“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.”
under the mighty hand of God
The word “mighty” refers to manifested power. When God manifests His power by providential movement on Christian lives, they need to identify what He is doing with them.
The Greek word refers to ruling power or the ability to rule. We get the words “autocratic” and “democratic” from this term (kratos). Autocratic rule is self-rule. Democratic government is the governance of a nation’s people.
“The mighty hand of God” refers to God’s sovereign hand upon our destiny. God’s hand is an anthropomorphic (physical manifestation of God) idiom for God’s providence over our lives. Believers need to have a humble attitude about God’s destiny in our lives (Gen 50:20). There never will be a problem too great for the plan of God.
God’s “hand” refers to his providence. We see something of the mighty hand of God in earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Flattened large sections of great cities give evidence of God’s hand. However, this passage is not primarily referring to this kind of power. “Hand” here refers to God’s providence in our personal lives. God does this to do something in our lives. He divinely designs every trial that comes our way for a purpose.
Is 41:10 “Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” [provision]
Who is accountable for the events of our lives? Self will autonomous from God rebels against His sovereignty. It is not enough to subject ourselves to fellow Christians (1 Pe 5:5); we need to subject ourselves to God’s sovereign plan for our lives.
Deuteronomy 4:34-35, “Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord Himself is God; there is none other besides Him.”
Nehemiah 1:10, “Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand.”
PRINCIPLE:
God’s providence is upon every believer for his eternal purpose.
APPLICATION:
Do you resent providential situations God places in your life? God’s omnipotent “hand” should make us humble. The God who put the stars in their place and rotates the sun on its course is the God to whom we submit the situations of our lives. He has an eternal plan for everything that he does.
God’s hand gets heavy at times as he allows a trial to come our way. He waits for some auspicious occasion to let us know that he is still God. We go out of the situation like a whipped dog with our tails dragging behind us.
We refuse to humble ourselves, so God humiliates us. We see God’s mighty hand in humbling TV preachers who step outside his will.
