The Lord Exalts the Humble

Psalm 113

Prayer is a very hard thing to do because it seems like we aren’t doing anything. But it’s also hard because it’s a humble act. We must humble ourselves before God’s mighty hand regularly and cast our cares on Him.

Tony Merida

What is humility? Humility is entire dependence upon God for everything, trusting Him through everything, seeing Him as all and ourselves as nothing. It is a right estimation of who God is as well as who we are. Humility is to be humble, having a low estimation of our own importance. It is to be a self-forgetful person (Keller). To no longer be pre-occupied with self, but rather it makes one willing to be the servant or helper of all. Humility seeks only the honor that comes from God and no longer thinks of its honor before men. Jerry Bridges stated humility manifests itself in our relationships to God, to ourselves, and to others.

Humility in our relationship with God will produce trust, contentment, and right worship. Humility trusts God’s providential care of us. Andrew Murray says, “Humility is simply the disposition that prepares the soul for living in trust.” Our circumstances may seem overwhelming, difficult, and undesirable, but the humble person continues to look to the Lord and trust His wise ordering of our lives. The humble person comes to God with all their cares, casting their burdens upon the Lord. When tempted to cry like the disciples, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:38), the humble person reminds himself that the Lord cares, and He will sustain and provide for the one who casts his burdens on Him. Next, humility is content with what God has ordained for us. Humility rejects any notion that we know better how our lives and circumstances should be ordered. Humility rests knowing God has chosen what is best for us. It submits all its longings and desires, those things that could lead to discontentment, to the Lord. It has plans and desires, but all of those have been placed in the Father’s hand to do with as He will. “Part of humility means trusting God with our plans and submitting to the possibility that they will not be fulfilled…But part of humility also means trusting God with our plans and submitting to the possibility that they will be fulfilled in ways we cannot imagine”(Hannah Anderson). Humility contents itself with God Himself and His directing of our steps. Finally, in relation to God, humility produces right worship. We will come to God’s Word and search to find out the truth He has revealed about Himself. The more we come to know Him, the more the Scripture reveals our own depravity, the more we will love Him, and the more we will realize how undeserving we are of His grace and love. And yet, though we are so undeserving, He came and humbled Himself to put on our flesh and die in our place. The greater our understanding of the gap between the greatness of God and our unworthiness, the greater our capacity and desire to worship Him.

Humility also manifests itself in our relationship to ourselves, in our gifts and prosperity as well as in our sinfulness and difficulties. When things are going well and times are good, humility recognizes that “every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17). When God enables us to use our gifts, talents, and abilities and there is fruit produced in us and through us, humility allows for no boasting. Rather, humility says, “What do I have that I have not received from God? Why should I boast as if this prospering is not solely a gift from the Lord?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). Likewise, when our sinfulness would cause us to despair, humility turns us to the One who has redeemed us from slavery to sin. “Allow each failure and shortcoming to only the more quickly turn us to the meek and lowly Lamb of God in the assurance that where He is enthroned in the heart, His humility and gentleness will be the streams of living water that flow from within us” (Murray). And any abasing we endure can be borne as it leads us to a deeper knowledge of Christ as we partake in the “fellowship of His sufferings” (Philippians 3:10) “Yes, let us ask whether we have learned to regard a reproof, just or unjust, a reproach from a friend or an enemy, an injury, or trouble, or difficulty as an opportunity for proving that Jesus is all to us…Accept with gratitude everything that God allows…to remind you of your need for humbling and to help you in it” (Murray). Both the joys and the difficulties should be embraced as tools that direct our gaze upward to our Savior.

Lastly, humility manifest itself in our relationship to others. “Our humility toward others is the only sufficient proof that our humility before God is real” (Murray). We may be making strides in learning to walk humbly with the Lord, especially in our inner, private life. But the true evidence that His humility is taking root in our hearts is our humility toward others. Can we be the servant of all? Can we lay aside ourselves in order to help others? Can we treat with respect and kindness even those who revile us? When others praise us, does our own self-worth rise? When others criticize us, do we obsess about it and get depressed? Our disposition toward others and our willingness to put others ahead of ourselves is the test of our true humility. Jesus came, not to be served, but to serve. He is our example of humility. When we are struggling to serve others, honor others, be criticized by others, or be honored by others, we must look to Christ. How did He serve? How did He honor others in the way He dealt kindly with them? How did He handle the criticizing and reviling others hurled at Him?

Humility may seem a hard road. A road that is paved by dying to ourselves. But the road is filled with the light of God’s promises to the humble. “The promises of God toward the truly humble are almost breathtaking. The infinitely high and lofty One who lives forever promises to dwell with them, to esteem them, to give them grace, to lift them up, and to exalt them” (Bridges, The Practice of Godliness). Consider these promises:

He dwells with the one who has a contrite and lowly spirit and revives him. “For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite” (Isaiah‬ ‭57‬:‭15‬). So, in those crushing times of adversity which humble us, God promises to be there with us and to revive our crushed spirits. “The Lord is near to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18).

He regards the one who is humble and contrite in spirit. “All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word” (Isaiah‬ ‭66‬:‭2‬). He sees us. He does not forget our cries or turn His face away from our calls. When we are in need of trusting His ways, or we are struggling with despair over sin, or we must fight against our own selfishness in order to serve others well, He looks upon us and will come to our aid.

He promises to give the humble grace and more grace. “But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble’” (James‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬). Grace is God’s unmerited favor. And He gives it to those who walk in humility. Not only will He lavish on us His grace, but when we are clothed in humility, we begin to see more clearly the abundant grace He has already bestowed on us. Humility not only gives us more of His grace, but it opens our eyes to see the grace He has already given.

He exalts and cares for those who humble themselves under His mighty hand. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭6‬-‭7‬). There is not a day that passes in which there is not some care or anxiety that disrupts our mind and heart to some degree. The truly humble will cast all these cares, burdens, and disruptions to their heart and mind upon the Lord in prayer. Humility trusts the Word of God and knows the Lord cares for us and for all that concerns us.

The humble will be exalted. “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke‬ ‭18‬:‭14‬). In God’s time and in God’s way, whether in this life or eternity, the humble will be exalted. The humble will be raised from their low estate. He, who humbled Himself to the point of death on a cross and has now been highly exalted, has provided for us a seat in the heavenly places with Himself. Our God, rich in mercy and because of His great love, has “raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 2:6 NASB).

Let’s pray through Psalm 113 for humble hearts resting in His promises to us.

Praise the Lord

113:1-3 Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord! Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore! From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!

Lord, I pray:

▫️You are the high and lifted One, who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy, yet You stoop down to regard the lowly. I praise You because You sympathize with my sufferings.

▫️You have said that You dwell with the contrite and lowly spirit in order to revive the heart of the contrite. I praise You for Your promise to never leave me nor forsake me. Thank You for the reviving power of Your Word. Show me how I need to humble myself and live in dependence upon You in all things.

▫️I pray that Your praise would continually be on my lips, from the rising of the sun until its setting. Help me to give thanks in everything knowing that You have wisely ordained all my days. The area I am not wanting to submit to You is _____. Give me Your grace and help me to rely fully on You.

The Lord is seated on high

113:4-6 The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens! Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down on the heavens and the earth?

Lord, I pray:

▫️You would look on me now in my situation. You have promised to look to the one who is humble and who trembles at Your Word. Unless Your law had been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction (Psalm 119:92). Continue to uphold me by Your promises. Do not forget the cry of the afflicted (Psalm 9:12).

▫️Humility is the way of holiness. Even though it may be painful, use my difficulties in circumstances or relationships to produce humility in my life. When I sin, remind me to quickly run to Jesus, my meek and lowly Savior, and may it be that His gentleness and humility would flow from me.

He lifts the needy

113:7-9 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people. He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord!

Lord, I pray:

▫️You promise grace to the humble. Help me by Your Spirit, to be clothed with humility. Let it be the character of Christ that empowers all the other fruit I long to see produced in my life. Strengthen me to willingly be the servant and helper of others. If there be any growth in humility, let me live it out serving as You served.

▫️You raise the poor from the dust and lift the needy from the ash heap. I feel very needy today regarding _____. Help me to wait patiently for You. I know You have inclined Yourself to me and have heard my cry. Be pleased to bring me up out of the pit of destruction and out of this miry clay. Give me a firm place to stand (Psalm 40:1-2).

▫️You perform the impossible and the unexpected. When I feel discouraged about my pride and the lack of humility, may I throw myself upon Your grace and find it sufficient to supply all I need to grow in godliness. I want a heart that trusts You in all things, is content in every circumstance, and worships You in sincerity.

▫️Today, I humble myself under Your mighty hand and cast ______ on You today. This care of my heart is causing disruption to my mind and therefore I lack the peace of God because I am anxious about this. I know You care for me. I know You care about _____. I know You are good and do what is good. Thank You for being my kind and caring Heavenly Father willingly giving good gifts to me.

▫️I need humility. When I am faced with challenges, help me to remember that these are Your appointments for me to humble myself.

‭‭May the Lord do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, for His glory and our good. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Humility teaches us to wait…to wait for answers that, in God’s own wisdom, may never come. But humility also teaches us that we don’t need to know everything as long as we know the one who does know.

Hannah Anderson

‭‭

Photo credit to benwhitephotography.

Search This Blog

Savoring the Scripture