Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 1 Peter 5:6
Peter here is echoing God’s words that spoke to Solomon after he had dedicated the temple.
When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn form their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will their land. 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (NIV)
The first thing God tells us to do is humble ourselves. But what does God mean when tells to humble ourselves. God is telling us that we must recognize our failures and inabilities, show true sorrow for our sin and renew our commitment to follow God’s desires, plans and purposes. It, also, means recognizing your spiritual poverty and desperate need for God’s mercy. In other words we have to admit that we are powerless to save ourselves from our sins and that is only through God’s grace and mercy that we are ever saved from our sins. For more detailed information on this topic see the post entitled “If God’s People, Who are Called by His Name, Humble Themselves”.