MORE GRACE
1 PETER 5:5-6
1 PETER 5:5-6 NKJ
5 Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for
"God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble."
6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,
I am going to share a couple of words with you today that I know you'll be excited about.
It's hard to communicate sarcasm on paper, but those listening to this devotion can't miss it.
The words are, wait for it, submit, and humility. And while I'm at it, we might as well throw in submissive just for grins. But there is so much here that, as believers, we simply cannot ignore. The younger was to submit to the elders. This is in the context of the church setting. Peter begins this chapter talking about church leadership and refers to himself as an elder. Church structure was new, so the instructions were first to the leaders, elders, and now involving the rest of the church.
What keeps things in godly order is the rest of verse five. "Yes, all of you be submissive to one another." If practiced, then no one is being taken advantage of, and no one is manipulating to have their own way.
Then we get to being clothed with humility. Our concept of humility is typically equated with low self-esteem. But clothed with humility here means an absence of pride and trying to outdo one another. Humility can make a large church workable. And humility has another benefit. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. We all need more of God's grace. His power on our behalf. What is fascinating is that being clothed with humility toward our brothers and sisters in Christ qualifies us for more of God's grace. I always thought that humility was only toward God. But if we walk humbly before God with an absence of pride, we will also walk humbly towards the family of God. We aren't going to be able to get by with the old saying, "I love God; it's people I can't stand."
I can hear the excitement building; but wait, there's more. If we humble ourselves under God's hand, He will exalt us in due time. And when God exalts, you have thoroughly been exalted.
APPLICATION:
Less pride. More humility. This results in more grace and being exalted by God. Sounds like a great plan. Walking that out is a lifelong process. But it's certainly worth pursuing. Because more pride equals less grace and God's resistance. And no one needs that.
PRAYER:
Help me learn and walk in true humility toward You and my family in Christ. I need all the grace I can get.