Humility in Daily Life
Notes
Transcript
Let’s do a little exercise together. Right now, all together, let’s all think of one of the most humble people we’ve ever met. Get a picture in your mind’s eye. Everyone have a picture?
How do you know they are humble? It’s not like they have some sort of card in their wallet, or a rating online that lists their “humility score.” How do you know?
There’s something about the way the humble person carries themselves. They are not self-seeking, or obsessed with themselves. They are genuine in their praise of others, and genuinely happy at other’s success. They aren’t rattled by other’s achievements. They are life-giving to be around. They care about you. That’s a few ways we can identify humility. Through how folks lives their lives, especially in relation to others.
Humility is God’s idea. Jesus Himself was our demonstration of it. But here’s the thing. If we claim to be Christ-followers, then His humility needs to be demonstrated in our lives.
Big idea: Humility toward others demonstrates our love for God.
If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
It would seem then that if we say we love God, yet have little love, grace, and humility for those around us, we are making ourselves out to be hypocrites.
I’d like to turn to Philippians 2 for a minute. Here Paul characterizes humility among believers, and shows Christ as our example of this humility:
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
As we can tell from this passage, humility should characterize our lives as Christians. In fact, we should count others as more significant then ourselves. What a statement! Paul tells us not to look only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others. He shows through a beautiful hymn our Lord Jesus: pre-existent, coming, living, dying, being raised, and ascending to heaven again. Christ is our ultimate example of humility in His coming, living, dying. But if we’re to follow Jesus, we must also put on humility in our daily lives. In fact, if we truly love God, that love will shine out in the form of humility. Andrew Murray wrote something interesting:
Here’s a sobering thought: God measurers our love for Him by the love we show to our brothers and sisters in everyday fellowship with them.
Our humility before God is demonstrated in our humility towards others.
Who here would says that they love God?
Is your heart truly captivated by God’s transformational love? If so, then you are on a path to being emptied of yourself, your ambition, your comparison to others, etc. What takes the place is humility - which seeks to serve and love others, even as we have been served and loved. It rejoices in the success of others, without thought for itself. You become - as Andrew Murray says -
God’s servant and for His sake the servant of all. …[You have] received the Spirit of Jesus, who refused to chase after recognition and honor.
What does that look like?
Paul helps us with this:
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
DON’T:
Selfish ambition: To have a strong drive for personal success, with the potential to compromise morals to get ahead.
Conceit: being vain - having a very high opinion of one’s self. Interestedly, do you know what the antonym for conceit is? Humility!
DO:
Counting others more significant than yourself.
Looking to other’s interests, not just your own. It not about completely forgetting yourself, but instead putting others first. Caring for them, sacrificing on their behalf. Jesus is our example of the humble person.
It is the lent season. Lent is about journeying towards the cross, towards Easter. Christ came in human form. He humbled Himself, limited Himself, taking on humanity’s form. He lived a life like ours. He experienced joy, sadness, pain, etc. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, and raised to life. He walked everywhere. He often was dusty, dirty, probably tired. He spent much time in prayer, and took the time to pray for others. He was ridiculed, beaten, falsely accused. In mockery, they place d a “crown” made of thrones on His head, and then smashed it into his scalp. Then he was forced to carry the very piece of wood he was to be nailed to. They drove spikes through His hands or wrists, and a spike through His feet. Hanging there, physically is great torment, people still laughed at Him. This was the death of a criminal, not a king. He breathed His last, and in that moment I’m sure Satan laughed, because it seemed he had won. Jesus had died - death had won.
But Christ didn’t stay dead! He was raised to life. God has conquered. To everyone who believes Jesus as their Lord and Saviour, salvation is given. Christ was our example of humility. In life, and in His sacrificial death! If we have been transformed by God’s love - if we claim to be real Christ-followers - we need to clothe ourselves with the same humility Christ had. Because the humility we show to others demonstrates what kind of transformation has taken place in us.
So let us see others with God’s heart. For we are products of God’s love, and His chosen instrument to demonstrate His love to this world.
It’s not about us, but about glorifying God and serving each other. Humility in our daily lives - demonstrated to our spouse, families, friends, neighbours - is an outward sign of a heart that has been transformed and captivated by the love of God.
It is easy to think we humble ourselves before God: humility towards men will be the only sufficient proof that our humility before God is real; that humility has taken up its abode in us; and become our very nature; that we actually, like Christ, have made ourselves of no reputation. - Andrew Murray, Humility (p. 23).
