June 3

Morning

These were the potters who lived at Netaim and Gederah. They lived there in the service of the king. — 1 Chr 4:23 BSB

Potters might not have been the highest-ranking workers, but "the king" still needed them, and so they were in royal service, even though they worked with nothing but clay. We too may be involved in what seems like the most humble part of the Lord’s work, but it is a great honor to do anything for “the king.” Therefore, we will stay in our calling, hoping that “though we have lain among the pots, we shall be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold.”

The passage also speaks of those who lived among plants and hedges, doing rough, rustic work like hedging and ditching. They may have longed to live in the city, with all its life, society, and refinement, but they stayed in their assigned places because they were doing the king’s work. Our place of living is determined, and we shouldn’t leave it on a whim. Instead, we should serve the Lord where we are, being a blessing to those around us.

These potters and gardeners had royal company, for they dwelt "with the king." Even though they worked among hedges and plants, they still lived with the king. No legitimate task or humble occupation can keep us from communion with our divine Lord. Whether we visit hovels, crowded lodgings, workhouses, or prisons, we can go with the King. In all works of faith, we can count on Jesus' presence. When we are doing His work, we can be sure of His approval.

You who work in obscurity, laboring for the Lord in the dirt and poverty of the lowest places, take heart. Jewels have been found on dunghills before. Earthen pots have been filled with heavenly treasure, and unwanted weeds have been transformed into beautiful flowers. Dwell with the King in His work, and when He writes His chronicles, your name will be recorded.

Evening

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross. — Phil 2:8 BSB

Jesus is the greatest teacher of humility, and we need to learn from Him every day. Look at the Master taking a towel and washing His disciples’ feet! If you follow Christ, how can you not humble yourself? He was the Servant of servants—surely, we cannot be proud! His entire life can be summed up in this phrase: “He humbled Himself.” Wasn’t His time on earth spent continually setting aside one honor after another, until finally He was stripped naked and nailed to the cross? And there, didn’t He pour out His very soul, giving up His life for us, until He was laid, penniless, in a borrowed grave? How low our dear Redeemer stooped!

So how can we be proud? Stand at the foot of the cross and consider the drops of blood that cleansed you. Look at the crown of thorns, His shoulders scourged and bleeding, His hands and feet pierced by nails, His body given over to mockery and scorn. Think of His inner agony, showing itself in His physical suffering. Hear the heartbreaking cry, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?” If you don’t fall to the ground in humility before that cross, you’ve never truly seen it! If you’re not humbled in the presence of Jesus, you don’t really know Him. You were so lost that nothing but the sacrifice of God’s only Son could save you. Think about that, and as Jesus stooped to save you, bow yourself in humility at His feet.

A sense of Christ’s incredible love for us humbles us more than the awareness of our own guilt. May the Lord bring us to contemplate Calvary, for then we will no longer stand as proud people, but as those who love much because we’ve been forgiven much. Pride can’t survive at the foot of the cross! Let’s sit there and learn our lesson, then rise and live it out.