As I seek to learn more about and live this idea of humility, God speaks to my heart each and every day. I find that where I fall most short is in feeling pride about areas in which, supposedly, I am doing so great. Even as I draw nearer to God on this daily spiritual journey, sense His presence more acutely in my life, see areas where finally I am submitting to Him and not following my own way, I mar these things with my sudden puffed-up sense of, "Well, look at me! Finally pulled it together after all these years!" And the truth is, it's not me at all. It's simply God fulfilling His promises and granting me His grace and fellowship.
Recently I felt this puffing up while thinking about sin. While I've had many conversations about and have claimed to understand that all sin is equal in God's eyes, I've still gone around thinking that those who are committing those really "obvious", horrifying sins (you know, adultery, murder and the like) were much worse off than I am. And through some wise words by my husband, followed by a reminder in Scripture, I see that, truly, we ALL fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and are therefore ALL punishable by the ultimate penalty, death. Yet we are "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:24). Therefore the sins that I daily commit (and, oh, do I...sigh) are no different, in the end, than those that might be seen as worse in the world's eyes.
I desire to follow the example of Christ Jesus "who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant...He HUMBLED himself..." (Phil. 2:6-7)
"To think of oneself as nothing, and always to think well and highly of others is the best and most perfect wisdom. Wherefore, if you see another sin openly or commit a serious crime, do not consider yourself better, for you do not know how long you can remain in good estate. All men are frail, but you must admit that none is more frail than yourself." -Thomas a Kempis
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