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JESUS - MEEK AND LOWLY - "LOWLINESS OF ABUNDANCE" “And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” (Mat. 8:20) You know, that’s quite a step down from having heaven as your throne and the earth as your footstool! (Isa. 66:1) I wouldn’t want to even move from a trailer park to NOTHING, yet God went from universal dominion to nothing! Sure, he had Joseph and Mary’s home as a youngster, but not anymore. In the evening, when others would go to their houses, Jesus would go to the mount of Olives (John 7:53-8:1) because he had no house or bed. He could have had EVERY house and bed, but He chose to have none. That’s the spirit of lowliness and humility of which Paul writes, and that’s what he says we all need. I was at JC Penny buying some clothes, and the clerk gal said that I could save an additional 15% by applying for their credit card (which could be paid off that day) by answering four simple questions. One of the questions was “Do you own your home or do you rent?” I could almost feel a sense of that old stinking pride swell up when I answered, “I own it.” That’s how we are, so easily given over to feelings of self and superiority. Then the Lord reminded me that it’s the mortgage company that owns half of it, not me. Let me give you a couple verses from the Old Testament on the subject of wealth and riches, verses to remember when you start thinking higher of yourself than you ought to think. The first one Deuteronomy 8:18: “But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.” Perhaps you have managed to amass enough material possessions to treat yourself to a reasonably comfortable life, and maybe you’re even considered to be quite successful by some, but where would you be without the Lord’s goodness? What if you had only one arm or if you lived in a wheelchair? What if your IQ was under 100? That would be quite the game-changer, would it not? The other verse is Psalm 62:10: “Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.” Riches aren’t the problem; the heart is the problem because it tends to lust after material things. Having money, even riches, is fine, but lusting after them and loving them is sin. That’s why Paul writes that the LOVE of money is the root of all evil in I Timothy 6:10. Having money in the bank is smart; having money in the heart is sin. “You young men sitting here are spoiled rich kids. You’re all here on your father’s money, and you think that money can get you anything you want. But one day in life you will meet a man to whom money means absolutely nothing. When you do, you will realize just how poor you really are.” God help us to follow the lowly example of Jesus in regards to material things.