All in Humility
How humble do you allow yourself to be before God? Do you maintain your freedom of self at all cost, maybe you sell yourself as a servant who works for a price, or are you totally owned as a slave? How far are you willing to go into your servitude, how far does your humility take you as you humble yourself at the feet of the Lord? Now let me ask this... how completely are you prepared to humble yourself before one another? Are you independent, a servant, or are you a slave to those around you?
When we look at Jesus we see a humble man, and yet at the Last Supper His disciples argued over which of them would be considered the best, or the greatest. This is an oxymoron... how can they want to be the greatest follower of a man of absolute humility; the greatest of the least? It is human nature to want to be the best at what we do... even if it is being humble. Is humility something you struggle with? Is placing your pride and conceit under subjugation impossible? Then turn to Jesus.
How many churches are there within your congregation? How many groups of different mind, and various agenda, are milling about one another, and often find themselves at loggerheads? This is what happens when we lose focus on maintaining ourselves in the image of Jesus Christ. This is what occurs when a marriage ceases to be of one flesh.
Do you boast in your accomplishments in faith? Do you think yourself better than another because you quote more scripture, appear more saintly, or are of greater righteousness than another? Well if you are any of these things it is not of your doing, and if you feel boastful it is to your detriment because these things are in you as a result of our God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ alone.
How humble do you find yourself to be? Are you strong enough to maintain your course of faith, and yet meek enough to do so without rippling the water around you? Are you bold in your humility before the cross, or do you carry your faith before you like a sharp sword? As we approach Pentecost we can’t help but compare ourselves to the apostles before they received the Holy Spirit, with those same men after the Spirit had come upon them... they left behind their desire to be first on that day, and became images of Jesus.
When you enter your time of devotion and reading the scriptures, is your intention to study the Holy Spirit, Jesus, and God, like a scientist would study a specimen in a lab? If you are a pastor are you looking for eloquence and inspiration that can be used in your sermons? If so then you are treating your relationship and faith as if they were something you might own, and not the love of your life that you should be immersed in, and changed by.
Have you surrendered completely to God? Is everything you are, and everything you have His? So often we say these words, but when it comes time to turn those things over to Him we renege, or have second thoughts. We promise the Lord that He is first in our lives and that everything in our life is His; yet at the first sign of true sacrifice, or at His first request of us we falter. Our Father doesn’t need our possessions... He just desires that we not need them more than we need Him.
How do you view holiness? Are you a humble and holy person? Are you this because you say you are, or because others see it in you and say “this person is humble, and holy indeed”? If you think you have achieved a certain degree of humility and holiness before God do you use it to separate yourself from those who have not? In Isaiah 65 we hear God speaking of such actions and He calls them rebellious.
Do you let your pride get in the way of your faith? Do you take pleasure in the praise of others when the glory is truly God’s, or perhaps value the praise of men over that of God Himself? The simplest lack of humility is a sure ingredient in a major lack of faith. Pride places self over God.
Are you a humble person before God? Do you relinquish your will to Him in every aspect? For some of us humility is a bitter pill to swallow; we are filled to the brim with pride and see no reason to kneel. Yet scripture is adamant regarding this point... we are to be humble, and as a matter of fact we are told to be humble before God, and men, alike.
Are you a servant to all those surrounding you? Have you humbled yourself sufficiently in order to put your own desires behind you, so that you can be obedient to the example that Jesus has placed before you? If so then God Bless you, but if not then take a long look at who you truly are. Do you see much difference in the person you once were and the one you are now?
How do you recognize a person who has given themselves completely over to God’s will? What one trait do you see in such saints? If you mull this over in your mind, you will come to one conclusion, and one conclusion only... humility. To become a servant you must first humble yourself, to obey God without reservation you must humble yourself, and to become a child of Our Heavenly Father, you must humble yourself before Him. Are you able to place God before ourself? Are you capable of embodying the absolute humility of Christ?
Are you a serious person? By this I mean, do you present yourself in faith as a stuffy, academically aloof, or “better than you” Christian? If you are like this or are more interested in appearing righteous than actually being righteous, then it is time to wake up. Jesus was born a carpenter’s son and lived a common life, despite being anything but common.
Are You a great man or woman of God? Do you have stripes on your sleeve for all to see, as you live the years of your faith for everyone to marvel at? Is your goal for each day to show those around you how mightily you serve, or the pious nature of your calling? If so, then stop the pompous religiosity and seek out humility... seek out Jesus and lose the notoriety of practice.
When God is working in another’s life do you get in His way? Are you one of those people we refer to as a “fixer”, but who lets Himself get out of control on a regular basis? Do you find that in an attempt to repair a situation you come between God and the miracle He is about to perform? Do you let your own will and intellect overreach its bounds? Well if so, get ready to be corrected... and to possibly hurt lives.