The Hard Work of Humility

Since I pastor a local church and have been in church leadership for 40 years, I follow the church world fairly closely. During times of crisis or transition and around elections, Christians often quote 2 Chronicles 7:14. The setting for the oft quoted verse is the completion of Solomon’s Temple. Solomon prayed a dedication prayer over the Temple and prayed for God’s favor and blessing. He then petitioned God to show mercy and forgiveness, when the people of God sinned against God and other people. One night following the dedication of the Temple, God appeared to Solomon in the night and spoke to him. “At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or command grasshoppers to devour your crops, or send plagues among you. Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place.” (2 Chronicles 7:12-15 NLT) God spoke the promise to Solomon regarding times when God might bring and allow hardship on His people. “At times I might shut up the heavens and no rain will fall; I might send grasshoppers and plagues.” It is under those conditions that God gave Solomon, his descendants and the people of God the if/then promise “IF my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, [THEN] I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” My experience is that Christians emphasize the middle part of the verses, “pray and seek my face,” but not so much on the beginning, “humble themselves,” and the end “turn from their wicked ways.” Prayer and seeking God’s face are the convenient and simpler portion of the verses. Humbling ourselves and turning from wicked ways is inconvenient and hard to do. The humbling process is hard and painful. Who of us enjoys admitting that they are ignorant, selfish, self-centered, and wrong? God requires humility AND turning from wickedness for him to hear our prayers. “Know-it-all” attitudes, pettiness and judgmentalism expose the sins of pride and arrogance. “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6 I’m on a crusade to humble myself! I depend on God’s grace, so I must humble myself.