...when that little one acts foolishly again, you kneel low to the ground, and cup his face in your hands to say what must be said?
...when instead of raising your voice and demanding authority, you lower it and speak words you wouldn't regret?
...when giving instructions to that inattentive child, you looked him in the eye- at his level- and gave directions from a place of relationship vs. assumption?
Sometimes, lowering ourselves is the wisest thing we can do that often makes no sense.
It seems right to claim our position. It seems right to wield our authority. It seems right to expect and summon. And it feels foolish to lower your bodies, our voices, and our pride, to demonstrate love by example...love through self-limitation.
But, it was said of Christ...
“‘What is man, that you are mindful of him,
or the son of man, that you care for him?
You made him for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned him with glory and honor,
putting everything in subjection under his feet.’
Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”
Can we not esteem ourselves less in the face of frustration and pride-crushing circumstances? Can we not welcome a posture of humility when misunderstood or dealt with unjustly? Can we not bend low and offer self-limiting authority with our children when everything in us wants to yell and complain?
We can...because Christ condescended himself, that we might be brought close to Him. That we might know fellowship and not alienation.
We did not meet him half way. He came the entire distance it required to come down to our level.
And so, I say. I can, too. I can, for the sake of Christ, look my kids in the eye and lower my voice. I can set my pride aside when God's purposes in my life require it. I can take my eyes off of the earthly kingdom I often elevate, and lift up the only One worthy. Jesus could've chosen to come in kingly splendor and authority. He could've wielded his power with an iron fist. And yet he didn't. He knew the authority was His...and applied it gently with the weak and the lost. We can too.
Philippians 2:5-7...
Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
Bending and bowing low, that He might be lifted high...that grace may spill over onto the stewardship of the precious lives in my life.
Because of grace,
