Humility, the Basis for a Relationship With God

Introduction

Well it is so good to be back home. These last 4 months have just gone by so fast. It feels like I only just left to start the semester. Though I have loved my time at college, it has been so nice to spend the last couple weeks back at home. It has been especially nice to be able to share how God has been able to work in my life over the past few months, even if those testimony times are unplanned. It is hard to believe just how much you can learn in just a few months. Sometimes it felt like God had 3 years of lessons to teach me, and only 3 months for me to learn them. But even through this overwhelming time, God proved He is always faithful in helping to learn these lessons.

Something I began to notice was how God would use the circumstances I was in to show the lesson that I needed to learn, and shortly after, I would find through His Word the principles that directly applied to these circumstances. This points out how important is is to consistently be in our Bibles. Without taking time to study God’s Word, you will deprive yourself of opportunities to grow spiritually.

Through this pattern, God brought me back to a very well-known passage. Anyone who has faced any sort of trial has likely spent time meditating on this verse. It is probably the most quoted verse for when we face difficulties, or battling worries. Turn in your Bibles to 1 Peter 5. Over the semester, I spent a great deal of time studying 1 Peter. One of my classes had a project where i needed to do a deeper study sectionally through the book. I also had to choose 1 section to study further than the others. I chose chapter 5:1-7, but more specifically, verses 5-7, where we will be spending most of our time today.

As I studied this passage, I began to understand how easy it can be to only interpret a verse at face value. Maybe we have heard a verse so many times that we become callous to its’ fuller meaning. Verse 7 is certainly one that falls into this category. I saw how we often take the end result of this passage, found in verse 7, and ignore all of the steps that come before this result. We look at the completed work and think that this is all there is, but in reality, we have missed all of the important steps that have lead us to what we see in verse 7.

Follow along with me as I read, beginning in verse 1

1 Peter 5:1–7 KJV 1900

The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

1 Peter 5:1–7 KJV 1900

Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Verses 1-5a

Verse 1

Peter begins this chapter pleading with the leaders in the churches scattered abroad. He appeals to them on a personal level, identifying himself as a fellow elder in the church. Peter, although an apostle, and a chief leader of the early church, did not lord his status over the leaders he was writing to. Instead, he identifies himself as being a fellow elder, and a “fellow partaker of the glory that shall be revealed.” Peter recognizes that he is not just teaching the church, but also himself.

Verse 2

Verses 1-4 are spoken directly to those who hold authority in their church. Vs 2 “Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind.” The command “feed the flock of God” mimics that given by Jesus to Peter in John 21:16. In this passage, Jesus askes Peter if he loves Him. The question is followed by the command “feed my sheep.” Jesus directly connects the leading of the church to loving Him. Peter now extends this command to the leaders of the local churches. The desire to be a leader is not out of obligation. It is not a “well someone has to do it” mentality, nor is the motive personal gain. Instead, the desire comes from servant’s heart. Whether your role is Pastor, deacon, teacher, or simply helping to run individual events, the correct motivation for leading is to serve.

Verse 3-4

Continuing in verse 3, “Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.” Peter reminds us that the church us God’s, not ours. When holding a position of authority, we can’t allow pride to seep into our minds. It is easy to look back and think about what you have accomplished, or how hard you worked, but not give proper credit to God, the one who enabled us.

“And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, you shall recieve a crown of glory which fadeth not away” Verse 4 shows that there is a shepherd above all those in the church, and that this shepherd will reward those who have faithfully served Him. that shepherd being Christ. Our service is not in vain. When this life is accomplished, those who led faithfully will be rewarded for their dedication. When Christ returns, He will specifically reward those who gave of themselves in servant leadership.

Verse 5a

These verses each work together pointing towards a specific character trait that is shown more clearly in verses 5-7. In verse 1, Peter chooses not to identify himself as an apostle, but rather as a a fellow partaker in the glory of God to be revealed. Verse 2 shows how leadership is motivated by the desire to serve others, setting aside one’s own desires, and verse 3 shows that leaders are not to hold their authority over the church because the ministry is God’s. Verse 4 completes the passage by showing there is an ultimate authority, to whom everyone will answer to. Each of these verses show different forms of humility.

Verse 5 is really split into 2 parts. One fitting with verses 1-4, the other connecting the passage to verses 6-7. “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility. . .” The attention shifts briefly to those who are younger in the church, that they are to submit to authority. This is not to say that only the younger are to submit to the leadership, but rather a specific reminder to the group who commonly has the most difficulty in regards to respecting authority.

Pride is exalting one’s self above the place of God. It is the overarching root behind sin. When Satan was cast out of heaven, it was because he thought that he knew better than God. He wanted to be God. Satan used this same notion when tempting Eve in the garden, that if she ate the fruit, she would become like God. From the very beginning, pride was the cause of sin. When we choose not to obey God and instead make our own path, we are ultimately saying that we know better than God, that we do not need Him to make the right decisions. This is how pride manifests itself out in our lives.

This likely is not a new concept for any of you. Most all of us have heard and read about the nature of pride for years. The difficulty with dealing with pride is recognizing the various forms that it can take. Unfortunately, there is no simple way of stopping pride in our lives. As fallen humans living in a sin-cursed world, pride is a part of who we are. Pride manifests itself in countless ways. I could spend months preaching about each one, and I’m sure that someday, I will. But I do not have time to teach about every type of pride, so I am just going to bring up 1 important area of our lives that is in dire need of humility, how we view our relationship with God.

Verses 5b-7

I think that I can confidently we all have had difficulties in understanding what a relationship with God truly looks like. It can be incredibly difficult to grasp how to have a relationship with God in our own lives. We look at people around us, and only see what’s on the surface. We can see the results of their personal relationship, but we can’t see how they got their. You ask them questions about how they have been able to grow, but then you are faced with the question of how can you apply those things in your own life. After all, we are all different people; we are designed to be just that—unique.

Verse 5

Submission to others. (Vs. 5)

1 Peter 5:5 “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.”

Peter spends very little time addressing the younger in the church. Instead, he shifts his focus towards the people as a whole. This is likely because verse 3 already stated that the elders are examples in the church, implying that the church should follow their example. The church is commanded to be subject to each other, to be unified. A church that is unified will grow together. We must always remember that we are not alone. God has given us the church so that we can support each other through our struggles.

James 5:16 “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” It takes humility to admit your own flaws to one another, but it is a necessary action in growing as a church. Confessing your sin to other believers tears down the shame that we feel because of sin, and opens the door to being held accountable by one another that we might be able to overcome our sinful habits.

Our sin drives a wall between us and God. To live in sin is to live apart from the Spirit. When we hold onto this sin, we may be able to grow in some small parts of our lives, but we will never be able to give ourselves entirely to God. The closer that you are to sin, the further away you are from God; but when we tear down these walls of sin, we open the door to a precious, flourishing relationship with God.

Verse 6

2. Humility before God.

1 Peter 5:6 “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:”

Verse 6 completes the final portion of verse 5. Peter’s use of “therefore” shows that the action of humbling ourselves is a direct result of what was previously stated in verse 5, that got resists those with pride, and gives grace to the humble. A right relationship with God begins with humility. If we have any desire to grow spiritually, we must accept the fact that we are not enough, that without God, we have nothing.

“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God.” The reason we are called to humility is because we recognize that we can never measure up to the character of God. We must recognize that when held to the standard of perfection established by God, we fall short. Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. There is nothing I can do that will ever change this. And that is the beauty of grace. When we recognize our own insufficiency, our dependance on our savior, God gives grace. This grace, as verse 5 explained, is unreachable until we have humbled ourself before God.

I’d also like to point out how Peter describes God, the receiver of our humility. It would have been perfectly sufficient for him to command us to humble ourselves before God, but that is not what is said. Instead, the passage point to a specific aspect of God’s being, “the mighty hand of God.” The point being made is that we are not just coming before another person, but the almighty creator of the universe. “God’s hand” is often used to refer to what God has done, as well as his power. With the usage of “mighty,” we can understand that this verse is emphasizing God’s strength. This strength is demonstrated all throughout scripture. I immediately think of the exodus and the 10 plagues. The flood, or Elijah calling down fire from heaven.

Humility before God’s might is often understood to be “fearing the Lord.” This is not being terrified of God, worrying about what He might do to us. It does, however, recognize what God can do, but in the light of His grace and mercy. Understanding what God can do encourages us to live in obedience. Having a proper understanding of God’s character is the beginning of our path to growing spiritually.

Psalm 111:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: A good understanding have all they that do his commandments: His praise endureth for ever.” A Christian who is maturing is growing in wisdom; in his ability to discern and apply God’s Word.

The result of humility before God is the promise that He will exalt you in the time that is right. God, in His infinite wisdom, rewards our humility by exalting us at the time which is perfect. However, this is not a promise which applies only to this life. It may be that our right time is not until we are perfected in heaven. But we do know that God is always working in our lives for our good, and His glory.

Verse 7

3. Giving everything to God.

continuing in verse 7, we come to how all of this becomes lived out in our every day lives. So often we want to jump ahead and start with verse 7, often separating it from the other verses before it. When we do this, we take away important value from the meaning of the text.

1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”

Most of the time, we apply this verse with worry. At first glance, it seems like that is the full understanding of the text; that when I have worries, I am to give them to God because he loves us. And while this is certainly a true principle, and a good application for each of us, it does not make much sense to conclude that this is the only thing verse 7 is teaching. If we look back at the end of verse 6, we see the thought is left incomplete. Verse 6 ends with an incomplete sentence that is finished in verse 7. So we know that verse 7 is not meant to be interpreted separately, but instead, in the light of what was taught in the verses before it.

Giving all of our cares to God is the result of putting into practice the humility taught in the previous verses. It is impossible to cast our worry on God without first recognizing that only He knows the purpose behind what we are going through. We have confidence that God has a plan through every single event in our lives, as taught in Romans 8:28. It is only through this confidence that we can give our worries to God, and leave them with Him. I know that what I have given to God will be worked out in His perfect timing, and that He gives grace to endure until that day comes.

And lastly, I want to point out that it is not just worry that we should be giving to God. So often we only turn to God when we have a problem that needs to be solved. Listen to me church family; when you only turn to God when you have a problem that needs fixing, you have reduced God to being nothing more than your servant. You can not see God as someone whom you turn to only half of the time, and still call yourself faithful. It is easy to turn to God when you have hit rock bottom and see no other option, but it is hard to stay faithful to God when you feel you have all that you need. But God does not just want to hear about your problems. No, verse 7 says to cast all of your cares on God, not just the bad, but everything. “Because He cares for you.”

Romans 8:15 “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” We have been adopted into God’s family. We sing “what a friend we have in Jesus, what a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.” God wants to hear the good. He wants to hear about the great day you just had. He wants to hear how thankful you are for that one friend who is always encouraging you. He wants to hear everything from you, because he wants to have a relationship with you. Are you willing to give everything to God, and have an unbroken relationship with Him?