As I began my Quiet Time (QT) this morning, God had impressed upon my heart grace. Ah, I love talking about grace, it is one of my most favorite things. I think that I enjoy it as much as I do because of the amount of grace that God has given me.
Over the past couple years, I have had circumstances that God has poured out His grace upon my life. While being shown the amount of grace that I have been given, I sometimes stop and look at my life to see where I am showing grace to others. Yikes! I am embarrassed to say that sometimes I don't do that, but I am human and I make mistakes.
Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast." I love that God has chosen to give this to us as a gift. What a sweet and precious gift we are given.
As we are given this gift of grace by Christ, how often are we giving grace to others? I am not saying that we need to let people take advantage of us, I am saying that just as Christ has shown us grace, we need to show grace to others. What a great example that we have to follow!
So, how does humility fit into all of this? James 4:6 "But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble." Grace is given to us as a gift, but humility is something that takes work. God gives us grace in our lives when we need it the most. Being humble in those situations when he does pour out grace, is a good thing because God chose to give us grace.
Humility is a personal quality of dependence on God and respect for others. And I will be the first to tell you that this is not always easy. I have had situations in my life where God has absolutely humbled me, and I am so grateful for those times.
Humility does not comes easily, it can take time to achieve. But, we have the greatest example of all, Christ!
Philippians 2:8 "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death--even death on a cross." Wow, I have to stop and think, am I willing to humble myself like that? .
Christ has given us the ultimate example of humility, grace, and sacrificial love for others. His life provides so many examples of these. As believers we need to take heed and humble ourselves.
James 4:10 "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." We need to humble ourselves before God and man. Humility does not come from ourselves, but instead from Christ. As we practice being humble and showing grace, imagine the blessings that we will receive from Christ.
Britt Hatcher
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