Embracing Humility: God's Call to Prayer and Mercy

Devotional

Day 1: God's Initiative in Humbling

Self-humbling is initiated by God, often through challenging circumstances. Our role is to respond by submitting to His will rather than resisting and exalting ourselves. This process begins with God's Word and is completed through prayer. [00:48]

"For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: 'I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.'" (Isaiah 57:15, ESV)

Reflection: Think of a recent challenge you faced. How did you respond, and how might you have responded differently if you had seen it as an opportunity for God to humble you?

Day 2: Cultivating Humility Through Scripture

Engaging with Scripture regularly cultivates humility in our souls, preparing us to respond appropriately when God humbles us. This practice is essential for spiritual growth and alignment with God's will. [01:15]

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17, ESV)

Reflection: What specific time each day can you dedicate to reading Scripture, and how can you ensure this time is protected from distractions?

Day 3: The Power of Self-Humbling Prayer

The story of King Manasseh illustrates God's readiness to show mercy to those who humble themselves, even if they have been exceedingly wicked. This demonstrates the power of self-humbling prayer to move God's heart. [05:27]

"And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God." (2 Chronicles 33:12-13, ESV)

Reflection: Is there an area of your life where you need to humble yourself before God in prayer? What steps can you take today to begin this process?

Day 4: Mercy for the Humble

King Ahab's story shows that even the most notorious sinners can find mercy through self-humbling. God's response to Ahab's humility highlights His willingness to extend grace to those who genuinely seek it. [08:36]

"And when Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about dejectedly. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 'Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; but in his son's days I will bring the disaster upon his house.'" (1 Kings 21:27-29, ESV)

Reflection: Consider a sin or failure in your life. How can you approach God with genuine humility to seek His mercy and grace today?

Day 5: The Invitation to Unceasing Prayer

The New Testament's call to unceasing prayer is an invitation to access God's mercy, not a burden. It encourages us to approach God with humility, trusting in His readiness to show grace to those who come before Him in prayer. [09:50]

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." (Romans 12:12, ESV)

Reflection: How can you incorporate unceasing prayer into your daily routine, and what reminders can you set to help you remain constant in prayer throughout the day?

Sermon Summary

Humility is a virtue that the Bible commends, while pride is something it condemns. As Christians, we often ask, "How do I humble myself?" This question is crucial, yet the answer might surprise us. Self-humbling is not a task we can schedule or accomplish on our own. It begins with God's initiative. He acts first, often through difficult circumstances, and then asks us to respond by humbling ourselves. The question is whether we will submit to His will or resist and exalt ourselves.

To prepare for these moments of humbling, we can cultivate certain habits. Engaging with God's Word regularly instills humility in our souls, enabling us to respond appropriately when God humbles us. Prayer, both individual and corporate, completes this cycle of humility. It shapes our souls and prepares us for life's humbling moments. The book of Second Chronicles emphasizes self-humbling, particularly through prayer. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God calls His people to humble themselves and pray, promising to hear and heal them.

The story of King Manasseh in 2 Chronicles 33 illustrates God's readiness to show mercy to those who humble themselves. Despite being one of the most wicked kings, Manasseh's self-humbling and prayer moved God to restore him. Similarly, King Ahab, another notoriously wicked king, found mercy when he humbled himself before God. These stories demonstrate that God's ears are attuned to the cries of humble prayer, even from the vilest offenders.

For us, who are in Christ, the call to unceasing prayer is an invitation to access God's mercy. It is not a burden or a means to earn His favor but an opportunity to approach a God who is eager to show grace to those who come humbly before Him. As Romans 12:12 and Colossians 4:2 encourage, we should be constant and steadfast in prayer, trusting in God's readiness to extend mercy to us.

Key Takeaways

1. Self-humbling is initiated by God, often through challenging circumstances. Our role is to respond by submitting to His will rather than resisting and exalting ourselves. This process begins with God's Word and is completed through prayer. [00:48]
2. Engaging with Scripture regularly cultivates humility in our souls, preparing us to respond appropriately when God humbles us. This practice is essential for spiritual growth and alignment with God's will. [01:15]
3. The story of King Manasseh illustrates God's readiness to show mercy to those who humble themselves, even if they have been exceedingly wicked. This demonstrates the power of self-humbling prayer to move God's heart. [05:27]
4. King Ahab's story shows that even the most notorious sinners can find mercy through self-humbling. God's response to Ahab's humility highlights His willingness to extend grace to those who genuinely seek it. [08:36]
5. The New Testament's call to unceasing prayer is an invitation to access God's mercy, not a burden. It encourages us to approach God with humility, trusting in His readiness to show grace to those who come before Him in prayer. [09:50]
** [09:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:17] - The Question of Humility
[00:32] - God's Initiative in Humbling
[01:02] - Preparing for Humbling Moments
[01:29] - The Role of Prayer
[02:00] - Self-Humbling in 2 Chronicles
[02:25] - God's Actions and Our Response
[03:25] - The Story of King Manasseh
[04:07] - Manasseh's Wickedness and God's Mercy
[05:00] - Manasseh's Prayer and Restoration
[06:00] - The Story of King Ahab
[07:07] - Ahab's Wickedness and God's Warning
[08:08] - Ahab's Surprising Response
[09:05] - God's Mercy on Ahab
[09:36] - The Invitation to Unceasing Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide: Humility and Prayer

Bible Reading:

2 Chronicles 7:13-14
2 Chronicles 33:11-13
1 Kings 21:19-29

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Observation Questions:

According to 2 Chronicles 7:13-14, what actions does God take before calling His people to humble themselves and pray? How does this reflect God's initiative in the humbling process? [02:25]
In the story of King Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33:11-13), what circumstances led him to humble himself before God? What was God's response to his prayer? [05:00]
How did King Ahab respond to Elijah's prophecy in 1 Kings 21:19-29, and what was God's reaction to Ahab's actions? [08:21]
What role does prayer play in the process of self-humbling according to the sermon? [01:44]

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Interpretation Questions:

How does the context of 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 help us understand the relationship between God's actions and our response in prayer? Why is it significant that God acts first? [02:25]
What does the story of King Manasseh teach us about God's readiness to show mercy to those who humble themselves, regardless of their past actions? [05:27]
In what ways does King Ahab's story illustrate the unexpected nature of God's mercy? How does this challenge our understanding of who can receive God's grace? [08:36]
How does the sermon suggest that regular engagement with Scripture and prayer prepares us for moments of humbling? What might this preparation look like in practical terms? [01:15]

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Application Questions:

Reflect on a time when you faced a challenging circumstance. How did you respond? In what ways can you see God's initiative in that situation, and how might you respond differently now? [00:48]
Consider your current prayer habits. How can you incorporate more self-humbling prayer into your daily routine? What specific steps will you take to make this a consistent practice? [01:44]
The sermon highlights the importance of engaging with Scripture to cultivate humility. What specific plan can you create to engage with God's Word more regularly? [01:15]
Think about a situation where you might be resisting God's will. What would it look like to submit to His will instead? How can you seek God's guidance in this area through prayer? [00:48]
The stories of Manasseh and Ahab show that even the most notorious sinners can find mercy through self-humbling. Is there someone in your life who you find difficult to forgive? How can you extend grace to them, inspired by God's example? [08:36]
Romans 12:12 and Colossians 4:2 encourage steadfast prayer. What distractions or obstacles prevent you from being constant in prayer, and how can you address them this week? [09:50]
How can you encourage others in your small group or community to embrace the practice of self-humbling prayer? What role can you play in fostering a culture of humility and prayer? [09:50]

Sermon Clips

Self-humbling is not something that we just up and do. It's not a dream project that we put together and do in our own time frame. Self-humbling comes at God's initiative. He moves first, he acts first, he humbles us with his mighty hand and then the question comes, will you humble yourself in response to God's initiative, his action, his difficult providences or will you kick against the goats, will you push back and exalt yourself? [00:28:64]

There are some habits and practices in our lives that we can put into place to prepare us for those humbling moments in our lives. First, there's God's word. God's revealed himself in his word. How we engage his word on a daily and weekly basis cultivates a certain humility in our souls to be able to respond to God properly in those moments of humbling. [00:62:32]

Self-humbling begins with God's word, but prayer completes the cycle of humbling in our lives. And self-humbling is one of the great themes of the book of Second Chronicles in the Old Testament and in particular, the first text on self-humbling is one about prayer. Perhaps you've heard Second Chronicles 7:14 before. [01:04:56]

God acts first. He shuts up the heavens, he commands the locust, he sends pestilence, he humbles his people, and then the question comes, will you humble yourself? Second Chronicles chapter 33 gives an extraordinary example of how God hears the prayers of the self-humbling and God's readiness to pour out his mercy even on the most wicked of kings if they'll only humble themselves before him in prayer. [01:80:88]

Manasseh is on record in the Old Testament as one of the most wicked of the kings. He ruled about seven centuries before Christ. His father Hezekiah was a good king, but Manasseh is remembered for his evil. Second Kings chapter 21 verse 11, because Manasseh has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all that the Amorites did who were before him and has made the nation also to sin with his idols. [03:16:15]

Second Chronicles chapter 33 tells the story of God's amazing mercy on him because of his and the nation's evil. Second Chronicles 33:11-13, the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of brawn and brought him to Babylon. And when he was in duress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. [04:87:59]

How ready our God is to respond to the cries of help of his humble people. How attuned are his ears to the sound of self-humbling prayer. God was moved, God heard the plea of this wicked king and provided a rescue even for one so wicked as Manasseh. [05:36:00]

Ahab, you may know, had a wife named Jezebel who's also wicked. He was king about 900 years before Christ. His arch enemy was a prophet Elijah, and Ahab wanted control of this vineyard owned by a man named Nabath, and Nabath didn't want to trade or sell. He had been in the family for years. He wanted to hold on to the vineyard. [06:64:80]

When Ahab heard the words of Elijah, he tore his clothes, he put on sackcloth, he fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about dejectedly. This is quite the surprise response, and this occasions us to be privy to what God says to Elijah. This is amazing. This is the words of God to Elijah after sackcloth and ashes from Ahab. [07:75:19]

Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days, but in his son's days, I will bring the disaster upon his house. Now that's a measured reprieve for sure. Disaster will still come, it will come upon Ahab's son, but that's a real mercy too. God doesn't bring the disaster in Ahab's day, wicked as he was, because of this moment of self-humbling and coming before God for rescue. [08:11:28]

The ears of our God love to hear self-humbling prayer even from the vilest of offenders. And if kings so wicked as two of the worst on record in the Old Testament, Manasseh and Ahab, found God's mercy in self-humbling prayer, how much more do we who are in Christ have reason to seek God's mercy in prayer, to come before him in self-humbling prayer. [09:45:76]

Unceasing prayer is an invitation to access the God whose ear is so ready to show mercy on those who come humbly before him. And so Romans 12:12 says be constant in prayer, Colossians 4:2 continue steadfastly in prayer, because this is our God. If he would show such mercy to the sound of self-humbling prayer for two wicked kings, what grace will he show us as we come to him humbling ourselves in prayer when we're in Christ. [09:94:39]

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Embracing Humility: God's Call to Prayer and Mercy

Devotional

Day 1: God's Initiative in Humbling

Day 2: Cultivating Humility Through Scripture

Day 3: The Power of Self-Humbling Prayer

Day 4: Mercy for the Humble

Day 5: The Invitation to Unceasing Prayer

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

Embracing Humility: God's Call to Prayer and Mercy

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