Is this...Part II

Praise, O servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord!
Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
The Lord is high above all nations;
His glory is above the heavens.
Who is like the Lord our God,
Who is enthroned on high,
Who humbles Himself to behold the things
that are in heaven and in the earth...

....whaaaa?

I was reading this psalm this afternoon when I woke up (yes...this afternoon...3pm to be exact). No reason in particular. This was the first page or so that I turned to in the Bible. So I started reading, and honestly, nothing was really all that surprising.

"The Lord is to be praised!" -- Check
"Blessed be His name" -- yup, I sing that song
"From the rising of the sun to its setting" -- let me finish the song, His love endures forever...

But then I read verse 6: Who humbles Himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth.

He is humbled?
He humbles HIMSELF?
He does this so that He can BEHOLD non-god things?
He wants to behold ME?

I was dumbfounded. As I continued to think about this verse, I started wondering. "Is humility an act of grace? Does God show His grace by humbling Himself, something that He has absolutely every right to refuse?

Its hard for me to picture the Lord as humble, even though He demonstrated that to the fullest by sending His Son Jesus Christ as a man to die for our sins. I mean, He didn't just humble himself to behold us, Christ humbled Himself to beCOME us. That's amazing grace.

But what else is part of this grace? If humility is an act of grace, what else is involved? The Psalm gives 3 clear components to grace, or at least so it seems to me:

1. Grace is shown in humility

I think I've seen grace as an act of power. "I am the ALMIGHTY AND POWERFUL OZ!! Bow down and worship me, and I will pardon your sins. EVIL INFEDEL!!" But this psalm clearly shows that grace is an act of humility. The Lord humbles himself to be hold us, to have mercy on us, because really the minute we reject His holiness, we're good to go to the gallows. So forgiveness, grace, is given in humility, not an act that we can Lord over someone.

2. Grace restores honor

Continuing on the theme of "lording" grace over someone, Psalm 113 shows that God not only stoops down to behold us, but he lifts us back up. And not only to the place we were, but to higher places.

He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, with the princes of His people.

God restores our honor when He delivers grace. I've found this applying significantly lately. I royally screwed up a week ago, allowing my sin to totally lead me places I never thought myself capable. And yet, 2 days later, I was being encouraged as a "worshipper of God", "a blessing," "an inspiring woman of Christ." And my reaction was, "Do you know who you're talking to?"

And God says, "Yes, they do." They are talking to a sinner who saved by grace. It is by Christ's redemptive power and the Holy Spirit's regeneration that I can be used for any good that touches the heart and soul. In my last post, I put the lyrics of my most recent song, and one line says, "How can healing words come from unholy lips?" It is only because of the Lord. I am lifted to a place of honor, not as a God but as His servant, because of God's grace. I sit among princes because of God's grace. I am honored as being used for His glory by God's grace. What amazing Grace.

3. Grace restores joy.

Verse 9 says, "He makes the barren woman abide in the house as a joyful mother of children." As a woman in Biblical times, you did NOT want to be barren. I'm pretty sure that you were seen as useless. And what greater joy and honor than to have children, let alone male children. And so here, God shows his grace restores the joy of those who are incapable of doing it themselves.

Again, when I forgive someone, when I show grace to someone, I so often want to make it clear to them that they were wrong, I was right, and I'm doing them a favor. That doesn't really promote joy. And although Christ reminds us that it is through grace that we are saved, He always reaffirms our status with Him: that because of Him, we are holy, restored, righteous, loved, affirmed, and wanted. Because of His grace, we are beheld by Him ;) What amazing Grace.


I've always felt that the song Amazing Grace was overplayed. But I was blind, and now I see, that it was my lack of comprehension of grace that I could not appreciate the song. The apostle Paul says that the greater the sin, the greater the grace. Jesus also spoke a parable about how greater love is from those who have been forgiven much.

And so here I am: becoming more and more aware of the power, love, and humility of the Grace God offers me. He humbles Himself to behold me, restores my honor so that I am not wallowing in shame, and restores my joy by using me for His glory which I am incapable of doing on my own.


Amazing Grace.