Humble Yourself Before The Lord

At 4 am this morning, I was thinking of winnowing, potsherds, Zedekiah and a time in my life when a song by Second Chapter of Acts helped me.

John the Baptist said that Jesus winnows out chaff and collects wheat. [1]

Jeremiah told religious leaders that they would become like the broken potsherds that were disposed of outside their city. The blood of innocent children sacrificed to idols was on their hands. They refused to repent. [2] Americans have torn millions of babies from the wombs of mothers. Many have been warned not to sacrifice these unborn babies on the altars of their own convenience but did it anyway.

Zedekiah was a king who feared people more than God. He put his chips on people rather than on God and lost. The King of Babylon slaughtered his sons before his eyes. Afterwards, his eyes were put out and he was bound with bronze shackles. [3]

The song, “Humble Yourself” by the Second Chapter of Acts came to me during a difficult time in my life. I was trying to learn Mandarin. We were staying in a missionary’s home while he was on furlough because we had no place of our own. We had little money. Sherry was suffering. A fellow missionary advised me that the only way up is down. Her words upset me because I thought to myself, “How much lower can I go?” But the Lord confirmed that word through the lyrics of the song, “Humble Yourself.”

[Verse 1]

“You pick the crown
And you have found
Pride comes before a stumble
The bigger you are
The harder you fall
Don’t harden your heart
When you hear Him Call

[Verse 2]

Don’t think of yourself as overly smart
God uses your mind
But looks to the heart
To see if your thoughts are open and true
Cause He really cares what you’ve been up to

[Verse 3]

Don’t worry or fret
You’ll get what you need
The flowers He clothes
The sparrow He feeds
And you will receive a greater reward
By putting your faith and trust in the Lord

[Chorus]

Humble yourself before the Lord
Humble yourself
Humble yourself before the Lord
Humble yourself” [4]

After I humbled myself before the Lord, He did come through for me. The Lord winnowed out the chaff from my life and preserved its wheat. As soft clay in His hands I was not shattered. I was shaped. The Lord did lift me up.

[1] Luke 3:17
[2] Jeremiah 19
[3] Jeremiah 39:3-7
[4] Songwriters: Anne Herring / Jim Tenneboe, Humble Yourself lyrics © Latter Rain Music, Emi Christian Music Pub Obo Latter Rain Music, Midi Mouse Music