“Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.” Proverbs 18:12
Suggested Further Reading: Romans 12:3-6
What is humility? The best definition I have ever met with is, “to think rightly of ourselves.” Humility is to make a right estimate of one’s self. It is no humility for a man to think less of himself than he ought, though it might rather puzzle him to do that. Some persons, when they know they can do a thing, tell you they cannot; but you do not call that humility. A man is asked to take part in some meeting. “No,” he says, “I have no ability”; yet if you were to say so yourself, he would be offended at you. It is not humility for a man to stand up and depreciate himself and say he cannot do this, that, or the other, when he knows that he is lying. If God gives a man a talent, do you think the man does not know it? If a man has ten talents he has no right to be dishonest to his Maker, and to say, “Lord, thou hast only given me five.” It is not humility to underrate yourself. Humility is to think of yourself, if you can, as God thinks of you. It is to feel that if we have talents, God has given them to us, and let it be seen that, like freight in a vessel, they tend to sink us low. The more we have, the lower we ought to lie. Humility is not to say, “I have not this gift,” but it is to say, “I have the gift, and I must use it for my Master’s glory. I must never seek any honour for myself, for what have I that I have not received?”
For meditation: Pride can lead us to misuse God’s gifts for selfish ends. A false humility can lead to laziness and disobedience which causes someone else to have to do what we should be doing ourselves. The right balance is to serve the Lord with all humility as the apostle Paul could truthfully claim to have done (Acts 20:19).
Sermon no. 97
17 August (1856)
Tag Archives: humility
Our Daily Bread — Correct Gently
| Read: Colossians 3:12-17 Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 10-11; Luke 21:20-38 Put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another. —Colossians 3:12-13 At the end of a conference in Nairobi, Kenya, our group traveled from the conference center to a guesthouse to prepare to fly back home the next morning. When we arrived, one person in our group reported that she had forgotten her luggage back at the conference center. After she left to retrieve it, our group leader (always meticulous on detail) criticized her sharply to us in her absence. The next morning when we arrived at the airport, the leader discovered to his dismay that he too had left his luggage behind. It and his passport were back at the guesthouse. It was now going to cost us even more to go for his baggage. Later, he apologized and said to all of us, “I’ll never criticize so harshly again!” Because we all have faults and weaknesses, we should bear with one another and forgive each other when things go wrong (Col. 3:13). We need to be constructive in our criticism and “clothe [our]selves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (v.12 niv). When correction is necessary, it should be done with kindness and love. In that way we become imitators of our Lord Jesus Christ. —Lawrence Darmani Dear God, You know that there are times when I just don’t feel patient and humble and gentle. Those days in my life, the fruit of Your Spirit seems in short supply. Please enable me to love others today. The keys to effective relationships are gentleness and humility. INSIGHT: Paul’s admonition in verse 16—that we are to allow “the word of Christ [to] dwell in [us] richly in all wisdom”—parallels Ephesians 5:18-19, where we are challenged to be under the control of the Holy Spirit. This results in worship, thanksgiving, and maintaining appropriate relationships with others. |
Greg Laurie – The Surprising Reward of Humility
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.—Matthew 5:5
We might think of humility as a form of weakness, but it is actually the very opposite. Humility is connected to meekness. Jesus said, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” What is meekness? A literal definition of the word is power under constraint.
For example, if you were to see a person riding a magnificent, powerful stallion, and he is clip-clopping along, that horse has submitted his will to the rider. He has more than enough power to resist the direction of the rider and do what he wants. But because that horse has effectively humbled himself, or has been meek, he’s putting his power under constraint. He’s surrendering his will to the person who is riding him.
In the same way, when the Bible speaks of humility and meekness, it means surrendering our will to the will of God. Philippians 2:3 tells us, “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.”
If you want to experience real joy, then put the acronym JOY into practice: Jesus. Others. Yourself. Put Jesus first. Put others second. Put yourself third. That is the joy we can experience. It is so simple, but I am amazed at the fact that very few people practice this. Many believers find themselves in the doldrums. They are down. They are depressed. They don’t have this kind of joy.
If you want real success, if you want true happiness, if you want to experience a deep and abiding joy instead of the fleeting happiness of this world, it is found in following Jesus and loving others.
Think about someone in need and start doing something for that person. Then watch how joy will appear in your life as a byproduct.
Charles Spurgeon – Pride and humility
“Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.” Proverbs 18:12
Suggested Further Reading: Romans 12:3-6
What is humility? The best definition I have ever met with is, “to think rightly of ourselves.” Humility is to make a right estimate of one’s self. It is no humility for a man to think less of himself than he ought, though it might rather puzzle him to do that. Some persons, when they know they can do a thing, tell you they cannot; but you do not call that humility. A man is asked to take part in some meeting. “No,” he says, “I have no ability”; yet if you were to say so yourself, he would be offended at you. It is not humility for a man to stand up and depreciate himself and say he cannot do this, that, or the other, when he knows that he is lying. If God gives a man a talent, do you think the man does not know it? If a man has ten talents he has no right to be dishonest to his Maker, and to say, “Lord, thou hast only given me five.” It is not humility to underrate yourself. Humility is to think of yourself, if you can, as God thinks of you. It is to feel that if we have talents, God has given them to us, and let it be seen that, like freight in a vessel, they tend to sink us low. The more we have, the lower we ought to lie. Humility is not to say, “I have not this gift,” but it is to say, “I have the gift, and I must use it for my Master’s glory. I must never seek any honour for myself, for what have I that I have not received?”
For meditation: Pride can lead us to misuse God’s gifts for selfish ends. A false humility can lead to laziness and disobedience which causes someone else to have to do what we should be doing ourselves. The right balance is to serve the Lord with all humility as the apostle Paul could truthfully claim to have done (Acts 20:19).
Sermon no. 97
17 August (1856)
John MacArthur – Building a Leader: The Right Raw Material
The twelve apostles included “Simon, who is called Peter” (Matt. 10:2).
We have seen that God uses our experiences to mold us into more effective Christians and leaders. Using Peter as our example, let’s briefly look at five lessons we can learn from our experiences: submission, restraint, humility, sacrifice, and love.
Leaders tend to be confident and aggressive, so they must learn to submit to authority. Jesus illustrated that by telling Peter to go fishing and look for a coin in the mouth of the first fish he caught (Matt. 17:24-27). He was to use that coin to pay their taxes. Peter was a citizen of God’s Kingdom, but he needed an object lesson in submitting to governmental authorities.
When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus, Peter grabbed a sword and would have fought the entire group if Jesus hadn’t restrained him. Peter needed to learn to entrust His life to the Father, just as Christ was doing.
Peter bragged that he would never leave or forsake Christ–but he did. Perhaps humility was the most painful lesson he had to learn.
Jesus told Peter that he would die as a martyr (John 21:18-19). From that day forward Peter knew his life was on the line, yet he was willing to make the necessary sacrifice and minister anyway.
Leaders tend to be task oriented and often are insensitive to people. Peter was that way, so Jesus demonstrated love by washing his feet and instructing him to do loving deeds for others (John 13:6-9, 34).
Submission, restraint, humility, sacrifice, and love should be characteristic of every believer–no matter what role he or she has within the Body of Christ. I pray they are characteristic of your life, and that you will constantly seek to grow in those graces as God continues His work in you.
Suggestions for Prayer: Spiritual lessons are sometimes painful to learn, but God is patient and gracious. Thank Him for His patience and thank Him also for Christ, who is the perfect example of what we should be.
For Further Study: Peter learned his lesson well. Read 1 Peter 2:13-18, 21-23; 4:8, 16; and 5:5. What can you learn from Peter’s instructions on submission, restraint, love, sacrifice, and humility?
Alistair Begg – Genuine Salt of Humility
Humility comes before honor.
Proverbs 15:33
Humiliation of soul always brings a positive blessing with it. If we empty our hearts of self, God will fill them with His love. If we desire close communion with Christ, we should remember the word of the Lord: “This is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”1
Stoop if you want to climb to heaven. Is it not said of Jesus, “He who descended is the one who also ascended”?2 So must you. You must grow downwards, that you may grow upwards; for the sweetest fellowship with heaven will be enjoyed by humble souls and by them alone. God will deny no blessing to a thoroughly humbled spirit. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,”3 with all its riches and treasures. All of God’s resources will be made available to the soul that is humble enough to be able to receive them without growing proud because of it.
God blesses each of us up to the level and extent of what it is safe for Him to do. If you do not get a blessing, it is because it is not safe for you to have one. If our heavenly Father were to let your unhumbled spirit win a victory in His holy war, you would snatch the crown for yourself, and in the next battle you would fall a victim. He keeps you low for your own safety!
When a man is sincerely humble and never tries to take the credit or the praise, there is scarcely any limit to what God will do for him. Humility makes us ready to be blessed by the God of all grace and equips us to deal efficiently with our fellows. True humility is a flower that will adorn any garden. This is a sauce that will season every dish of life and improve it in every case. Whether in prayer or praise, whether in work or suffering, the genuine salt of humility cannot be used in excess.
1Isaiah 66:2 2Ephesians 4:10 3Matthew 5:3
The family reading plan for April 5, 2014 Proverbs 23 | 1 Thessalonians 2
Charles Stanley – Humility in the Life of a Believer
Philippians 2:1-11
Jesus lived His earthly days with a humble spirit, and He taught that we should demonstrate humility as well. In God’s eyes, those who become like little children are honored (Matt. 18:4); the one who wants to be first must take last place (Mark 9:35); and servanthood is a mark of prominence (Matt. 23:11). With His teachings, our Savior turned the world’s definition of greatness upside down. In heaven, meekness is an attribute of honor.
Humility doesn’t automatically come to individuals who have few material belongings or to those who give their possessions away. The rich can be unassuming people, just as the poor can be proud. Success does not have to lead to pride, nor does defeat automatically mean humbleness. What determines humility is attitude. Jesus promises that those who humble themselves will be exalted by their heavenly Father. However, He warns that those who put themselves first will find that God opposes them (James 4:6).
As we recognize that we can do nothing of value apart from the Lord, we will have started on the road to meekness. When we lay down all our plans and instead accept God’s, we will be leaving our pride behind. If we are misunderstood or treated unfairly but stay where we are until the Lord tells us to speak or move, then we will have begun to live the humble life that pleases our Savior.
Jesus offers to be our Master Teacher so we might learn the godly lessons of humility. Will you let Him serve you in this way?
Charles Stanley – The Pattern of Humility
Philippians 2:1-11
Humility is characterized by an attitude that does not seek to exalt or assert oneself. In our world, this quality is certainly not found in everybody. But in God’s kingdom, it is an essential attribute for Christ-followers to have.
Jesus’ life was the definition of “humble.” To become a man, He gave up the glory, majesty, and power that were His in heaven. The Lord voluntarily emptied Himself—just as a glass of water is poured out—and for the purpose of serving us, surrendered all that He shared with His Father.
Not only that, but as a man, Jesus took on the role of a lowly servant. He lovingly submitted Himself to His Father’s plan and relinquished even earthly rights to rescue us from sin. He endured criticism, ridicule, unbelief, and, finally, crucifixion in order to help us. His humility knew no limit. He humbled Himself before the Father to become the Lamb of God, and He did so in full view of mankind, even when He was labeled a criminal and unjustly convicted. His life demonstrates the importance of being humble and gives us a clear pattern to follow.
The disciples missed the point until later on, since they didn’t expect a Messiah in the form of a servant. The leaders felt threatened because Jesus’ call to follow His lifestyle would not give them the importance they desired. The crowds were bewildered because they didn’t understand the danger of pride. But the Father saw Jesus’ meekness and was pleased.
What attitude does God see when He looks at you and me?
Joyce Meyer – A Big Dose of Humility
For in posing as judge and passing sentence on another, you condemn yourself, because you who judge are habitually practicing the very same things [that you censure and denounce].
—Romans 2:1
Humility is defined as “freedom from pride and arrogance…a modest estimate of one’s own worth.” In theology, it means having a consciousness of your own defects. We often judge other people because we don’t really have a conscious awareness of our own flaws. We look at everybody else through a magnifying glass, but we look at ourselves through rose-colored glasses. For others who make mistakes, “there is no excuse,” but it seems for us, there is always a reason why our behavior is acceptable.
The Bible says to “humble yourselves…under the mighty hand of God” (1 Peter 5:6). Examine your own heart and actions and humble yourself before Him. God gives us an opportunity to humble ourselves, but if we refuse, He will do it for us. So pray for God to make you aware of areas that need attention and refuse to sit in judgment on others.
Joyce Meyer – Seek to Be Humble
Do nothing from factional motives [through contentiousness, strife, selfishness, or for unworthy ends] or prompted by conceit and empty arrogance. Instead, in the true spirit of humility (lowliness of mind) let each regard the others as better than and superior to himself.
—Philippians 2:3
Having pure motives and humility are required if you are to fulfill the command to think more highly of others than yourself. In fact it cannot happen without a willingness to be obedient to the Holy Spirit.
To live in harmony you must recognize and respect the right of others to disagree with you, and you must do so with a good attitude. Humility requires that you forgive quickly and frequently…and that you not be easily offended. You cannot be self seeking, but instead you must be generous in mercy and patience.
Humble yourself and follow God’s instructions and you will enjoy the wonderful benefits of obedience: peace, joy, and a powerful, victorious life.
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