“He emptied Himself” (Phil. ii. 8, R. V.).
The first step to the righteousness of the kingdom is “poor in spirit.”
Then the next is a little deeper, “they that mourn.” Because now you must
get plastic, you must get broken, you must get like the metal in the fire,
which the Master can mould; and so, it is not enough to see your
unrighteousness, but deeply to feel it, deeply to regret it, deeply to
mourn over it, to own it not a little thing that sin has come into your
life. And so God leads a soul unto His righteousness. He usually leads it
through some testings and trials. This generally comes after conversion. I
do not think it necessary for a soul to have deep and great suffering
before it is saved. I think He will put it into the fire when He knows it
is saved; when it realizes it is accepted; when it is not afraid of the
discipline; when it is not the hand of wrath, but the hand of love. Oh,
then, God, takes you down and makes you poor in spirit, and makes you
mourn until you get to the third step, which is to be meek, broken,
yielded, submissive, willing, surrendered, and laid low at His feet,
crying: “What wilt Thou have me to do?”