before God. We worry as a result because we think we are in charge and God is only someone to turn to when we run into difficulty. We think what is happening is not what is supposed to happen. We forget God’s sovereignty, and His promise in Romans 8 to work all things out for good. We forget that God’s goals for our lives are not always our desires. But His will is best. We would do well to remember Isaiah 45:9 “Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker-an earthenware vessel among the vessels of the earth! Will the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’, or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands?’” We cannot trust God when we do not humble ourselves before God.
The admonition to humble ourselves and cast all our anxieties on God is followed by a warning to watch out for the devil’s schemes. How is this warning related? When we do not humble ourselves before God, we are an easy target for the devil’s chief scheme, which is to cause us to doubt God’s word, think we know best, and believe the devil’s lies. He tempted Eve to the first sin by saying “Has God really said…?” He does that with us today. What are some common ways the devil might get us to doubt God and not humble ourselves before Him? Here are just a few examples where we listen to the devil’s lies.
1. Will God really cause good to come out of this horrible situation, like He promised in Romans 8?
2. Will God really be faithful to His promises to provide what we need in this life?
3. Has God really conquered death so that I no longer need fear it if I have been saved by believing in Christ’s work on the cross?
4. Does God really know what He is doing?
5. Does God really know best when He says purity is the best path in life? Isn’t He trying to kill our pleasure in life?
6. Is God’s word really sufficient for life and godliness, or do we need some earthly experts to help us figure out life?
When we listen to these lies, we cannot trust God and we become proud. We need to resist the devil’s lies, humble ourselves before God, and trust Him because He is worthy of our trust and worship. My reading of I Peter has really convicted me of the need to do this. I hope this was an encouragement to you as well.