Original Entry:
October 12, 2011
McMinnville, OR
A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly
spirit gains honor. Proverbs 29:23
Last night I chewed
out one of our starting linebackers. JJ
is a good kid. He is strong and athletic, but has never played football. This week he broke into the starting line up
but has a bad habit. He stands straight
up looking for the ball making him and is an easy target for a hungry fullback.
Football has a
saying, “The low man wins.” The lowest
man has greater leverage. The lowest man
is not exposed. The lowest man has more
power. The low man wins.
“The low man wins” is
a great advice for the man of God.
Didn’t Jesus say, “Lo, I am with you always…” (Matthew 28:20
KJB)!
Just kidding.
The prideful man will
get knocked down as he stands proudly above the rest. The Bible says, “He who exalts himself will be humbled but the one who humbles himself
will be exalted” (Luke 14:11). The tall and proud
eventually get knocked down.
Look at what happens to
the humble. Proverbs 29:23 tells us that “the
lowly in spirit gain honor.”
It is the humble that is lifted up. The tall
and proud have no room left to stand but the humble man has no where else to go
but up.
In 1 Peter 5:6 we also read, “Humble yourselves under God’s mighty hand
and he will lift you up in due time.”
Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs
is the kingdom of God” (Matthew 5:3). The humble are used by God. The proud have no use for God. The humble man depends on God as the proud
man depends on himself.
The proud man is the
charlatan. The humble man is close to
the heart of Jesus, “Who being in nature
God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped but humbled
himself” (Philippians 2:6).
The low man wins.
