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THE POWER OF THANKSGIVING
Part Twelve - Connecting to Humility

  Thanks be to God who ALWAYS causes us to triumph in Christ - 2 Corinthians 2:14

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 By: Dr. Bill Miller                                                   Volume XV Number 7                                                  March 4, 2012

 

Greetings in the Name of Jesus and welcome to the PLN Sunday Night Bible Fellowship!

 

One of the main observations we've been making in this series is that the Word of God clearly INSTRUCTS us to pursue a lifestyle that's built around THANKSGIVING and gratitude. It's been a few weeks since we last listed for you the entire list of ten THANKSGIVING scriptures we've selected to demonstrate this point so here they are once again as a reminder, not quoted verbatim but as an expression of the central thought from each scripture:

 

1 Corinthians 15:57 - Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through Christ.

2 Corinthians 2:14 - Thanks be to God who always causes us to triumph in Christ.

Ephesians 5:20 - Give thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 1:12 - Give thanks to the Father for the inheritance we have received.

Colossians 2:7 - We are to be firmly rooted in Christ, established in our faith and overflowing with thanksgiving.

Colossians 3:17 - In all that we do we are to do it in the name of Jesus giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Colossians 4:2 - We are to devote ourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 - It is God's WILL for us who are in Christ that we give thanks for everything.

1 Timothy 4:4 - Everything created by God is good and should be received with thanksgiving.

Hebrews 13:15 - Let us continually give thanks to the name of Jesus.

 

Most people are NOT very grateful and thankful, and we're especially not grateful and thankful where God is concerned. Either we take credit for all the good stuff He does or we don't even notice it because we're so focused on our problems. Or worse we blame Him for the problems instead of the enemy. Therefore as we've pointed out, the INSTRUCTIONS to be thankful are there for our own good. It's not that God wants all this THANKSGIVING for Himself so we can fulfill some religious obligation; no, it's that THANKSGIVING connects us to His GRACE which is the very empowerment that we need to overcome our problems:

 

"...let us draw near with confidence to the throne or GRACE, so that we may receive mercy and find GRACE to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

 

How do we draw near to the throne of GRACE? As we've also discussed in previous articles, it's a law of the Kingdom that GRATITUDE attracts and connects us to GRACE. Likewise, IN-gratitude disconnects us from GRACE and opens the door to the Destroyer (Romans 1:21-22 and 1 Corinthians 10:10). So a sincere attitude of THANKSGIVING is one of the ways we're able to draw near to the throne of GRACE.  

 

The Role of Humility

 

Now in a previous article we've already discussed that our THANKSGIVING has to be sincere. We can't just walk around thanking God by rote or out of tradition with an empty mind while we watch TV; He calls that lip service (Isaiah 29:13-14). Sincerity comes from renewed thinking about life once we finally come to the full appreciation for how much the Lord has done for us and how much we didn't deserve for Him to do anything at all. He could've just left us out there in the domain of darkness (Colossians 1:13) because the truth is that's what we deserved. That's why GRACE is defined as God's unmeritedFAVOR: it's because we don't deserve to be able to connect to it. Jesus made all that possible because of what He did at the Cross and we had absolutely nothing to do with it except believe. It's impossible for the GRACE of God to come to us by any particular work that we do because then it wouldn't be unmerited. GRACE is a free gift of God and not a result of our works in any form (Ephesians 2:8-9). No, because of what Jesus accomplished at the Cross, God has already released His GRACE and it's available to those who want to connect to it is by FAITH.

 

If you think about it, under the New Covenant everything good that comes to us comes by GRACE in the sense that it springs from God's FAVOR and is totally unmerited. We need His GRACE to do anything: to overcome our problems, to progress in the Kingdom, to grow in knowledge and wisdom, to breathe in the air every day, etc. So as a Believer I should want to become an expert in connecting to God's GRACE which I'll find out about by studying and becoming proficient in His Word. Indeed, some of the key concepts our studies will bring us to are in the following verses:

 

1 Peter 5:5-7 = "...be subject one to another and clothe yourselves with HUMILITY, for God resists the proud, and gives GRACE to the HUMBLE. Therefore, HUMBLE yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon Him..."

 

So, HUMILITY connects us to the GRACE of God and that's a really good thing to know. But we also need to consider that PRIDE which is the opposite of HUMILITY works the other way: the Lord RESISTS prideful folks instead of empowering them. In other words, they're disconnected from His GRACE and have only their own strength and abilities at their disposal to get them out of trouble which is a losing proposition. Is it possible that today we have a lot of Believers who go to local churches every Sunday and may even be reading their Bibles once in awhile who're in this prideful category?

 

So now you might say, "well now wait a minute: I thought GRACE was unmerited. I thought you said I couldn't connect to GRACE with my works."  And I'm still saying it. HUMILITY is not something you can work up to impress God. No, HUMILITY is an inward attribute that's been developed over a period of time within the individual Believer. Either it's manifesting or it isn't. So then my next question ought to be: how can I manifest more HUMILITY?

 

Developing Humility

 

Biblical HUMILITY becomes stronger as a result of mind renewal by allowing the Word through the illumination of the Holy Spirit to bring about the intended fruit. And I want to emphasize here that this is NOT a purely intellectual process. Indeed, it seems like some of the most prideful people around are the folks in the Body of Christ who think they've learned almost everything there is to know about the Word of God and have all the answers. They can even impress us by quoting Scripture to show off all their knowledge. But they haven't allowed the Holy Spirit to bring about the proper balance between all that knowledge and HUMILITY which is after all one of the nine fruit (meekness) of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:23) .     

 

 We don't come into the Kingdom of God already HUMBLE and most folks aren't going to get that way overnight. We're used to doing things on our own and we don't like it when other people try to tell us we ought to change what we're doing or the way we think about things especially cultural and traditional things that we find out don't agree with the Word. From the moment we're born again the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us and starts working on us so we can come to increasingly manifest those nine fruits. You'll notice that LOVE is listed as the first of those fruits (Galatians 5:22) and because God IS love (1 John 4:8, 16), all of the fruits of the Holy Spirit including HUMILITY are grounded in and spring from the unconditional, self-sacrificing kind of LOVE (agape) that God actually IS.

 

It's not so easy to become HUMBLE and I know this from personal experience. But fortunately the Apostle Peter wrote down some specific observations about HUMILITY recorded as 1 Peter 5:5-10 that'll help all of us to develop a better understanding of it keeping in mind that it's something we need so we can connect to greater GRACE:

 

1)      In verse 5, younger people should submit to the more experienced older people. To submit means to come under someone's influence or authority, to yield instead of confront and contend with it. The modern nature of young people is to disrespect and dishonor older people.

 

2)      In the same verse we're also to submit to each other in the Body of Christ which then covers us with HUMILITY. We don't like it when other people try to tell us what to do but HUMILITY says I have to put the interests of other people above my own. That's what the Greek word agape means: sacrificing LOVE. God IS agape LOVE.

 

3)      In verse 6, we're instructed to come under "the mighty hand of God" which is to say the DIRECTION, AUTHORITY, CONTROL and PROTECTION of God so He may exalt us in due time. The alternative is to resist (or ignore) the authority of God and insist on doing things our own way and in our own strength by the flesh.

 

4)      The expression "due term" suggests that we're to be content with His timing and not insist on ours.

 

5)      We're to cast all our anxieties on Him instead of worrying about them all the time and trying to solve things by the flesh. Prideful Believers are those who insist on carrying their own burdens because they don't feel they can trust God to work things out the way they want them to be.

 

6)      In verses 8-9 we're to be alert to and by FAITH resist our adversary the devil ourselves. This is our job and it's prideful to ask God to do something for us He's already instructed and empowered us to do. And the truth is He's already resisted the devil too and won everything for us. Now by the authority He has delegated to us,  it's our turn to overcome the devil by the Name of Jesus. HUMILITY says: I accept my assignment and I understand my authority; I will try to not be afraid or negligent in carrying out my assignment. If I am ever negligent, I will take responsibility for it and not blame the Lord for something I messed up myself. And I'm not going to be complaining to Him about what the devil is doing in my life because He's already given me what I need in order to deal with it myself.

 

7)      Also, I understand that even strong Believers have to deal with afflictions but by HUMILITY I am confident that those afflictions WILL be overcome by Christ working through me on my behalf. Consequently I don't blame God for my afflictions, they're part of life and I maintain my GRATEFUL attitude by keeping my focus on the good things God is doing in my life instead of my problems.

 

8)      And finally I'm content to "suffer" in FAITH and JOY until by the GRACE of God I'm eventually exalted.

 

There's a lot to consider in these few verses, more than first meets the eye. But hopefully it's already apparent to you that HUMILITY connects back to our previous messages on the subject of GIVING THANKS. Indeed, HUMBLE Believers are THANKFUL people. Those two things ALWAYS go together. HUMBLE people are also SINCERE in their love and honor and regard and appreciation for the Lord, and they're working to LOVE their brothers and sisters in the Family of God.

 

In sum, a HUMBLE person is someone who depends on God and God only for everything. Do you want more of God's GRACE in your life? I know I do and HUMILITY is a major factor for acquiring it. But the reality is nobody comes to it without a struggle. So, we need to ask the Lord to help us with it and He'll be mighty pleased to do that for us. Friend, with His help and by FAITH we WILL grow in HUMILITY and in due season it'll be connecting us to overflowing GRACE and victory.

 

Thanks for dropping by tonight. We'll be looking for you again next Sunday evening, March 4and we hope you'll join us each Sunday night as we continue to study the subject of THANKSGIVING. May God bless you and your family with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3).

 

Sinners' Prayer

 

If you've never invited Jesus to be the Lord of your life, you need to and you can do it today just by saying out loud the following simple prayer:

 

Jesus I declare today with all my heart that I believe in you and that God raised you from the dead. I receive forgiveness for my sins and I ask you to come into my life today and be my Lord and Savior. Thank you for salvation and eternal life.

 

If you were sincere as you prayed this prayer, God has already come into your life and you are a new creation, a totally new species recreated in His image. Now ask the Lord to lead you to a good faith-based, bible-teaching church where you can be equipped to fulfill your potential in the Kingdom of God.

 

And, when you get a chance have someone help you look up the following scriptures because they confirm what you've done by saying this prayer today and believing what you said:

 

Romans 10:9

2 Corinthians 5:17

Ephesians 2:8

 

Prayer Requests

 

If you have a Prayer Request, please connect to the Link below and follow the promptings. The PLN staff members pray over Prayer Requests every Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM eastern time. Agree with us for God to answer your petition.

 

http://www.creditcounseling.net/prayer-request.aspx

 

Donations

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