Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,
casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. – 1 Peter 5:6-7

These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look,
A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood, – Proverbs 6:16-17

The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground. – Psalm 147:6

Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 18:4

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” – Luke 14:11

Humility is a big subject in the bible. Being the opposite of pride, which was the downfall of Satan, it is no surprised that the Lord wants us to learn humility. So what is it and how does it relate to the second part of this sentence – casting all our cares on Him? Peter says to humble ourselves – so firstly it is something we can do, an act of our will, to decide to put aside our will and be obedient to the will of God, to put aside our thoughts and receive the word of God, the mind of Christ in any given situation.

Pharaoh refused to humble himself.

So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. – Exodus 10:3

Pharaoh refused to humble himself and the consequences for Egypt were dire. Satan lives in pride and the consequences for mankind and the world are horrific. But God who is patience and long suffering has made a way of escape. If we humble ourselves ask for forgiveness and accept Jesus as the sacrifice for our sin we are forgiven.

This verse from the Old Testament show what happens if people humble themselves before God:

your heart was penitent, and you humbled yourself before the LORD, when you heard how I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD. Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place.'” And they brought back word to the king. – 2 Kings 22:19-20

God gives forgiveness to those who humble themselves. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5) God saves us not on the basis of what we deserve but because of His Grace.

Jesus Humbled Himself.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. – Philippians 2:8

Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death on the cross (Philippians 2:8). The ultimate act of self sacrifice, the our Lord our God taking on human form and dying in our place that we might be forgiven. He trusted that God the Father would take care of Him and resurrect Him from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. That took true humility and casting his trust on God the Father. Now we have that very Spirit of God living inside of us. What stops us from trusting God? What stops us from humbling ourselves before Almighty God? Pride!

Jesus told us to humble ourselves as a little child (Matthew 18:4). A child trusts their parents to provide for them. They expect food, safety and warmth. We need to cast all our cares on God because He cares for us.