Humbled - October 26 2025

“If My people who are called by My name would humble themselves and pray and turn from their evil ways and seek My face, I will hear from heaven, cleanse their sin, and heal their land.”— 2 Chronicles 7:14

Before we talk about anything else, we have to talk about humility. This verse doesn’t start with blessing. It doesn’t start with healing. It doesn’t start with breakthrough. It starts with posture. If My people would humble themselves. Everything that follows is built on that foundation.

Humility matters because we are always tempted to build our identity on something other than Jesus. We can take pride in where we’re from, what family we belong to, what church we attend, what background we have, or what we’ve been through. Those things shape us, but they don’t define us. God says, “You are My people.” When He says that, He is redefining us. Our primary identity is no longer our history. It’s His name.

When I met Jesus, I had to let go of the identity I had built for myself. I had to lay down pride. I had to lay down survival instincts. I had to lay down the version of me that was formed in broken places. And then I learned what it meant to belong to Him. That was humbling. And it was freeing.

But humility doesn’t end at salvation. Pride tries to sneak back in. Sometimes it even comes through Scripture. We start reading God’s promises and thinking, “These are mine.” And before long, it turns into, “I’m better than others because I know this.” James warns us about this. He says, “Receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls” (James 1:21). The Word only takes root in humble soil.

Jesus Himself said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Poor in spirit means spiritually dependent. It means knowing you need Him. The kingdom doesn’t belong to the self-sufficient. It belongs to the surrendered.

Humility isn’t thinking badly about yourself. It’s agreeing with God about who you are. You stop defining yourself, and you let Him define you. Scripture says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Grace flows toward humility. Resistance meets pride.

Moses is a great example. Numbers 12:3 says, “Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” That sounds strange until you realize Moses wasn’t bragging. He was agreeing with what God said about him. Earlier in Exodus 3, Moses hid his face in fear before God. Later, he spoke with God face to face. Humility moved him from fear to intimacy.

At one point, God promised Moses victory. He promised him success. And Moses responded, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here” (Exodus 33:15). He had learned something. Presence matters more than promises. That is humility. Choosing God over outcomes.

That’s why humility is presence-based. Pride is performance-based. Pride says, “What can I do for God?” Humility says, “I want to be with God.” Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Nothing means nothing. You can be busy and empty at the same time.

Humility is also often uncomfortable. It’s humiliating sometimes. It means trying things you’re not good at. It means risking failure. It means worshiping when you feel awkward. It means obeying when you don’t feel qualified. Pride says, “I’m not musical. I’m not spiritual. I’m not like them.” Humility says, “If God called me, He’ll meet me there.”

There are two ways to be humbled. You can humble yourself, or God will do it for you. The Hebrew wording in 2 Chronicles 7:14 points to choosing humility. Voluntary surrender. Jesus said, “Whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:12). It’s always better to go low on purpose than to be brought low by consequence.

When we come before God, we come as people under authority. In Scripture, no one walked casually into the presence of a king. They came low. They came bowed. And when the king spoke, they were invited to rise. That’s what humility looks like spiritually. We lower ourselves, and God lifts us.

Revelation 3 shows what happens when humility is lost. Jesus speaks to the church in Laodicea and says, “You say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing,’ not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17). Pride blinds. It convinces us we’re fine when we’re empty.

The gospel destroys pride. It reminds us that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). We didn’t earn this. We didn’t deserve it. Salvation is a gift. And gifts are received with open hands, not clenched fists.

Humility also protects us from false identities. Some people define themselves as “just sinners.” Others define themselves as “spiritual authorities.” Both are rooted in pride. Scripture says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). And it also says, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Truth lives in that tension.

We are called holy because He is holy. “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). That doesn’t mean pretending. It means agreeing with God and letting Him change what doesn’t match His nature.

Humility seeks presence over position. David understood this. After his failure, he prayed, “Do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Psalm 51:11). More than reputation. More than restoration. More than influence. He wanted presence.

That’s still the invitation. God is near. “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8). He hasn’t moved. We decide how close we live.

Humility says, “God, I need You.”Humility says, “Teach me.”Humility says, “Lead me.”Humility says, “I won’t go without You.”

And when we choose that posture, prayer flows naturally. Repentance flows naturally. Transformation follows naturally.

“If My people who are called by My name would humble themselves…”

That’s where revival begins.That’s where healing begins.That’s where restoration begins.

Not with noise. Not with hype. Not with strategy. With hearts that bow.

Let’s be those people.

Riverside Church exists to build strong disciples who live in intimacy with Jesus and carry His presence into everyday life. These teachings are designed to help you grow in faith, identity, and purpose.

Continue learning at onechurchqc.org/teachings, explore our mission at onechurchqc.org/vision, or find service information at onechurchqc.org.

If you’re searching for a welcoming church community in Davenport or the Quad Cities, we would be honored to walk this journey with you.