Being Reduced to Zero

Being Reduced to Zero

“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 1 Cor. 3:20. After many years, their intelligence has created this great result: they are called Professor! And the content is: emptiness. Not one drop of the water of life. Completely empty!

“If they are weighed in the balances, they are altogether emptiness.” Ps. 62:9. “God has spoken once, twice I have heard this: that power belongs to God.” V. 11. “For by [his own] strength no man shall prevail.” 1 Sam. 2:9.

Only when God gives strength are we strong. If God wants to, not otherwise! Power and strength belong to God. We are and remain merely one big zero in ourselves.

However, the trick is always to reckon with this in our daily life. Blessed is everyone who does this, for he reckons correctly and is therefore never disappointed.

Once in a while you may meet something hard and strong in the hearts of God’s children, something that is not broken down. Such people are headstrong. It becomes increasingly evident that they have not become acquainted with point zero.

Such people can be so strong in themselves—so conceited or stubborn—that they can mobilize everything they have and is at their disposal, for any trifle whatsoever, in order to prove that they are right or to push their will or opinion through; and they can be so insistent that they risk their entire eternal life. This is how people can be misled by their own strength, jeopardizing their eternal happiness. “It cannot be helped,” people say; they would rather be lost—if it should come to that—but they cannot give in.

Satan has destroyed quite a few people by appealing to their greatness, strength, and smart heads. With their smart heads they were stupid enough to take the bait.

How safe we are from that kind of thing down at point zero!

Some of God’s children also suffer more or less from megalomania and risk sliding out of the church sooner or later for this reason, for this kind of thing is completely incompatible with Christ and His spouse.

Some rich, polished, high-born, educated, and “great” people have been chosen by God to partake of this heavenly calling too. However, that was just because God saw that they would heartily despise and forsake all this “greatness.” The outcome is completely different for those who want to continue with their greatness after they have come to the church of the living God. They want to continue being great and being a little bit special and above the others; and as far as that goes, they think the entire church should preferably bear a superb, worldly-educated imprint, especially the leadership.

A forthright, poor, inconspicuous leader can often be such people’s cause of offense and apostasy. They stumble over such people and leave. But then they do not deserve much more than that!

The person who has once and for all been brought down to point zero by God’s grace is always safe from such misfortunes. It is not easy for a zero to stumble and crash into pieces. A zero cannot possibly be crushed, for there is sufficient room for it among the millstones that are supposed to crush it! It is smaller than Tom Thumb, and he didn’t need much room. Pity all those “highnesses!” It gets cramped for them. And risky! No wonder that they get nervous! They have many good reasons to!

How wise it is to abase yourself to where you truly belong: in the dust!