Depend on God, not yourself!

By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but Him who sent me. ~John 5:30 (NIV)

In John 5:30 Jesus reveals to us His unceasing dependence upon God.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could say those words “By myself I can do nothing” or "I judge only as I hear"?  We wouldn’t have to pull our foot out of our mouth near as often nor find ourselves back at "square one"!  We start at a very young age wanting to do everything by ourselves because we want our independence.  We want to do things our way.  Our pride does not take to submission very well and especially submission to God’s will.  His will, more often than not, goes against everything our fleshly nature wants.  Therefore, on many occasions we must learn humility through suffering righteously.   Suffering righteously is maintaining Godly character in the midst of adversity and oftentimes unjust adversity.  Forgiving and loving others and learning to see adverse situations as opportunities to grow in character and humility are part of our destiny.  Jesus said blessed are those who are poor in spirit.  To be poor in spirit is to be humble.  It is the ability to recognize your spiritual need for Jesus.  Those who are prideful tend to think they can handle this life on their own but those of us who have come to Christ have realized “on our own” is no place we ever want to be found again.  We know that life is messy, and we know that on our own we can make that mess even worse.  We need Christ like we need air.  Apart from Him we should know in our heart of hearts that we are in trouble!  Oh, we can jump on board with all kinds of ideas and schemes that promise to bring us all the things the Lord has promised but in the end they leave us bankrupt and broken.  Just like we cannot buy our way to heaven, we cannot buy any of the blessings of God.  Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (NIV)  We may have plenty of bread but that doesn’t mean we have plenty of life!

The Urban Dictionary defines “suck it up” as a military slang meaning “to endure a period of mental, physical, or emotional hardship with no complaining”.  That sounds a lot like what Jesus did as we read Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.” (NIV)  Jesus was our example and in the midst of facing death, He put His life in God’s hands.  He trusted in God to provide whatever it was He needed, and He waited on God.  Submission and humility are traditionally our least favorite bible study topics, yet these are what we struggle with the most.  Suffering righteously was Jesus’ call and as His disciples it is ours as well.  It is how He was a light to the world and how we will be a light in our world.  Ask the Lord to strengthen your heart to follow Him more closely in humble submission trusting He is sovereign and good!

For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God.  But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it?  But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps. ~1 Peter 2:19-21 (NIV)

What is the Lord telling you to do that just doesn’t seem fair or just or even right? What have you learned regarding submission and humility?

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