Day 11 The Humility of the Coss

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5)

“Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man…but he was a leper.” (2 Kings 5:1)

“And as He (Jesus) was setting ot on His journey, a man ran up and knelt before Him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?'” (Mark 10:17)

Earlier in our journey we looked at the story of the poor widow who, although poor, gave all that she had out of her poverty.  Needless to say that this was an illustration of sacrifice and humbling oneself before the Lord, but for most of us, this story is not very practical.  It is hard to relate to the widows’ life situation…to put ourselves in her shoes.  Why?  She had very little to begin with.  She was already humbled by  her circumstances.  We, on the other hand,  are a long way from having nothing.  We are practically drowning in our material possessions and our time is much too valuable to concern ourselves with such matters.

So today we look at two people in the Bible that share a position in life more common to ours and their struggle with “meekness”.  The first is a story  about a man named Naaman in 2 Kings 5.  He has a problem…leprosy.  He seeks out the prophet Elisha who he has heard can heal him.  When Naaman arrives at the home of Elisha, Elisha sends out a servant who tells Naaman to wash in the Jordan river 7 times.  Naaman, full of himself, is offended that Elisha did not come out and wave a magic wand and make a big deal out of it.  He considered this request beneath him so he refused to do it.

The second story is about a rich young ruler in Mark 10.  He is seeking eternal life.  He comes to Jesus who he heard could give him answers.  After a short conversation Jesus discovers that the man is held captive by his many possessions and tells him that he must sell all he has and then…”follow me”.  This was not something the young man wanted to do.  He refused.

One distracted by the pride of his great position and career, the other distracted by the things he had accumulated.  Both had a choice to humble themselves and submit to God’s direction or to hang on to their pride and possessions.  Both resisted by the stories ended differently.  One chose wisely…one did not.

Naaman was brought to his senses by one of his own servants and repented (changed his mind) of his arrogance.  He washed in the Jordan and was healed…inside and out.  The rich young man was “grieved” and walked away…choosing his riches over a commitment to Jesus.

Now these stories are more applicable to us today.  Most of us enjoy a comfortable position in life and have more than enough material possessions.  Neither of these things is bad…unless…unless it comes between you and humbling yourself before the Lord.  When it causes us to second guess direction from Jesus…when it becomes a barracade in our pursuit of a selfless life that can only be described by  “meekness”.

Today is a day of evaluation.  What is in your life that you are unwilling to give up to follow Jesus more fully?  What is sharing your allegience to the Lord?  Humble yourself before Him today and lay it all on the altar.