Humility

Intro

How we show up matters - our character in some ways is like clothing - ppl can perceive it.

You ever seen pride enter the room? I mean you can’t see it, but you can’t miss it.

I mean I remember one of my teammates; he thought he was so smooth, you woulda thought that glass needed to pay him royalties

His number was..you guessed it…ONE

But pride isn’t his struggle alone, all of us struggle with pride, so how do we become identifiable by a different characterisitc? Turn with me to Col 3.

Colossians 3:12–14 NIV

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

But what does it look like to be clothed in humility? To answer this question, let’s look at a parable given to us by Jesus.

Main Passage

Luke 18:10 NIV

10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

Levels of the Temple:

Court of Gentiles

Court of Women

Court of Men or Court of Israel

These courts were intended to be a reminder that God is Holy holy holy.

they were intended to create in us a humility - you see the source of humility is not a low view of self but an exalted view of God.

We become humble when we see God as holy.

The problem with pride is that we don’t see God’s holiness. So what do we see? What is our focal point then? Let’s continue reading.

The Temple these men went into was located in Jerusalem. This Temple had a series of various courts. The outer most court was the Court of Gentiles. It was there anyone, Jewish or not, could come and worship God, but if you were Gentile (non-Jewish) you could not come any closer. Then came the court of Women where Jewish women could go and worship God. But they couldn’t get any closer. Then came the Court of Israel (or the Court of Men) where ritually pure Jewish men could worship and watch the sacrifice they brought be burned on the Altar. Then came the Court of Priests where the Altar was located. Beyond all that was the Temple itself with the Holy Place and then the Most Holy Place where only the High Priest could enter once a year on the Day of Atonement. All of these various courts were intended to remind people of God’s Holiness. It sent a message that you couldn’t just run up to God but needed to be thoughtful and honoring of Him as you approached. Now, when Jesus died on the cross, the large curtain in the Temple was torn from top to bottom, signifying anyone who accepted Jesus was clean and covered by His blood and now had direct access to God. That should not cause us to be flippant about approaching God. He is still Holy, Holy, Holy. The design of the Temple reinforced His holiness. These various courts were designed to create a sense of humility before God. However, some would move through these courts and feel superior based on how close they got to the Temple in comparison to others. 

So two different responses:

Luke 18:10–14 NIV

10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Response One: Arrogance

Arrogance can have two sources

1. What I don’t do

Luke 18:11 NIV

11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.

I don’t drink

I don’t smoke

I don’t sleep around

I don’t look at porn

I don’t eat junk food

2. What I do

Luke 18:12 NIV

12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

I go to church

I read my bible

I tithe

I volunteer

I workout

I have a great marriage

Problem is our righteousness is rooted in self. Solution is realizing God’s holiness.

Define Pride:

“Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man... It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition is gone, pride is gone.” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Response Two: Humility

Luke 18:13 NIV

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

Why wouldn’t He look up? Remember the source of humility is viewing God rightly - its having His holiness in view

Now remember, they are in the temple. Luke 18:10 “10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”

Humility is not self-pity

Not about if you didn’t make the team

not about your GPA

If you’re lamenting your performance it’s still about you - it’s just low self esteem

Define Humility is viewing self rightly

Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.

C.S. Lewis

Humility is a response to God’s holiness.

Luke 18:13 NIV

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

God is merciful - that is evidence of His holiness

Matthew 5:3 NIV

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Every parable Jesus told was an illustration of His sermon on the Mount

Thus the humble person is not confident in self but in God

Luke 18:13–14 NIV

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

When we are confident in who God is Humility enables us to live with dependance on God.

Recognition we can’t do it on our own.

What area of your life do you need God?

The source of humility is our relationship with God

We can’t be humble, truly humble if we don’t know God.

When we know God and obtain humility from Him - it changes the way we interact with others

Examples of Pride in relationships:

Friendships

A person consistently one-ups their friend’s stories or accomplishments, making the friendship feel competitive instead of supportive.

Marriage / Dating

One partner refuses to ask for help, insisting they can handle everything, which leads to exhaustion, resentment, and emotional distance.

Family

An adult child refuses to reconcile with their parents because they believe the parents should be the ones to “make the first move.” Years of potential closeness are lost.

Workplace

A manager won’t admit they made a mistake on a project, blaming the team instead, which erodes trust and morale.

Church / Community

Examples of humility in Relationships:

Great question—seeing the flip side really drives it home. Here are some humility-based contrasts to the pride examples:

Friendships

Instead of refusing to admit wrong, a friend says, “I realize I hurt you with what I said. I’m sorry—will you forgive me?” The relationship deepens because trust and vulnerability are present.

Rather than one-upping, a humble friend celebrates the other’s success: “That’s amazing—I’m so proud of you!” This builds encouragement instead of rivalry.

Marriage / Dating

A spouse apologizes quickly after a sharp word, showing that the relationship matters more than being “right.”

Instead of insisting on handling everything, a partner admits, “I can’t do this alone—can you help me?” This invites teamwork and closeness.

Family

An adult child swallows pride and calls a parent to reconcile: “I know we’ve both made mistakes, but I want to rebuild our relationship.”

Workplace

A manager admits, “That was my mistake—thank you for catching it.” Trust and respect grow because the team sees authenticity.

Church / Community

A leader shares responsibility and empowers others: “You have gifts that I don’t—let’s use them together.”

👉 In short: Pride pushes people apart, humility pulls them together.

Now it’s important to know we have worth; but it’s more important to see worth in others; when we do so, we have true humility.

Jose

How has your view of God changed the way you view yourself? How has your view of God changed the way you view people?

When you find yourself feeling a little prideful, what do you do to recenter your attention of God?

Action: focus on the holiness of God and ask for the humility necessary to treat others rightly.

Philippians 2:3–7 NIV

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

we see the value of others

we think about others

we serve others

Action: who is someone you can value by serving?