Humility; not optional but required

James 4:6-10
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “ God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double- minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Paraphrase it method:
God requires only that we acknowledge our depraved state and then offers His amazing grace.  Repent not only of the actions but in drawing near to the Lord let your heart be changed (purified) such that you weep over your sin and that it makes you sick.  May the things that you secretly or overtly reveled in turn to a source of mourning and gloom.  Drawing near to God when you are a sinner should quickly become frightening...like Peter when He experienced Jesus filling their nets with fish to the point it was sinking their boats...

Luke 5:8-9
But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus 'knees, saying, “ Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken,

Let us not come before God in any way but on our face in humility due to our sin.  Can we approach the heat of a raging fire that can quickly consume us if we were but to step too close in any way but with our heads down seeking lowness and recognizing that we are wholly at it's mercy when we come close?

May we then experience what is the fear of the Lord as Peter, and others did.  Let us not fight off or hold back the tears but be wholly broken before Him and let him reach out His mighty hand and lift us to our feet- humble yourselves before the Lord and He will exalt you (lift you up).  In the context here I cannot possibly read this as be a humble person and the Lord will give you honor...the context I see here is more like drop to your face for fear of your life as your sin burns your face and eats your flesh while you draw near to the Lord.  When you recognize and acknowledge the gravity of your situation (depravity of your condition before a holy God) He will restore you and give you hope.  This picture is different than "think more of others so I might be rewarded with honor".  The former is a picture of surrender...

Verse 7 above said "submit yourselves therefore to God" and then gave the picture of repentance where you resist the devil (turn away from him) and draw near to God (now facing your Lord).  Surrender yourself to God.

Application:
Today I am to see my sin as God sees it and recognize that I make myself His enemy when I allow the old man (sin nature) to fight with jealousy against the Holy Spirit that the Lord has given me.

James 4:4-5
You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?

I am at war within myself and as Andrew Murray suggested, I must choose to deny myself or to deny Christ every day...every moment.    Throughout my day today I will face opportunities to grant my flesh reign over me or to yield to the Holy Spirit.  I am called to absolute surrender to the Lord and He promises to lift me up.

Today I cannot look at sin and examine it or contemplate it...I must turn and face my holy God and then see that the thought of sin falls to the ground and is consumed by the fire.  And then He lifts me up.

Prayer:
Lord please give me eyes to see that I might not deceive myself into thinking that my sin is anything but vile and wretched.  Please bring recollection of this truth and let me turn immediately away from that option and fearfully turn to you with true humility.  May your grace abound Lord in my humility.

Thank you Lord that when you lift me up from that place of mourning over my sin, over even my consideration of sin, that you do lift me up and you let me experience the joy of your grace.  You let me rest in your glorious sovereignty.  Mourning over sin is far overcome by the richness that comes from abiding in you.

Thank you Lord that you turn our sinful state into a glorious inheritance purchased on the cross and evidenced by the empty tomb!

Ephesians 1:17-21
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.