Jesus Christ has first and foremost called us to be servants, not leaders. That’s secondary. We are called to serve and love one another. Some are called to lead.
Suffering produces humility. Jesus, the suffering servant as Isaiah called him humbled himself for us even unto death.
Php 2:3-5 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. (4) Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. (5) Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Col 3:12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
1Pe 5:5-6 Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." (6) Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
Eph 4:2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
Mat 23:12 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Peter Wagner considered this to be the foundation scripture to the understanding humility.
a. Pride: Deadliest of the Seven Deadly Sins
Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (23) gentleness and self- control. Against such things there is no law.In Gal 5 we read about the fruit of the spirit. There is only one fruit with different aspects. Gentleness, sometimes translated as meekness means humility.
Pride leads to every other vice. ~C. S. Lewis
Pride is spiritual cancer that eats common sense.
G. K. Chesterton said if he could preach only once, it would be a sermon against pride
Pro 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
Pride is listed as the first of the seven deadly sins. It is the worst of them and the most deadly. In contrast, humility is the most foundational virtue.
b. Characteristics of Pride
Some characteristics of pride:- Being blind, unable to see our own pride
- Unthankful
- Brag
- Seeking independence
- Monopolizing conversation, rigid, headstrong
- Being consumed with what people think
- Being devastated by criticism
- Rejoicing in the failures of others
- Obsession with self
- Yearning for praise and human accolades.
- Cultivating a creator complex.
- Keeping score
- Rejoicing in others' failures and resenting others' successes.
- Compulsively defending yourself against criticism
c. Obsession with Self
God has to deal with pride in us.Joh 15:5 I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
Jesus said without Him we can do nothing. Why such a radical statement from Jesus? Because He is the Son of God. He is the integration point that holds the universe together. If we understand this better, we will have less problems with pride.
We must always remember that the way to run a church is not the CEO model, it should be the shepherd model after the example set by Jesus, it must be personal.
God is the one that increases the number in the church. If we try to manufacture a growth, the increase will be temporary and it will not last.
d. Humility: The Most Foundational Virtue
We can choose humility. We can choose the way of the Cross. What is humility all about?e. Characteristics of Humility
- Focus on Jesus as the author and perfector of our faith
- Overwhelmed by God’s goodness.
- commune with God
- Serve others
- Obey God’s will
- Learn from others
- Encourage others
- Pursue integrity in private and pu
- Living unto Jesus
- think rightly and soberly about ourselves – to bow low before God
1. Adhering to the biblical rules for submission.
It is a sad fact that in today's society, submission has almost become a countercultural notion. The Bible teaches that every one of us has a duty to be submissive. Humble people willingly submit to those whom God has put in authority over them.
2. Understanding the role of the Holy Spirit in your daily life.
Being filled with the Holy Spirit should be a continuous condition, not an occasional experience. When your life is characterized by love, joy, peace, longsuffering, meekness (humility), self-control or the like, God gets the credit, not you.
3. Discovering your spiritual gifts.
In Romans 12:3, the Bible instructs us to think soberly of ourselves, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. We are all members of the body of Christ and that we all have our own God-given spiritual gifts. Other saints might not be as good at something as you are, but they might evangelize better, be more hospitable or preach more.
4. Knowing your place in the body.
It is just as important to know what spiritual gifts you don't have as it is to know what spiritual gifts you do have. You must be humble enough to admit that you cannot do it all and that you are incomplete without others.
5. Knowing your weaknesses.
If you are humble, you will readily admit there are many things you do not know. You must be very free to admit your weaknesses, lack of knowledge, inexperience and shortcomings. Always make others feel that they are teaching you new things, and get excited about it.
6. Daring to be realistic about your successes and failures.
Some Christians imagine that if they claim resounding success at any task, it would be seen as pride. On the other hand, they fear that if they admit they truly bombed on some other task, it would be questioning the power of God. Both of these extremes should be avoided. Bottom line: You win some, and you lose some.
7. Taking risks.
Deep within the nature of a risk is the possibility of failure. Humble people are willing to take risks because they are willing to lose. They know there is a crucial difference between losing and being a loser.
8. Accepting praise but rejecting flattery.
If you truly accomplish something significant in life and are praised for it, you should receive the praise with dignity. Refusing to accept legitimate praise is not a sign of humility; it is a sign of insecurity. But be aware of self-serving, insincere flattery. It is deceptive. Humble people will politely reject such flattery.
9. Avoiding living in the achievements of the past.
Learn a lesson from the 1930s radio show character, the Lone Ranger. He illustrated that it is not too important who knows your name or who associates it with accomplishments of the past, no matter how heroic. After the successful event, the most important thing was to focus on helping the next person in trouble.
10. Having the ability to pass on your glory to others.
Esteeming others better than yourself is not easy, even if you decide that you want to do it. It is an essential step, however, if you are on the road to humility and if you want to arrive. You must give credit when credit is due. If you err, it is better to err on the side of giving too much credit to others, as long as it is not phony. Never resent others getting public acclaim for something in which you might have had a part in making happen. If you feel you have been slighted, keep your feelings to yourself.
f. Practicing and Growing in Humility
In the face of the celebrity culture, we are threatened with Impression Management.Richard Foster suggested four methods to practice humility:
- Look for one substantive act we can do this month and do it without telling anyone.
- Don’t do it out of pride. Just be mindful and observe. Die daily.
- Intentionally look at your colleagues in a positive light even hoping that they can do better than us. We cannot say this prayer if we do not have humility.
- Learn to receive praises and criticism. Don’t try to have false modesty and then greater pride later.
Vince Lombardi, coach of the Greenbay Packers once said winning is not everything, it’s the only thing.
Some read v24 and encourage all to run to win the race. But in v25 Paul dropped the analogy. He told us not to run the race for something that is corruptible. Competition is not the name of the game.
Competition should not exist in the house of God. Competition is based on pride and pride is one of the deadliest of the seven deadly sins. A better analogy for Christians is the Special Olympics. When a church has a ministry for special people, then it is on the right track because it is concerned with what God cares.
In a Special Olympics race, a down syndrome athlete was about to cross the finishing line when the athlete behind him fell. Instead of running ahead, he turned back to help his friend up and walked him to the finished line.
Collaboration, cooperation and love are core elements of a Christian life.
Ways to be humble.
- Altering a posture through prayer
- Yielding amidst our mistakes
- Hanging out with those of no account
The book Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas suggested that the trails of a marriage make a couple holy. God doesn’t give us marriage to make us happy but to make us holy. Sacred Parenting suggested God give us children not for us to influence them but for them to influence us!
g. Humility: Faith to Face Failure
Vernon Grounds wrote Faith to Face Failures, Or What’s So Great About Success.Each of us must have the faith to keep on serving even when we are not recognized. Failure is often success in the eyes of God.
Brennan Manning, a recovered alcoholic shared this benediction.
May all your expectations be frustrated.
May all your plans be thwarted.
May all your desires be withered into nothingness.
That you may experience the powerlessness and the poverty of a child and sing and dance in the love of God the Father, the Son and the Spirit.
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