1 Peter 5: 5 “……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.’”
Dear God,
How good it is to greet You, and be greeted by the evidences of Your love and care, in every place I am in. I am truly enveloped by evidences of your care in the natural world, and by the support of me spiritually and emotionally. One further evidence of Your love and care, is that for we who are called Your children, You have given us eyes to see Your works, and minds and hearts to discern Your love and care for each of us, that an unbeliever does not have. But of course You would bestow these upon us, for how else would we ever be remotely ‘in tune’ with You, if we could not discern Your works or understand Your intervention or spiritual messages, that are to bring me (us) close and closer to You. It is evident in my life and the life of those in the scriptures, that because we are born in sin, we do not have these abilities inherently within us.
When I analyze what Peter quoted from in the above text, he has drawn from the writing of Solomon in Proverbs. For both men (and many of us) their proud heart had separated them from You and bought a spiritual downfall for them (us). More than many, they would recognize the danger of pride in a child of God, because it reduces our perceived need of You our God, and makes us uncharitable toward others as we operate with varying degrees of self-importance.
The pride that Lucifer, the leading angel in heaven, allowed to develop in his heart bought about changes in how he viewed Your Son Jesus, and Yourself, to the degree that, he and other angels on his side, viewed the government of heaven as unfair; bringing he and 1/3 of the angels into rebellion, which led to an attempted takeover war, and finally their expulsion out of heaven. Upon this earth, the place he and his angels reside, every one of his actions arise out of his own evil self-centredness and are designed to get at You, our God; by making us as much like himself as he can. So we cannot fully appreciate You and the plan of salvation, or worship and revere You as Almighty God and Father, he aims to disable or destroy us physically, emotionally and spiritually.
I know that You cannot fully reach my mind when I am proud, and I am horrified to find, that this attitude so often sneaks in unnoticed, and always brings disquiet and dissatisfaction; when examined in the light that the Holy Spirit gives.
Therefore today, in the strength of the Holy Spirit, I will remember 1 Peter 5: 6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” There is a way out, and I do not have to hang onto my issues that are causing concern or disquiet, for you invite me to leave them with Yourself, V7 “casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
Thank You!
Amen