To Be Least

      Throughout the entire history of the world, it is clear that "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:6)
      Moses was one of these men who was humble, yet was used in a mighty way by God. God came to Moses in the desert through a burning bush and told him to go to the Israelites to set them free from slavery. When Moses heard this he said to the Lord, "O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue." This shows that he was not a proud man, but a man who admitted his shortcomings and faults. Because he had little confidence in his own ability, God allowed Aaron to go with him. The Bible says this of Moses, "Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth." (Numbers 12:3) Yet God used him to lead all of Israel. He was considered the greatest prophet. (Deut. 34:10) A extremely humble man was used in enormous ways.
      Later, Gideon was another man who God used. When God came to him and told him to attack the Midianites who were oppressing Israel. However Gideon replied, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family." (Judges 6:15) Despite the fact that his clan was the weakest and he was the least, God used Gideon to defeat the Midianites. Again, God wanted the least to do something great.
      David was another example of God's giving grace to the humble. David was the youngest in his family. Unlike his older brothers who went off to battle, David had the low job of tending the sheep. Yet it was David, the young shepherd, who killed the giant named Goliath. He was not as impressive as his older brothers, yet God chose him to become the anointed king of Israel. God chose the man who was the least to lead the entire nation of Israel.

      Many years later, Jesus Christ taught that "whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Did not God do exactly this in the Old Testament when he exalted those who were humble to positions of authority. Jesus was also a living example of this. He, the Son of God, humbled himself down to the position of being a mere human. However, he did not stop there, he washed his disciples feet which is something only a servant would do.
      In Revelations, God says to the church of Laodicea, "Because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked." (Rev. 3:16-17) This church was being warned that God would spit them out. Why? Because they were proud with what they had. They were so proud that they thought that they did not need a thing. However, God showed them that they are "wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked." Obviously God opposed the pride of this church. He was going to humble this church that had exalted itself.
      God opposes the proud, but he exalts the humble. If we want God to do anything with our lives, we must learn to humble ourselves.