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Freedom in Humility I |
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Freedom in Humility
by: Jennifer Williams
Attention= Be sure to visit the Fellowship Board Thread "Freedom in Humility" for more information on this subject
This particular study or article has 2 parts. Part I is dealing with humility. There are plenty of Bible passages that will help you to put things into perspective. We are not to be "puffed up" or arrogant about our gifts or our place in life. The Bible puts it simply, there is none good. None of us are to be put on pedestals. We are all equal in the eyes of God. Part II is dealing more with position and where the truly free and humble are in the Lord. There is freedom in humility. You must be humble in order to be free. If you are comparing yourself to someone else or striving towards something that is not of God, you are not FREE!!
Freedom is found when we realize that God loves us for who we are. What a wonderful experienc it is to be loved by God and by others without feeling condemned because we have flaws. To put it simply, we all do. No one is perfect, praise God! There is no one who is worthy of comparing ourselves to. God made us all different. We are all as individual and unique as our fingerprints. Yet, somehow we manage to try to fit into someone else's mold, their ideas, their abilities. We need to spend time in the word. We need to find time with God. He alone, knows us. He knows who we are, and what we are made for. You need to pray and ask him to show you about yourself. Put away all of your preconceived ideas and get real with yourself. It's time to stop worrying ourselves sick about little flaws and little sins. Being in the presence of God and praying about them will bring deliverance. It will bring healing! It will bring FREEDOM from the pressures of this world. Ask God to reveal your flaws, then pray about them and release them to him. DO NOT pick them back, DO NOT consider them, or dwell upon them. That is bondage, pure and simple. Stop looking for flaws in yourself and in others. God will show you, if you just let him. His presence, and a true relationship with him will take care of it. It is not for you to dwell on endlessly. We are all equal in the eyes of God. It's time that we started acting like it, instead of believing that ourselves or someone else is perfect, to be envied, or completely moral. It isn't true.
Mark 10:18
And Jesus said to him, why do you call Me [essentially and morally]good? There is no one [essentially and morally]good except God alone.
This passage includes words spoken by Jesus himself after someone called him "good". Read his response closely. He is saying that even he is not "good". If Jesus is not "good" why do we consider ourselves to be. Why do we look at each other and compare saying they are soooo... good. I wish that I could be like them??? There is not a "good" one among us, so we should be striving to be like God, and not like one another!!!! You will put yourself in a rut if you are constantly comparing yourself to another or wishing for greater gifts.
Isaih 64:5-8
You meet and spare him who joyfully works righteousness [uprightness and justice] [earnestly] remembering you in your ways, Behold, YOu were angry, for we sinned; we have long continue in our sins [prolonging your anger]. And shall we be saved? FOr we have all become like one who is unclean [ceremonially like a leper] and all our righteousness (our best deeds of rightness and justice) is like filthy rags or a polluted garment; we all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away [far from God's favor, hurrying us toward destruction].
This passage is also very interesting, it shays that God spares those who joyfully work righteousness. God is angry when we sin, and we have a tendency as humans to continue in sin. It is very difficult to over come human nature and turn away from a habit, thought pattern, or private sin. It is nearly impossible. Our very best is hardly anything at all. We fade quickly with a short life when compared to eternity. How then do we focus on abilities??
We cannot forget who w are and become arrogant in our abilities. Our sin and fleshly ways force God to hide his face from us. We cannot come near him in our flesh.
Matthew 18:4
Whoever will humble himself therefore and become like this little child [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving] is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
As a little child??? There are several good points that I want to mention.
A child is full of humility, trust, and faith.
The greatest is the most selfless and loving, think of a small child.
We must walk in these ways.
Children are unhindered in seeing the things of God and it's the trust that can make them great.
Children do not worry about every one else's and their own flaws.
What does this mean? There are different ages, but one perfect. There is no condemnation. We need to stop worry about ourselves. We get so focused on our needs we forget about God!! Get your eyes off of yourself! Nobody is perfect. Improve yourself! Let God in, get close to him!! It is your humility that will make you grow closer to God and as you do, you'll improve. Stop comparing yourself, where is your focus? We grow by focusing on God, when we focus on all of our faults and all of our sins, it serves to condemn ourselves. We essentially put ourselves in a bondage of self-pity and pride. When we spend all of our time focusing on ourselves we are operating in pride, and arrogance. We are acting as though no one is as important as ourselves, including God!!! Considering and searching for every little flaw of character and every little thought that isn't of God, is destructive. When we do that to ourselves we are destroying our connection with God. If you read these scriptures, again to this point you will realize that guess what, none of us are perfect and moral. None of us are exceptional. We are not better than anyone else. We are not great and to be praised. God alone has these attributes. Get your eyes off of yourself and all of your little sins. Get focused on God. He loves you for who you are. Have you ever tried to convince someone to stop a bad habit?? Some of these would include, smoking, over eating, drugs, drinking, promiscuity? They didn't stop if you were constantly pestering them about their faults, did they? The best way to influence some one is to tell them where you stand in a non condemning way and no matter what, you MUST love them. It is love that changes people. It is through love that people find deliverance. Condemnation will never bring about true change. It only brings suffering and negativity. Who wants to bring about suffering to ourselves and our friends???
Please be sure to continue, with Freedom in Humility II
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God has given us so many gracious and wonderful gifts. This website has expanded beyond our original vision and has become a blessing to many. We will be adding study articles every month and our discussions will continue to change. We will be adding photos soon, if you would like to include a few. This website is an outreach to our family of believers around the world. We look forward to getting to know all of you. May God continue to bless you and keep you. I will be taking a break from major updates for the month. There will not be as much updates next month. I encourage you to read over and study the articles that are currently available.
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