Based on “The Name of Jesus – Confess and Bow” by Pastor Mark Balmer;
8/14-15/10, Message #6059; Daily Devotional #3 - “Pride Reduction Surgery, Part 2”
Preparing the Soil (Introduction): “I AM he,” Jesus said (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) As Jesus said “I am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! (John 18:5-6, NLT) Jesus completes His mission on earth in this chapter of John. His time had come to atone for the sins of man. There are a couple things that puzzle me in this story. First, did the men recognize Jesus was Lord when they fell? Second, if so, did they choose to ignore the fact that He was the Son of God? We know that in the last days every knee will bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. I wonder how many will do so willingly? (Philippians 2:10-11)
Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth): Some of my favorite passages of Scripture are found in the latter chapters of John. I think the chapter that touches my heart the most is John 17. Jesus prays not only for His disciples but future believers as well. We see God humbling Himself, coming to earth in human form to atone for our sin, yet, He still prayed for us. Amazing! We know that He agonized in the garden over having to face His death on the cross (Luke 22:41-43). But, even though fear had come, He humbly accepted the Father’s will and did so willingly.
Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): Jesus showed us true humility. And we are to practice this humility in our lives. It is so hard to do, isn’t it? Our world is so focused on power, prestige, and position. If we are not careful to submit to the Lord, we will find ourselves battling in these areas. We are to humble ourselves as Christ did for us. Jesus gave us a valuable lesson in humility. He said, “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited? The host will come and say ‘Give this person your seat!’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table! “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:8-11, NLT) When it comes right down to it, none of us deserves Christ’s sacrifice, regardless of what position we hold in our society. We are all sinners that deserve hell. But Christ, in His great love, died for you and me. When we look at things from that perspective, we should immediately bow down and thank our Lord and Savior for the precious gift He gave us. He is Lord; we are not. He humbled himself for us. Shouldn’t we humble ourselves before Him? When we live a life of humility, then and only then can we love and serve others like Christ. I often wonder what heaven will be like. I imagine just the sight of Jesus will make us fall on our knees to worship Him. I know in my quiet time at home I should practice this a bit more. It will allow me to strip away that pride that causes me so much trouble.
Cultivating (Additional Reading): Philippians 2; John 17-18
HS
Calvary Chapel of Melbourne; 2955 Minton Road; W. Melbourne, FL 32904; 321-952-9673
All Bible references are from the New International Version (NIV) unless otherwise noted.
New Living Translation = NLT.