6.13- Suffering and humility must come before maturity.

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 6.13-

Suffering and humility must come before maturity.  We must learn not to rely on ourselves and our strength, but upon God’s strength.  This is difficult for most of us humans.  The false gods we make in our hearts must be crushed before God can rebuild us.  The grapes must be crushed before the good wine of God’s goodness can flow out of us.  We must let go of our old life before God can give us His new life in us.  As the Gaither song says, “Sometimes it takes a mountain or a desert to get ahold of us.”  We must learn to give up on being our own god and controlling everything and trust God as our guide and shepherd in life.

This is not easy.  Jesus said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  What do I mean then by this is not easy.  I mean that human selfishness is our human nature.  We have to let go of this in order to have a great life.  A life that is great is a life of being fruitful and helpful to others.

Matthew 11.

28 “Come to Me, all [v]who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find [w]rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”

2 Corinthians 1.23

23 But I call God as witness to my soul, that it was to spare you that I did not come again to Corinth. 24 Not that we domineer over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy; for in your faith you are standing firm.

Titus 3.14

14 Our people must also learn to engage in good [c]deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unproductive.

 

 


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