God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. (1 Peter 5:5)
When we are facing the storms of life, we will always have two choices – we can humble ourselves before the mighty hand of Providence, or we can grumble. By sinful nature, and by way of personal experience, I can tell you it is far easier for me to grumble than to humble myself. In other words, it is far easier to resist the providence of God, especially when it is painful, than to humble receive it. But this is not for those who see God’s sovereign hand behind everything that is going on in life.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand that he may lift you up in due time. (1 Peter 5:6)
Peter is telling us to submit and surrender to God’s providential working in our lives, both the pleasant and the painful. Now the only way we can possibly begin to do this is to see God’s mighty hand behind everything that is going on in our lives. God’s hand is behind our accomplishments and our adversities. God’s hand is behind our happiness and our heartaches. As my seminary professor Dr. Sproul was fond of saying, “If there is one maverick molecule in the universe, you cannot trust God for anything. Either God is in control of everything, or nothing.”
The Bible is full of stories of those who understood and lived out this truth in their lives against all odds. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers and spent years in prison down in Egypt. But God was with Joseph and blessed everything he did. Eventually, Joseph was raised up into the position of second in authority in all of Egypt. When famine struck the land, his brothers came to Egypt looking for food. When they arrived, they got the food they were looking for and the forgiveness they could have never imagined. Joseph made it clear he saw God’s hand behind everything that was going on in his life, including his brothers, when he said, “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God” (Genesis 45:8).
Joseph knew that God used even the sinful acts of his brother to accomplish his purposes. Joseph could have grumbles about his misfortune or humble himself under the mighty hand of God. And because Joseph chose the way of humility, God did indeed “lift him up in due time.” What God did for Joseph, He will do for you and me if we will exchange our grumble for humble.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 