Humility

Philippians 2:4-8 (ESV)
⁴  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
⁵  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. ⁸  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

When I was a kid, there was a “Character Development” section in every bookstore.  Individuals were interested in become better human beings.  They sought to learn where the sharp edges of their character were and how to round them.  That section of the bookstore has now been replaced with books on self-love and how to influence others.   JFK’s famous statement just 60 years ago, “Ask not what your country can do for you.  Ask what you can do for your country” now falls on deaf ears.

The passage above from Philippians tells us Christians we are not to think like that.  The idea of God the Son emptying Himself of the use of His divine attributes in order to come to be with us is staggering.  The God who spoke and all that exists came into existence from nothing came to wash the feet of men (John chapter 13).  The Person Who had never known pain, endured the horrible pain of a Roman flogging and then of crucifixion.

He saw a world in need of salvation and humbled Himself in order to provide it.

If we’re to be Christlike, we’re to humble ourselves in order to provide for the needs of others.  Is that the sort of concern you and I have for others in need?  Do we ask “how can I help spiritually and physically?” 

“Maybe this is just one of those impossible goals like Jesus telling us to be perfect.”  We tell ourselves that, but is it true?  Even if it were, can’t we do better?  Are we yielding to the Spirit of God?  That would be humbling.

Humility means to bring ourselves low, lower than we think we ought to be.  C.S. Lewis defined humility as not thinking less of ourselves but thinking of ourselves less.  We are a selfish people.  Humbling ourselves is hard, harder for some than for others, but it’s not a suggestion.  It’s a command.  No loopholes.

Why is this important?

The United States is currently seeing cities burning, people killed randomly, and corrupt officials standing by allowing this to happen.

Isaiah saw Jerusalem in the same situation, and God noticed:

Isaiah 1:21 (ESV)
²¹  How the faithful city has become a whore, she who was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers.

God told Isaiah the reason He didn’t destroy the land was that there were still survivors, sincere followers of God there.

Isaiah 1:9 (ESV)
⁹  If the LORD of hosts had not left us a few survivors, we should have been like Sodom, and become like Gomorrah.

 It turns out humility is a powerful defense for the Christian. The very presence of humble believers had kept God’s total wrath from the city of Jerusalem.  The city was destroyed by the Babylonians a hundred years later but only because the people failed to humble themselves.

There are survivors here, sincere followers of God in our nations today holding back the total wrath of God.  But, God wants more from us.  God honors our faithfulness, but humbling ourselves before God can have an even greater effect:

1 Kings 21:29 (ESV)
²⁹  “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; but in his son’s days I will bring the disaster upon his house.”

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (ESV)
¹³  When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, ¹⁴  if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Let us humble ourselves before the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Let us have the mind of Christ and reach out humbly to those in need.  In doing so, God may heal our land.