Humility-- The Key to Spiritual Freedom

[Ramez5]

A story of how a great man's pride almost prevented him from being healed....

Naaman was the captain of the army of the king of Aram. He was very important to his king because the Lord used him to lead Aram to victory. Naaman was a great and powerful man, but he was also sick with leprosy.

The Aramean army sent many groups of soldiers to fight in Israel. One time they took a little girl from the land of Israel. This girl became a servant of Naaman’s wife. She said to his wife, “I wish that my master would meet the prophet who lives in Samaria. He could heal Naaman of his leprosy.”
Naaman went to the king and told him what the Israelite girl said.

Then the king of Aram said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” ..... The letter said: “Now this letter is to show that I am sending my servant Naaman to you. Cure his leprosy.”
When the king of Israel had read the letter, he tore his clothes to show he was sad and upset. He said, “Am I God? I don’t have the power over life and death!......

Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes. So Elisha sent this message to the king: “Why did you tear your clothes? Let Naaman come to me. Then he will know there is a prophet in Israel.”

So Naaman came with his horses and chariots to Elisha’s house and stood outside the door. Elisha sent a messenger to Naaman who said, “Go and wash in the Jordan River seven times. Then your skin will be healed, and you will be pure and clean.”

Naaman became angry and left. He said, “I thought Elisha would at least come out and stand in front of me and call on the name of the Lord his God. I thought he would wave his hand over my body and heal the leprosy. Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, are better than all the water in Israel. Why can’t I wash in those rivers in Damascus and become clean?” He was very angry and turned to leave.

But Naaman’s servants went to him and talked to him. They said, “Father,if the prophet told you to do some great thing, you would do it, isn’t that right? But he said, ‘Wash, and you will be pure and clean."

So Naaman did what the man of God said. He went down and dipped himself in the Jordan River seven times, and he became pure and clean. His skin became soft like the skin of a baby. From ESV reading plan for Nov.5 2 Kings 5

To think that Naaman almost didn't get healed.. because he wasn't willing to humble himself and obey the command of the prophet! But sometimes, we are just like him. We let our pride stop God's work in our hearts because we start to think we are ok.



When diseased sinners are content to do any thing, to submit to any thing, to part with any thing, for a cure, then, and not till then, is there any hope of them. Matthew Henry


The Lord has been showing me in so many ways this week.. just how much pride still trips me up. I have always had a pride problem and the Lord has done a lot to teach me humility, but as I have said so many times before.. the flesh.. never changes. The pride is still there and every now and then the Lord has to remind me of that. How grateful I am that He shows me.. and that he gladly subdues that in me!

The Lord has, I feel, been asking me, more and more.. to be 'like Him'. He took on himself the form of a servant. Do I really want to be a servant? How much am I willing to lay down my life and obey and do whatever task He sets before me? Can I really take the 'lower place'? You don't know, till he puts you in that place. Then.. what sort of reactions come?

By His grace, which astonishes me more and more as I see it working out in my life, I have been able to simply walk through the doors of service he opens for me. That doesn't bother me at all. Yes--it's amazing and it's not me--it's Jesus. But still I thank Him for that.

But recently, I found myself thinking I 'understood' a situation.. only to find out I did not. He showed me that I was not walking in 'his' wisdom so much as my own. I thought I was listening and caring, but I wasn't. It took someone I loved dearly, to show me that. Pride causes conflict between us and those we love. I needed to be humble.. and am praying the Lord will keep me that way.

Dear friends..

The Holy Spirit really doesn't need our help.

Our job is to serve and pray, not 'fix'.

You have to give Naaman credit. When his servant begged him to just obey the man of God and humble himself.. he listened! Listening to those 'under' you.. is the such an important thing! God often teaches us by those we didn't expect to be taught by.

It often takes others to show us our sin. This week, the Lord did that for me. It's hard to really see us as we are in others eyes, isn't it? I was taken by surprise.. only to repent before the Lord as I saw that pride had again crept in unawares.

I am a nobody.. and a sinner. Jesus lives through us and yes we can experience so much freedom as he does, but he still has so much work to do in our hearts! How deceitful they can be--that's why we need God's word to reveal our hearts to him and ourselves.

We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves, it is the last conceit to go. The only One Who understands us is God. The greatest curse in spiritual life is conceit. If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we shall never say – "Oh, I am so unworthy," because we shall know we are, beyond the possibility of stating it. As long as we are not quite sure that we are unworthy, God will keep narrowing us in until He gets us alone. Wherever there is any element of pride or of conceit, Jesus cannot expound a thing. Oswald Chambers
The key to spiritual freedom in our lives is simple--get alone with God and let Him show you your heart. Ask Him to and he will.
......Jesus does not take us alone and expound things to us all the time; He expounds things to us as we can understand them. Other lives are parables. God is making us spell out our own souls. It is slow work, so slow that it takes God all time and eternity to make a man and woman after His own purpose. The only way we can be of use to God is to let Him take us through the crooks and crannies of our own characters. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves! We do not know envy when we see it, or laziness, or pride. Jesus reveals to us all that this body has been harbouring before His grace began to work. How many of us have learned to look in with courage?
Dear Lord, May we never be so proud that we won't let you work in our lives or interfere in your work in the lives of those we love. Help us look at our own sin.. and keep our eyes there.. leaving soul work to you and your Holy Spirit only. Amen

[Mary Naeem]

Thanks Ramez

[walaa farouk]

Thanks Ramez