Verse of the Day:
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so at the proper time he may exalt you."
1 Peter 5:6 ESV
The section of 1 Peter 5:1-11 provides specific instructions to elders about how to lead believers willingly, eagerly, and by their own example. We're told that all of us must live in humility toward each other and God (who opposes those who are boastful or proud). It's in our humility that we are able to cast our anxieties to the Father who cares for us. We're told to remain clear-minded, and to be looking out for our enemy (the devil) who is always seeking to destroy us.
We resist him by focusing on standing firm in our faith and knowing that God keeps His promises.
We're living in a nation that is in a seemingly ever-declining state of moral and ethical values, and as a result, believers can easily experience discrimination or outright persecution for standing firm in our faith. This pressure can result in many of us behaving in a manner that isn't consistent with keeping the Gospel. Peter's concern for showing his original audience how to stand faithfully in the midst of suffering, is applicable to our lives today, as it's just as important as ever to live like Christians during this time.
So what does this look like?
Serving each other in humility even in the midst of difficulty and unrest (1 Peter 5:1-5).
It's when we are humble, that we are assured that God will pour out more grace on us - grace that can and will enable us to persevere through any and all of our circumstances (v. 5).
In this verse today (v. 6), we see that if we cannot humble ourselves before God, then we are unable to obey his command to humble ourselves before those who He has appointed to shepherd us (v. 5).
We must rest on His providence, and trust that we may not be able to understand why certain things happen to us at certain times but that all things have been ordained for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). We live in a culture of such immediate satisfaction, however, we must fight this desire. We must patiently endure suffering, and know that end the end, God will exalt us and reward us for doing so (1 Peter 5:6). And we can do this because we know that He cares for us.
"casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7
People love saying the phrase, "God will never give you more than you can handle." And that couldn't be more wrong. Instead, start using this phrase:
"God will never give you more than HE can handle."
This truth means so much more as it allows us to cast our anxieties on Him because:
1. He loves us
2. He will faithfully bring us through whatever trials we might experience (no matter how difficult) because nothing is more than He can handle.
It's through this humbling of ourselves, placing our trust fully in Him, and ultimately when we cast ourselves upon Him, that we become free to love and serve others with the humility that He requires. This is because we no longer have a constant worry about ourselves.
Let's figure out how to directly apply this today:
To start, I have a few questions for you to think about:
1. Have you humbled yourself before the mighty hand of God?
2. Are you fully convinced that He cares about you?
3. Have you entrusted all of your worry and anxieties into His hand?
4. Are you confident that He will take care of you?
I'm aware these aren't easy questions. They're easy for me to ask, but answering requires some searching within.
So if you're having difficulty, start with a particular worry that you have. Maybe this worry is about your job, family, or children. Maybe there's another persistent fear that you have. Commit this fear (or fears if you're able to identify more than one) to the Lord. Remember to return to the Lord when you're feeling anxious - it's not a bad idea to find someone to help...
