One of mankind’s biggest problems is pride. We struggle with it everyday; even if we aren’t aware of it. And though the world tells us to worry about our needs first, God tells us to live with a servant’s heart.

God gives us the perfect example of humility and selflessness through our Lord, Christ Jesus. First of all, the Son of Man didn’t even have to come to Earth. He tells us how good he had it in John chapter one.

“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” (John 1:1-2)
Jesus was with the Father. He didn’t have to leave Heaven to save us. He was perfect; we are imperfect. Why does God need us? Yet, not only did the Son of God come to imperfect little Earth, but he chose a carpenter’s wife to bring Him into the world. He entered the world as a poor, lowly, carpenter’s son. He should’ve been born to royalty! He deserves to have every knee bow and every tongue confess and worship him, yet, Jesus chose a carpenter’s wife and the cruelest death imaginable.

Also, Jesus surrounded himself with the lowest of the lows; tax collectors, fishermen, prostitutes. His disciples were made of random commoners. The Son of God; the Prince of Peace; King of Kings; Holy of Holies and Perfect Lamb befriended people that were thought low of. Do you really think he deserved that? Jesus could have summoned the Glory of the Father in Heaven and have Kings bow to his feet, yet, he hung with sinners. Do you even think we deserve His presence, much less have Him live in side of us? Jesus deserves tens of thousands of His angels praising His perfectness with their entire beings! He doesn’t need us, yet, Jesus surrounded Himself with us. He taught us like a teacher; comforted us like a friend; loved us like a father. He helped us even if we didn’t deserve it. He could have made his disciples kings and queens, but he didn’t for a reason.

“Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?’ On hearing this, Jesus said, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.’”

Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

Not just those we look away from and shun from our society, but everyone. Me, you, everyone. No one deserves a Dad that loves us like He does. None of us deserve a teacher like Him. None of us deserve the roof over our heads, or the food on our table or even the air we breath. We deserves what God calls the Lake of Fire. Eternal torture. Ever since the creation of man, we humans have pushed away his loving hands, even when they were pierced on the cross. We have been nothing but cruel to God for all history, yet he retaliates with love and compassion. He sends a part of Himself, Jesus Christ, to the most torturous death mankind has ever witnessed. He was mocked, beaten and spat on for what? Not for himself, but for our salvation that if we believe in him we will not perish but have eternal life, for God did not send His son to condemn the world, but to save it! What can we offer that He loves so much? Nothing, but there is something we can do.

We can be offering our lives to Him and serving Him with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths for that is the first and greatest amendment and the second is alike, love your neighbor as yourself. Do you know what that means? It means we have to put the needs of those around us higher than our own. If you’re outside in the freezing cold and you have a blanket but the person next to you doesn’t, God wants you to give that person your blanket so that he may be warm. It seems impossible, but it’s supposed to. God gave us these impossible rules so that not only will we realize how sinful we really are, but we can see how perfect He is.

We can also be serving. God calls us to do so in Mathew 28:19. The last thing before He ascends to Heaven, Jesus says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

He says “go”. He doesn’t say “go when ready” or “go when it feels like”. God wants us to go, now! He is ready! He is able and He will do anything to bring another soul to Christ! All we have to do, is go. Why should we horde what we know? God did not send His son to condemn the world, but to save it. Who is it he is trying to save? The sinners. He tells us in Matthew 9:12, “…For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Who are the sinners? Romans 3:23 “All have sinned and fallen short to the Glory of God.” So what makes us any better? Yes, we are Christians. Yes, Christ lives in us, but we are sinners. Ephesians 2:8-10. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” The only way we can have faith is if we are told what to have faith in. If we are told to put our faith in God and we do, then we get his gift of grace and mercy.

There is a difference between the two. Grace is being given a gift we don’t deserve; Eternal life with God. Mercy is not being given what we do deserve. We all deserve Hell, but God is merciless and welcomes His children. The only way we can start on the road that will lead us to forgiveness is by hearing the word. So we, Christians, need to spread the Word so the world can be saved. This generation, the people alive right now, have the power to engulf this world in a Holy Bonfire! But not all of our generation can put aside their needs for those of others. Luke 9:23-25 says, “Jesus replied, ‘If anyone wishes to follow me, he must take up his cross and die daily. For those that wish to save their life will lose it and those who give their life for My cause will gain it. For what is one man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul.” The only way we can follow God and spread His Truth, is by laying down our wants. By laying down our needs and desires. By laying down our selves and our lives. Then we will be humble enough to go, but we still can’t do it by ourselves!

I used to think that asking for help just proved how weak I am. That by accomplishing something without help, I said, “I did it” or “I conquered it”. That thinking sent me down years of problems. A long time ago, I was introduced to areas of the internet a boy should not be. After a while I knew I needed to stop. I knew it was bad and it was tainting not only my mind, but my relationship with God. Just because I knew what needed to be done, doesn’t mean I could do it by myself and not have anyone’s help with it, it’s not enough. I thought, at first, that I could conquer my issue by myself and without anyone’s help, even His help. That didn’t last very long, I kept falling left and right until I finally agreed, I need God’s help. It worked for a little bit, but when you’re home alone and it appears that no one is watching you, because God isn’t physically visible, it’s hard not to cave. God’s help is crucial, but when you’re alone, it doesn’t seem like his help is there. That’s why he gave us friends and family. God didn’t create Adam to be by himself. God gave Adam, Eve; someone to love and confide in and help and get helped. God didn’t create man alone so we could bottle up our problems and keep everything to ourselves. God created people to keep us accountable and to love us and comfort us in times of need. God’s help isn’t all we need. We are the body, not me! Not you! But us!
Pride is mankind’s biggest problem. It keeps us from doing things we need to do; asking for help, for forgiveness, for God. Some people probably feel God knocking on their heart, begging for them to give up themselves and let Him in, but they are too proud. They like the way they’re living; in charge. If God comes into us, we have to take the backseat. We have to give up our control and let God lead our lives. That’s what He’s asking, no, begging to do and honestly, I don’t see anything bad that could happen. We screw up and put crap in our lives that we shouldn’t be involved in; drugs, alcohol, pornography, crime. God can clean that crap out of our lives. That’s what He’s for. We don’t have to clean ourselves before asking for Him. He wants to clean us. God is our sculptor. We don’t want to give him a statue to carve, we want to be a block of marble He can chisel away at. He wants that so bad for us. He wants to wipe the gunk out of our lives. Why shouldn’t we? Don’t we want to flush the toilet after we use it? God wants to flush our problems away, so why shouldn’t we let him?