Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
“God resists the proud, But He gives grace to the humble. Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
— James 4:6-7
The devil walks around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). But you do not have to become one of his victims. Stop fighting a defeated enemy. The Bible says if you remain humble and submit to God, the devil will turn tail and run. To submit to God means acknowledging His sovereignty in all things. Understand that God gives grace to the humble, but also recognize that God resists the proud.
God Gives Grace to the Humble
Pride and humility are fundamentally different—like oil and water, they cannot blend despite being fluid. Good receivers receive from God by faith. Pride obstructs your ability to receive from God and shifts your focus toward your achievements, pulling you away from His grace. Often, we are oblivious to how pride operates in our lives. It leads us to believe that our efforts are sufficient. However, when we humble ourselves and submit to God, His grace reminds us that He will provide for our needs.
Recognizing the subtlety of pride is crucial; it’s all too easy to attribute our successes entirely to ourselves. We convince ourselves that our diligence is the reason for our financial stability and that our commendable credit will guarantee our future.
On the other hand, humility requires strength and perspective. It’s not about thinking less of yourself, but rather about thinking of yourself less often. Don’t diminish your worth just because you didn’t receive that promotion. Instead, raise your head high and seek out the blessings that lie ahead. Remember, to submit to God is to trust in His timing, and the Bible assures us that if we humble ourselves under His mighty hand, He will elevate us at the right time (1 Peter 5:6).
Don’t allow life’s challenges to weigh you down. When you trust that God is in control, you’ll find confidence in knowing that the Creator of the universe is actively working for your good.
Thank You, Father, for your grace operating in my life. Today, I will humble myself and submit to God under Your mighty hand.
“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth”(Matthew 5:5). Too often, we interpret the meaning of the word meek as being weak; in fact according to Webster;s dictionary Meekness is essentially an attitude or quality of heart whereby a person is willing to accept and submit without resistance to the will and desire of someone else. In the case of Christians, this is God. Additionally, the admonishment to resist the devil is often a challenge to the carnal man. Why? Oftentimes, during the act of our sin, our flesh desires the sin. The Apostle Paul had this to say; “For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me”(Romans 7:14-21).
Yes, Johnny. When it comes to sin, it seems that we become discombobulated. We do the opposite of what we desire, However, when we submit to God, He gives us grace (strength, endurance, fortitude) to do the will of God with ease. Thanks for the enlightenment.
Part 2-For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 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. Keep in mind, the writer is refering to (2) two different spirits. The inward-man, which is our human spirit and the Holy Spirit, who lives in us. Also, there is always hope: “For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose”(Romans 8:24-28).