Humility
What is humility?
True humility can be defined as the true measure of a man in relation to God. It is when a creature knows his limits in comparison to the Creator. When John said, 'I am not the Christ' and 'I am not good enough to untie the strings of his sandals', that is humility (John 1:20, 27). When Christ told Peter he would deny Him three times before the cock crows, the disciple's refusal to accept the truth shows pride. Pride goes before a fall. Humility comes before promotion.
Humility according to John 3:30 is, “He must become greater; I must become less”. The natural man is born full of himself. The process whereby he gets filled with God as he empties himself is humility. It is the displacement of self by the enthronement of God. Where God is all, self is nothing.
The measure of a man compared to God is his humility. It is not how we compare ourselves with others or where we stand in relation to our peers. Humility is not peer review. It's not a byproduct of peer pressure. You can't generate humility from your resume. The only assessment that generates true humility is when we see God as He is and us as we are. When we understand that the race is not for the swift and the battle is not for the strong, we become humble (Ecclesiastes 9:11). When we come to know that in life, the elder may serve the younger not by fault but by fate, we become humble (Genesis 25:23). When we get the revelation that our accomplishments are not by might nor by power but by divine enablement, we become humble (Zechariah 4:6). When we come to find out that sometimes in divine mathematics, 1+1=100, and a man may sow in time of famine and reap a hundredfold, we become humble (Genesis 26:12).
You are not God
The first recorded temptation took place when the snake told Eve in Genesis 3:4-5 that she will be like God if she ate the forbidden fruit. Since then, mankind had been trying to play God. You are not God. Never been, never will be. In fact, if you want to really enjoy life, recognize that the One and Only God is your source for everything you are and have.
“For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” 1 Corinthians 4:7
The 2 types of humility
“Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. Colossians 2:18
“Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Colossians 2: 20-23
True humility is distinctly different from false humility which consists of deprecating one's own sanctity, gifts, talents, and accomplishments for the sake of receiving praise or adulation from other. False humility is humility for show. It is limited to the external.
True humility starts on the inside although it may manifest itself outwardly. It is primarily an attitude of the heart. It submits to God and legitimate authority. It recognizes virtues and talents that others possess, particularly those that surpass one's own, and gives due honor and, when required, obedience.
Benefits of Humility
“For thus says the high and lofty One--He who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, but with him also who is of a thoroughly penitent and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the thoroughly penitent. Isaiah 57: 15.
Humility makes God feel at home with you. Pride drives him away. Any attribute that draws us closer to God is a crucial one to possess.
“He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself [with haughtiness and empty pride] shall be humbled (brought low), and whoever humbles himself [whoever has a modest opinion of himself and behaves accordingly] shall be raised to honor”. Matthew 23:11-12. Another benefit of humility is the potential to be promoted by the Lord. Promotion does not come from the east or the west but from the Lord and humility is a catalyst for it.
Humility also helps in receiving from God. “If My people, who are called by My name, shall humble themselves, pray, seek, crave, and require of necessity My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land”. 2 Chronicles 7:14
Dangers of Pride
Pride is the opposite of humility. The Greek word most often translated proud is: - Phusioo - to blow up, or puff up, inflate. “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall” Proverbs 16:18–19. Humility is being weak and pitiful and knowing it. Pride is being weak and pitiful and believing otherwise. Lack of humility leads to humiliation. It also brings resistance from the Lord. James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5. The same God resisted the people of Babel in Genesis 11:4 when they said, “And they said, Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth”. However, in the following chapter, Genesis 12:1-2, He promised Abram what he denied the people of Babel. “Now the Lord had said to Abram: Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing”. What you stand to lose from pride you gain by humility.
“I used to think that God’s gifts were on shelves one above another and the taller we grow, the easier we can reach them. Now, I find, that God’s gifts are on shelves one beneath another and the lower we stoop, the more we get”. F. B. Meyer.
Like Father, like son
“In God’s family, children never grow up; they grow down. The more Christ-like the person, the more humble and dependent he is. "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matt. 18:3-4). We should be humble because God is humble. He doesn’t abuse his rank or his power. He is very patient with us. He doesn’t rise up indiscriminately in great anger in reaction to our insults and denial of him. Jesus himself said it plainly, "I am gentle and humble in heart" (Matt. 11:29). Jesus was born in a manger in a stable, in a little, out-of-the-way town. His family was poor and of no account in society. The witnesses of his birth were shepherds, sheep and cattle. He was called the Lamb of God many times in Scripture. A lamb has no power. It is at the mercy of its shepherd.
Leadership & Humility
“Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”. Mark 10:42-45. Lead by serving. Whatever titles we may have earned, whatever degrees may hang on our wall, being like Jesus will mean we never lord our authority over others, or try to make them feel inferior to us.
“When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place."Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them. "You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them”. John 13:12-17. It is interesting that both Philip, the evangelist who preached to the Ethiopian eunuch and Stephen the first martyr killed for the Christian faith, were men who were happy to wait on tables (Acts 6:1-6). God usually chooses those who are willing to do the lowly tasks to do the greatest tasks. "The beginning of greatness is to be little, the increase of greatness is to be less, and the perfection of greatness is to be nothing” D. L. Moody
Measure your humility by your sense of unworthiness of God’s goodness and grace. If you are truly humble, you will be constantly amazed that God is so good and gracious to you. Every time the Lord rewards you, deep gratitude wells up in your soul. You feel compelled to exclaim in the words Jesus taught, "I am an unworthy servant of the Lord; I am only doing what it is my duty to do" (Luke 17:10). Measure yourself by your eagerness to decrease so that Christ may be all in all. Measure yourself by your willingness for others to receive the prominence while you are forgotten, for others to receive credit for what you have worked so hard to achieve. Measure yourself by your joy in working the hardest in the most obscure positions. Wesley Deuwel
The big question
How can a Christian think of himself as having a lowly state and being weak if he is God’s child and is seated with Christ in heavenly places? We should never forget that though we have the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, and countless blessings because we are in Christ, all of them are undeserved gifts. D. L. Moody was once walking along the streets of Chicago with another man. On seeing a drunk sleeping in a doorway, Moody said, "There, except for the grace of God, go I”.
You are not humble when:
• You perform good deeds and expect the praise of men.
• Your children litter the church but you are offended when asked to clean up the mess.
• You exaggerate the faults of others but minimize yours
• You cannot be corrected without being offended.
• The number of brethren you don’t greet is more than the number you have visited.
• A believer commits a sin and your response is, “I can never do that”
• You get angry with pastor because the church bulletin missed your birthday.
• You find it difficult to forgive others.
• You throw tantrums when criticized.
• You give excuses for sin rather than repent.
How to be humble
Humility, like agape love and faith, are divine qualities made possible in us by the Spirit of God. None of us can make ourselves humble. When the Bible says, "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord" that does not mean you can acquire the virtue by wishful thinking. It means you and I should go to God asking Him to reveal Himself to us. The more of Him we see, the more humble we become. It was after Isaiah saw the Lord sitting upon the throne that he realized he was a man of unclean lips (Isaiah 6:5). When the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, he said, 'Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child" (Jeremiah 1:6). When Moses met with God behind a burning bush, his initial response was, 'Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt? (Exodus 3:11). Whenever a man encounters God, he gets a true sense of how inadequate he is. Regardless of what you may be before men, you are nothing before your Maker. He made you what and who you are today. Your humility should show in your eagerness to worship Him in all situations.
We were born full of ourselves. We grow up using the time, treasure and talents the Lord has given us. The more we accomplish and acquire, the more we become proud of our success. Those with five talents look down on those with two and they in turn look down on those with one. It is not natural to realize that there is nothing we have that we have not received (1 Corinthians 4:7). When we catch a glimpse of who God is we realize we are nothing without Him or compared to Him. This is what it means to be humble in the sight of the Lord. Humility is the realization that the conduit pipe does not own the oil that passes through it. The message is not owned by the messenger. It is not the helm of the garment that heals but the virtue that flows from the Master.
Serve with humility following the example of Christ. “Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion”. Philippians 2:5-8. Let us put self aside, put on God and walk before Him.
