HUMILITY

WHAT IS HUMILITY?

Humility is the lowliness freedom from pride. It is a humble state of living; in other word known as meekness; the life that is required of us by God our Father far away from haughtiness but a life of lowliness. Humility is the gateway to one’s exaltation or for an answered prayer. See God’s covenant to king Solomon, the son of David, (2 Chr. 7:14) “If My people who are called by My name will 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. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayers made in this place.” This is also another anchor of the Scriptures that I do love as it is a do- you-do- me verse. And one may ask, “What do I mean by this?” This is what the Lord quires from us as His people and makes Him act as God to any prayer represented before Him. If we believers, as His people, will humble ourselves to pray and seek His face, and we turn away from the sins that we may have committed; then God from heaven will hear such prayers, forgive the sins and heal the land from any pestilence, sword, famine or diseases that He may have released because of our wickedness, As I had jotted; humility is a gate way to our answered prayers.  We will later see how wicked people, kings or nations humbled themselves before God their Maker and He relented from doing them harm. It is also a principle that God requires from us as His people.

HUMILITY AS A CHRISTIAN VIRTUE

Humility is an important Christian virtue. Both Old and New Testaments stresses how God lifts up the lowly, saves the humble and gives the meek His grace. Since humans are so prone to pride, God sometimes did things deliberately to humble His people (Deut. 8:2-5) “And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manner which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not leave by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your feet swell these forty years. You should know that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chasten you.” As a Christian quality, to be humble means selflessly using what God has given us to benefit others. Our Lord Himself showed great humility, primarily by leaving heaven to come to this sin-marred earth (Isa. 53:7-8) “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before His shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken.”  Apostle Paul uses the example of Christ’s humility to encourage believers to be humble; (Phil. 2:3-4) “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” This was the heart of humility. Jesus as the Son of God never exalted Himself but walked humbly both to God His Father and fellow humans as He was both God and man. Jesus was oppressed and afflicted yet He humbled Himself unto death-even death on the cross. As Christians and believers of the word of God, may we lead by example the life that Christ lived here on earth?

WARNING GAINST PRIDE

Other Bible writers also urge us to be humble and warn against pride (Deut. 8:11-18) “Beware that you do not forget the Lord Your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, lest- when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord Your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions, and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock; who fed you in the wilderness with manner, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you. To do you good in the end- then you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’  “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers as it is this day.” God the Father warned the children of Israel through His servant Moses against the spirit of pride. Spirit of pride when it enters a man, he makes him exalt himself on top of the world that he regards not neither God nor man; then, how will he keep the commands of God in that state? That’s why they were to be warned in advance, to remember God’s protection, preservation and provision for forty years in the wilderness; lest they follow the dictates of other nations and be given in the hand of their enemies. They were to humble themselves and remember their God who gave them power to get wealth to fulfill the covenant which He swore to their fathers.

THE COMMAND TO BE HUMBLE

From the above passage we get to know and understand that humility is a command from God our Father and not a request though. For God to exalt an individual or a nation, they must humble themselves before the Lord (Eph. 4:1-2) “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, Beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with long suffering, bearing with one another in love.” This is Apostle Paul exhortation. And Peter says thus to us (1 Peter 5:5-7) “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of good, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”  Therefore humility beloved, is a God’s command, apostle’s command, the priests and prophet’s command. Now it is everyone’s and all command. For God gives grace to the humble, He exalts the humble but the proud, He resists. Micah the prophet commands that we must walk humbly with our God (Mic. 6:8) “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God?” According to Micah, keeping the law consist of doing what is right, having that disposition from which obedience to the law flows,  and maintaining a humility which leads one to do God’s will. The final words, “walk humbly with your God,” are the key to the others. As fear of God and a humble spirit before Him create the desire to be just in one’s dealings with others. These virtues elicit kindness and goodwill towards others.

TO CLOTHE OURSELVES WITH HUMILITY

Clothing ourselves with humility is a must thing to do too (Col. 3:12) “Therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness humility, and meekness, longsuffering.” These are requirements for those that call themselves the elect of the Lord; minus these qualities, one is not qualified to call himself the, “elect of the Lord” By clothing ourselves with humility, we must consider others better than ourselves. Giving others the first priority while we wait. Mostly where there are queues, we will find people grumbling and fighting to be among the first; but so what? Being first does not mean one will attain the best- especially food matters some do fight to get the top layers. But mark you! Top layers are full of oil and fat which are harmful to our health. To clothe ourselves with humility, we must avoid, false humility (Col. 2:18-23) “Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, introducing into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding first to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows from the increase that is from God. Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations- “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” which all concern things which perish with the using- according to the commandments and doctrines of men? These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.” Just why is religious hypocrisy so abominable? First, it dares to presume that the all-knowing and all-seeing God of the universe can be deceived by mere formal normal piety. Second, it is preoccupied by the loss of personal reputation and self-esteem by the confession of lusts and evils enjoyed in the private. Third, it utterly blinds its victims so that they not only incapable of rightly judging themselves, but also become vicious accusers of others. Flee to God for deliverance beloved, from every evil that would threaten to separate you from Him. Particularly pray for deliverance from the blindness of hypocrisy which has its roots in pride.

James the Apostle wrote (James 4:10) “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”

“Grace to you and Favor from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with us all. Amen and Amen and Amen.”