Mary and Joseph were very humble people. Mary mentions in her Magnificat: “My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. For he hath regarded the LOW ESTATE of his handmaiden: for behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed” (Luke 1:48).
God looked for humility when He chose Mary to be the mother to bring forth the Savior of the world. It was not the status of her family; not her social standing, not brilliant intellect, not her gift of singing or any other gift, not her good looks if she was so endowed, and nor her pleasant personality.
Mary’s prophetic utterance made it abundantly clear that it was nothing less than her humility, her LOW ESTATE. She also prophecies: “He hath showed strength with his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of LOW DEGREE” (Luke 1:51, 52).
This is a great lesson for all who want God to lift them up. How low is our estate (regard of self) in our pursuit of humility? Have we reached the depth where God can gladly lift us up? We have just stated how God exalts them of low degree.
The question remains: How far down do we go to reach the point of low degree? Paul instructed the believers in Philippians 2:5-11: “Let this mind (attitude) be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
It appears to me that the lower the depth of humility the higher the exaltation.
Men, we must take this truth to our own hearts and make sure that we impart it to our families.
To be continued.
Be encouraged.
Colin Campbell
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Who did God the Father invite to come to visit His newborn Son? Why was the list so small, especially considering He was the “Son of the Highest” and heir to the throne of David (Luke 1:32)?
There has never been anyone who humbled themselves us much as our Lord Jesus Christ, not even close. Humility is most often connected with His death, which without doubt, is the greatest display of His humility. However, His birth into this world also displays such amazing humility.
Matthew 12:34: “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.”
A joyous person is good to be around. Conversely, a down-in-the-mouth, morose person is hard to be around, at least for any length of time.
He whom the Son sets free is free indeed! Joy leads to a bright, shining face and this leads to spiritual joy and holiness, and this leads to worship and praises.
Men, the natural mind equates joy with good times. It is difficult for the natural mind to conceive anyone could experience joy in the midst of trials and troubles.
“The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).
“Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8).
Perhaps we could further ask, What does our nation need to hear from God that it has not already heard? The message of Jesus Christ has been abundantly available, but not necessarily made known in a direct personal way. Multitudes have not been confronted with the claims of Christ by individuals who are willing to sit down with them and take time to talk about their needs and the vacuum in their lives that drives them into drugs, al
Men, if ever there was a time when our nation needs to hear from Jesus Christ, that time is now. We face the ISIS threat, Planned Parenthood selling body parts of precious babies, the ever increasing racial divide and Black Lives Matter, destruction and mayhem in our cities, and lone wolves who take revenge into their own hands and kill innocent people. And the list could go on. At the same time, a large portion of people in the nation are taken
Luke 9:35: “And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: HEAR HIM.”
(God loves to reveal Himself through a manger mentality).
The ceremonial sword represents false Christianity. Jesus despised and hated it. The whole of Matthew 23:1-29 describes the falseness of the Pharisees. They were the epitome of the counterfeit.
Read the whole chapter of Matthew 23:1-39. The scribes and Pharisees epitomize the ceremonial sword.
Men, we must beware of the ceremonial sword. It gives the appearance of warfare, but never sees the battle. It never gets involved in hand to hand combat. It is a coward when it comes to fight it out. It may give the façade that it is involved and it may talk the talk, but it will not walk the walk.
2 Timothy 2:3, 4: “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
Deuteronomy 32:41: “If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me.”
Ephesians 6:17: “Take . . . the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
In Judges chapter 20 we read about 400,000 footmen of Israel that drew the sword who went to attack 26,000 men of the tribe of Benjamin who drew the sword. The emphasis in Judges 20:2, 15, 17, 25, and 46 is not so much about carrying or bearing the sword, but rather drawing the sword.