Humility and Anxiety I Peter 5:5-7 (Part 1)

I Peter 5:5  And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.  6   Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,  7  casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.  ⁽NASB 1995)

So what does humility have to do with anxiety? 

First we need to understand a little more about humility.

For many people, humility means to think little of yourself.  So a person of low self-esteem would be naturally very humble. 

I often say that humility isn’t thinking little of yourself, but not thinking of yourself at all.

But generally humility in the Bible is a choice.  Jesus told a parable (Luke 14:7-11) about attending a dinner.  At that time, where you sat at a table was an indicator of your social status.  Jesus said that it is better to choose a lower place at the table, where the host might ask you to move higher rather than your choosing a higher place and the host then asks you to assume a lower place. 

Jesus concludes the parable by making a statement very similar to our passage: “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

A more extended relevant passage on humility is Philippians 2 and 3.  I include a portion of it here for your convenience, but there are some translations issues that you need to be aware of before you ponder it too deeply.

Philippians 2:1–4 (NASB95)

¹ Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, ² make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. ³ Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; ⁴ do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Paul had just told the Philippians at the end of chapter one to live worthily of the gospel, standing in one spirit and contending for the faith of the gospel.  He also told them that they would encounter opposition and suffering for doing so.

But the Christian life has encouragement, consolation, fellowship, and compassion (v.1).  It is not just one bad thing after another.  But Christians need to be like-minded and united (v. 2).[1]  Some people see this and think that this means that everybody needs to follow the (or, a) leader and nobody is to have any original thoughts or disagreement of opinion.  I think it’s better to think of this like the dynamic in a family, where the intensity of love for each other overrides any differences that may come up.  Or think of a military or sports analogy, where the unit or team is so focused on their objective that personal differences become irrelevant.  Christians need to focus on the bigger picture, seeing themselves as ambassadors for God on earth, where we are all on the same team fighting for the same cause.

Verses 3 and 4 are the key verses here, but I must note that I think the translations fail to catch the right nuances.[2] 

Paul expands here on how we are to think, having nothing to do with ἐριθεία (eritheia) and empty conceit.[3]  The meaning of the first word is disputed, but it certainly includes ideas of self-centeredness and self-seeking that puts one’s own interests before that of others.  Empty conceit has to do with a self-focus that puts too much weight on one’s own importance. 

But in contrast here, Paul puts forth humility as the proper behavior, regarding other people in a certain way.  The word is ὑπερέχω, or in English letters, hyper – echo.  We recognize the hyper part, something excessive or in abundance.  Echo has to do with having or possessing.  So we are supposed to regard other people as being or having this hyper-echo-ness.  And this is the tricky part. 

You could translate it as regarding others as better than yourself, superior to yourself, greater than yourself, or more important than yourself.  And then we are back to this low self-image thing again.  

But I believe that would be a mistake.  The next verse explains what he means.

Each of us is to look out for the things of others, not as busybodies intruding into other people’s lives, but wanting and focusing on what is best for them.  The NASB adds the word ‘merely’, saying don’t look out merely for your own interests, but that word ‘merely’ is not in the original text.  Our focus is to be on others period.  Very radical thinking. 

I think the key here is to understand that if one thing is more important than another, that doesn’t make the first thing unimportant.  Living for others doesn’t make your life less important or of less value.

One way to look at it is, if everybody only looked out for themselves, then there is only one person looking out for me: me.  But if everybody is looking out for everybody else, then there are a lot of people looking out for me. 

Elsewhere in the Bible, we are told to love our neighbors as ourselves.  So love for ourselves is not only natural, it is built into our system.  Self-love doesn’t need to imply self-absorption but just the everyday care that we do for ourselves.  But that verse alone says clearly that we are important and that we are important to ourselves. 

But if we don’t take care of our own needs first, who will take care of them then?  Are we to just hope that somebody else will just come along and do them for us?  We will answer that question before we are done in these articles, but first we need to understand how this Christian thing works.

Verse 5 Paul tells us to have this mind in us that was also in Jesus.  His expression here of ‘have this mind’ is the same expression he used twice before in verse 2 [see footnote 1].  So this becomes another example of what humility looks like. 

We are to be like Jesus, who humbled Himself, which a few verses earlier in a parallel verse says that He emptied Himself, having taken the form of a slave. 

I don’t want to get ahead of myself here, but verse 9 then says that for that reason God highly exalted Jesus.  The state of being humble is not the final goal that God has for His people.  It is actually a step toward something that God wants to do for us.

So to summarize Paul’s thought in Philippians here, he begins by calling for unity and love among believers, with humility regarding others as their priority more than themselves, looking out for the interests of others rather than their own.

In other words, don’t keep thinking about yourself, your needs, your problems, your promotion.  Start thinking about others, how you can bless them.  Pray for their successes. 

So Peter, as in our original text, says that we should all clothe ourselves with humility towards one another.  This expression ‘clothe oneself’ is not a common expression in Greek.  Consider it a deliberate act that displays this conduct to everybody.  Everybody can see that you are humble.  One noted Greek scholar says that the word connotes a binding of this dress.  This is not something casually thrown on or quickly removed.

In the first half of the verse from Peter that I quoted, young men are told to be subject to the elders.  But then immediately everyone is told to put on humility in the interactions with one another, so even the elders would show this humility to the young men who are to be subject to them. 

So humility is not low self-image or self-denigration.  Humility is the intent and focus of living for other people, particularly other believers.

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[1] Twice Paul uses the word φρονέω (phro-né-o) here in verse 2:  1. to have an opinion with regard to someth., think, form/hold an opinion, judge  2. to give careful consideration to someth., set one’s mind on, be intent on, 3. to develop an attitude based on careful thought, be minded/disposed.

He first says that they should be of the same mind (using φρονέω) as a command, followed by two participles explaining this being of one mind.  Having the same love, thinking (literally) the one thing.  United in spirit (Lit. one-souled) is translated by itself by some scholars and others join it with the participle: with one mind thinking the one thing.

The use of participles is important in these verses, because they clarify the meaning of the main verbs.  This word φρονέω is a key word in Philippians and in our discussion about humlity.

[2] I think the New American Standard is the best translation out there and is the one I always use for an English text.  But verses 3 and 4 are major disappointments here.

[3] Paul doesn’t use a verb here, so the verb implied would be φρονέω and not ‘do’ as in the NASB.  And putting ‘do’ in the imperative breaks the connection to the previous verse.  

So Where are All the Miracles? (Part 3) Judges 6:1-13

Judges 6:13 (NASB95)  ¹³ Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

Do you believe that modern Western Christians should expect miracles from God, or are those only for Bible days and primitive third world countries?

Most of the discussions I have heard on this question do not use a lot of Scripture in support of their positions, so I think the answer to this question might best be answered by looking at someone in the Bible who pretty much asked the same question. 

Actually Gideon had three questions, three questions that every Christian needs to answer for his own time.

The story of Gideon is familiar, though many of the details are not.  The nation of Israel, God’s people, “did what was evil in the sight of the LORD” (Judges 6:1). 

This was not a single event but a way of life.  Chapter two of Judges gives an overview of the book as well as an overview of the history of Israel in this period.  Under Moses, God had delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and gave them their own land.  After Moses died, the nation was governed by Joshua, someone that Moses had mentored and who God gave as the nation’s leader after Moses had asked God to give them someone to lead them after he died.

But then Joshua died, and there was no clear leader from God.  There were still people alive who had seen the mighty works of God, but then they died as well.    “And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel.   Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals (the gods of the nations among whom they lived) (Judges 2:10-11).

And such was the time of Gideon.  The people did evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of the Midianites, who oppressed them severely for 7 years.  But the people cried out to God.

So the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon.  We don’t have details, but he didn’t seem to have appeared as an angel but as a man.  The angel greets him with: “The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior.”

Gideon then responds with his three questions.  The first question is actually implied rather than stated.  He starts a question with an assumption.  “If God is with us, then why . . .?”  You can reverse the question like this.   If these things happened to us, can we really say that God is with us?  Or simply, is God really with us?

To modern ears, that question is ambiguous.  Is it a question of location, looking for the answer to, where is God?  And many modern Christians answer it in that way.  They quickly assert God’s presence in their lives at all times, while the world could be crashing in around them.  God offers them comfort in their affliction, but He does nothing to mitigate or relieve the affliction.

But for Biblical questions, we need to let the Bible answer them.  Rather than interpreting the Bible by our circumstances, we need to interpret our circumstances by the Bible.

The Bible talks about God being with people quite often in the Bible.  And when you read the relevant passages, you realize He is not talking about the mere fact of His presence, but that His presence is to be our assurance of His help, not simply in enduring problems but overcoming them, not just comforting us in the midst of our problems but delivering us out of our problems.    

I have added to the end of this paper a list of all those Bible references. [see next article God with us]   Don’t take my word for it.  Look at these passages and see the willingness of God to help His people and what that help looks like.

So in Gideon’s mind, God being with someone tells that person that God is there to deliver that person.  The Bible often notes troubling times and events for God’s people.  The question is: what does God expect or want to do with them?  Should we just endure them with a smile, or should we expect God to do something about the problems themselves?  I think the passages clearly show that God wants to deliver us out of these problems and not just leave us in them.

So Gideon’s second question is:  Why have all these bad things happened to us?   Many modern Christians would consider Gideon idealistic or naïve to even ask the question.  Of course, bad things happen to us.  They happen all the time.  It’s all part of the program. 

But God had very specifically spelled out for Gideon’s people the blessings that He wanted to give to his people (Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28).  Those chapters also clearly spelled out the consequences if the people rejected God’s way of life. 

The people had turned away from God as their basic pattern of life, and what they were now enduring, God had told them long ago that they would.  But wait.  The angel had said that God was with him.  The Hebrew text is in the singular.  The angel was saying that God was with Gideon, not ‘you’ as a people.  But Gideon didn’t see God as being with him apart from Him being with the whole nation.  Gideon wasn’t worried about God being with him but whether God was with his nation.

So Gideon’s second question shows that what the nation of Israel was now experiencing was something that he believed God should have protected the people from.

Are our lives supposed to be one long trial and tribulation until we die and go to heaven?  Look at Psalm 34.  This hadn’t been written by the time of Gideon and long before our time.  But Christians need to decide whether it applies to them today and whether this is all poetic hyperbole or promises you can take to the bank.  The following are excerpts from that psalm:

¹I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

⁴I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

⁶This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.

⁸O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

⁹O fear the Lord, you His saints; for to those who fear Him there is no want.

¹⁰The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.

¹⁷The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.

¹⁸The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

¹⁹Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

²⁰He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.

If Psalm 34 doesn’t apply to us today as promises from God, then about ¾ of the Bible (the Old Testament) has become essentially irrelevant to our lives.  And what does the New Testament teach?  Sixty percent of that is the gospels and the book of Acts, where the sick were healed and needs were met, whether running out of wine at a wedding or feeding thousands of people in the wilderness.   

We may say today that God was perfectly justified in sending the Midians to oppress the Israelites, but I think we tend to err on the side of expecting too little from God rather than too much.

So Gideon’s third question: if God be with us, then where are all His miracles?  Gideon lived in Bible days, but in his time, miracles were a distant memory.  They happened a long time ago to people now dead, but if God is with a people, any people, of course He would do them again to meet their needs.  That’s what a God would do.  On our part, we worship God, give Him His due in our offerings and in our obedience to His commands, but God on His part is to deliver His people from their enemies and bless them in their lives. 

Gideon actually asked a fourth question which he asked to help answer his third question: “Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?  And now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” v.13  The point is that God had done great things for them in the past, doing great miracles and delivering them from their enemies.  And now He abandons them?  It doesn’t make sense.  Why would God do so much for us in the past and then just let us go? 

He was arguing with God.  (See my last article on Sodom and Gomerica about arguing with God.)  He said that if God was with them, then there should have been miracles.  If God delivered them from Egypt, it makes no sense for God to just give up on them now and leave them in the hands of Midian. 

Christians like to quote Romans 8:32 (NASB95): ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

It’s the same principle.  God loves us so much to send His Son to die for us, but then He leaves us to suffer innumerable things that can make our lives hard and miserable?  We are encouraged by the hope of heaven where all pain, sorrow, and tears will be done away with, but we can be easily confused by the state of our lives now.

The time of Gideon was not a time of miracles.  But Gideon said it should have been.  So what happens?  God then uses Gideon to bring about the very miracle that he was asking for.  God didn’t deliver Israel apart from a human being doing the work.  And the human being He chose and used was the same person who questioned an angel of God about what God should be doing. 

God wasn’t angry with Gideon for questioning what He was doing or not doing.  Gideon was named in the Faith Hall of Fame of Hebrews 11.  Gideon’s faith showed itself in his insistence that God do miracles again in his time. 

No doubt Gideon had great faith to attack a huge army with only 300 men.  But he hadn’t attacked anybody when God called him, and why did God do that?  Was it just random, an exhibition of God’s grace?  Or is it that the kind of person who expected God to do miracles because that’s what it means for God to be with somebody is the kind of person who could attack a large army with 300 men?

A person who is not expecting miracles from God is a lot less likely to act in a situation like this than somebody who is.  The person not expecting a miracle will look at the situation, become full of fear, and then not go through with it.  The person expecting a miracle would say, of course, it looks impossible, but that’s what a miracle is.  And I can’t blame God for not doing a miracle if I don’t expect Him to.

Notice that God didn’t deliver Israel apart from a human being actually confronting the enemy in a situation that should have scared his boots off.  Gideon was hesitant at first, making sure that he was hearing all this right.  But I doubt anyone else could have pulled this off who didn’t begin with this expectation that God should have done a miracle here a long time ago.

We are often told today not to expect miracles, that they were for a time long past, that those were unique times, and that we don’t need miracles today because we now have the complete Bible, where they only had bits and pieces back then.  The problem is that I don’t see anything in this complete Bible that says that miracles are not for us.  On the contrary, it gives every impression that miracles are to be a part of the normal Christian life. 

A church in Gideon’s time could have told him the same thing, that the age of miracles was past.  They were now in the land of promise, and signs and wonders only happened to show the Egyptians and the nations the truth of Israel’s revelation and Israel’s special place in God’s economy. 

Sort of like the Christian Church today.  The Bible is the record to show the truth of the message. 

But a problem happened in Gideon’s time which required a miracle.  Now what?  And problems happen today that require miracles, but many of us seem well content to leave them to their natural course, whether it is an early death, years of miserable suffering, or just plain evil.  Gideon wasn’t just content with what was happening.  He thought things should be different, and God used him to change them.

God with us: what does this mean?

Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.   Isaiah 7:14

           

When the Bible speaks of God being with someone, it is not a statement of God’s location or of his sympathy for that person.  It always speaks of His active care, protection, and help, as in, God is on my side.  Nothing can harm or defeat me.

Gen 21:20,22 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. 21:22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God [is] with thee in all that thou doest:

Gen 26:3,24,28 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; 26:24 And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I [am] the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I [am] with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake. Gen 26:28 And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, [even] betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee;

Gen 28:15,20 And, behold, I [am] with thee, and will keep thee in all [places] whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done [that] which I have spoken to thee of. 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

Gen 31:3 And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.   See notes at Genesis 32:9

Gen 39:2,3,5,21,23 And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. 39:3 And his master saw that the LORD [was] with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. 39:5 And it came to pass from the time [that] he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. 39:21 But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 39:23 The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing [that was] under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and [that] which he did, the LORD made [it] to prosper.

Gen 46:4 I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up [again]: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.

Gen 48:21 And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.

Ex 3:12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this [shall be] a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.

Ex 4:12,15 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say. 4:15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.

Ex 17:7 And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?

Ex 33:14-16 And he said, My presence shall go [with thee], and I will give thee rest. 33:15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not [with me], carry us not up hence. 33:16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? [is it] not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that [are] upon the face of the earth.

Numbers 14:9 Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they [are] bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD [is] with us: fear them not. 14:42 Go not up, for the LORD [is] not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.

Num 23.21 He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God [is] with him, and the shout of a king [is] among them.

Deut 2:7 For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the LORD thy God [hath been] with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.

Deut 7:21 Thou shalt not be affrighted at them: for the LORD thy God [is] among you, a mighty God and terrible.

Deuteronomy 20:1-4 When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, [and] a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 20:2 And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, 20:3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; 20:4 For the LORD your God [is] he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

Deut 23:14 For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee.

Deut 31:8,17,23 And the LORD, he [it is] that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. 31:17 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God [is] not among us? 31:23 And he gave Joshua the son of Nun a charge, and said, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the land which I sware unto them: and I will be with thee.

Joshua 1:5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, [so] I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. 1:9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Josh 3:7 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, [so] I will be with thee.

Judges 1:22 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel: and the LORD [was] with them.

Judges 6:13,16 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where [be] all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. 6:14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? 6:16 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

1 Sam 3:19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.

1 Sam 10:7 And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, [that] thou do as occasion serve thee; for God [is] with thee.

1 Sam 16:18 Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, [that is] cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the LORD [is] with him.

1 Sam 18:12-14,28 And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul. 18:13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people. 18:14 And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the LORD [was] with him. 18:28 And Saul saw and knew that the LORD [was] with David, and [that] Michal Saul's daughter loved him.

2 Sam 7:9 And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great [men] that [are] in the earth.

2 Kings 6:16 And he answered, Fear not: for they that [be] with us [are] more than they that [be] with them.

2 Kings 18:7 And the LORD was with him; [and] he (Hezekiah) prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.  

1 Chr 17:8 And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and have made thee a name like the name of the great men that [are] in the earth.

1 Chr 22:11 Now, my son, the LORD be with thee; and prosper thou, and build the house of the LORD thy God, as he hath said of thee.  

1 Chron 22:16-18 Arise and be doing! The LORD be with you!" 22.17  David also commanded all the leaders of Israel to help Solomon his son, saying, 22.18 "Is not the LORD your God with you? And has he not given you peace on every side? For he has delivered the inhabitants of the land into my hand; and the land is subdued before the LORD and his people.  

1 Chr 28:20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do [it]: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, [even] my God, [will be] with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.

2 Chr 1:1 And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and the LORD his God [was] with him, and magnified him exceedingly.

2 Chr 13:12 And, behold, God himself [is] with us for [our] captain, and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the LORD God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.

2 Chr 15:2 And he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The LORD [is] with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.  

2 Chr 15:9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the LORD his God [was] with him.  

2 Chr 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of [them] whose heart [is] perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.  

2 Chr 17:3-5 The LORD was with Jehosh'aphat, because he walked in the earlier ways of his father; he did not seek the Ba'als, 17.4 but sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to the ways of Israel. 17.5 Therefore the LORD established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought tribute to Jehosh'aphat; and he had great riches and honor.

2 chr 19:6 and said to the judges, "Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the LORD; he is with you in giving judgment.

2 Chr 20:17 Ye shall not [need] to fight in this [battle]: set yourselves, stand ye [still], and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD [will be] with you.  

2 Chr 24:20 And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah . . . and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.  

2 Chr 25:7-9 But there came a man of God to him, saying, O king, let not the army of Israel go with thee; for the LORD [is] not with Israel, [to wit, with] all the children of Ephraim. 25:8 But if thou wilt go, do [it], be strong for the battle: God shall make thee fall before the enemy: for God hath power to help, and to cast down. 25:9 And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The LORD is able to give thee much more than this.  

2 Chr 26:5 And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.

2 Chr 32:7,8 Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that [is] with him: for [there be] more with us than with him: 32:8 With him [is] an arm of flesh; but with us [is] the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles

Psalm 46:1-7,11 God [is] our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 46:2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; 46:3 [Though] the waters thereof roar [and] be troubled, [though] the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. 46:5 God [is] in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, [and that] right early. 46:7 The LORD of hosts [is] with us; the God of Jacob [is] our refuge.

Psalm 60:12 Through God we shall do valiantly: for he [it is that] shall tread down our enemies.

Psalm 91:15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I [will be] with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

Psalm 118:6 The LORD [is] on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?

Isaiah 8:9,10 Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. 8:10 Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God [is] with us.

Is 41:10-14 Fear thou not; for I [am] with thee: be not dismayed; for I [am] thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. 41:13 For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

Is 43:2 When thou passest through the waters, I [will be] with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.   

Isaiah 43:5 Fear not: for I [am] with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; I am with you, I will bring your sons

Isaiah 45:14 Thus saith the LORD, The labour of Egypt, and merchandise of Ethiopia and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine: they shall come after thee; in chains they shall come over, and they shall fall down unto thee, they shall make supplication unto thee, [saying], Surely God [is] in thee; and [there is] none else, [there is] no God.

Jer 1:8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I [am] with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

Jer 1:19 They will fight against you; but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, says the LORD, to deliver you."

Jer 15:20 And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I [am] with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

Jer 20:11   But the LORD is with me as a dread warrior;    therefore my persecutors will stumble,    they will not overcome me.   They will be greatly shamed,    for they will not succeed.   Their eternal dishonor    will never be forgotten.

Amos 5:14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.

Mic 3:11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say, [Is] not the LORD among us? none evil can come upon us.

Zech 8:23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days [it shall come to pass], that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard [that] God [is] with you.  Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you

Matt 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.

Luke 1:28-31 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, [thou that art] highly favoured, the Lord [is] with thee: blessed [art] thou among women. 1:30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.

John 14:7-9 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 14:8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou [then], Shew us the Father?

Acts 7:9,10 And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him, 7:10 And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.  

Acts 11:21 And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.

Rom 8.31,32 What shall we then say to these things? If God [be] for us, who [can be] against us? 8:32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things

1 Cor 14.24,25 But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or [one] unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all: 14:25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on [his] face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth. 

2 Cor 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.

Phil 4:9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

Heb 13.5,6 [Let your] conversation [be] without covetousness; [and be] content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord [is] my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me

1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. 

The Lord Was with Him

February 19, 2010

"And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand." (Genesis 39:3)

Joseph deserves special recognition among the Patriarchs. His story encourages us, as he remained faithful in adversity and gracious in success. Yet we do disservice to the biblical message if we only see the circumstantial side of the story. The LORD was with him. It is always instructive to see how the rest of the Bible applies God's personal intervention in our lives. Please note the emphasis in these other key passages:

• Joshua (Joshua 6:27)--leadership fame
• Judah (the tribe in Judges 1:19)--military might
• Samuel (1 Samuel 3:19)--complete obedience
• David (1 Samuel 18:12)--God's favor
• Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:7)--leading a zealous revival
• Phineas (1 Chronicles 9:20)--wise leadership
• Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17:3)--his faithfulness
• John the Baptist (Luke 1:66)--total commitment
• Scattered Jews (Acts 11:21)--their witness

Because God was with the various people, they were successful. Yet because they were obedient to God's use of them, God was with them.

The Lord Jesus promised the saints: "I am with you always even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:20). But that promise is given to us as encouragement to teach all nations "to observe, all things" as the Lord Jesus commanded us--because all power (authority) is His, and His alone. If we "abide" in Christ, we can ask whatever we want "and it shall be done unto you" (John 15:7). However, the absolute qualifier is the abiding. If we do not abide in Him, we cannot produce "fruit" (John 15:4). If we are "in the flesh," we "cannot please God" (Romans 8:8). God will be with us if, when, and as we are not "weary in we ll doing" (Galatians 6:9). HMM III