1 Peter 5:5-6 In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
Humility is the quality of being unpretentious and
respectful towards others. It means considering others more significant than
ourselves. The word "humility" comes from the Greek word Tapenos,
which means "to level a mountain or a hill." Humble people don't have
any ego or pride or attempt to elevate themselves above others. They do not
compete for leadership roles in their sphere of influence. Jesus once advised
the Jews to take seats reserved for the least essential people when someone
invited them to a special dinner. Humility is the attribute of being modest and
respectful towards others. It means considering others more highly than
ourselves.
In the church today, we have too many adolescent Christians
who question everything the Father does and often do their own thing. We don't
understand that in God's family, children never grow up; they grow down. The
more Christ-like the person, the humbler and more dependent they are. The term
"little children," used often by Jesus and John the apostle, is not
just a term of endearment but a fitting description of what we should be like.
Conviction of sin and awareness of our low estate before God are necessary for
God to work in our lives. Humility means to be poor in spirit.
Paul wrote that we should "not think of ourselves more
highly than we ought to think, but to think of ourselves with sound
judgment" (Romans 12:3). Humility is nothing more than having a realistic
evaluation of our condition. Humility is knowing that we are weak and pitiful.
Pride is knowing that we are weak and pitiful and believing otherwise. True
humility is not a submissive, groveling, self-loathing spirit; it is simply a
correct estimate of ourselves as God sees us.
Some might respond to this as, "But how can a
Christian think of themself as having a lowly state and being weak if they are
God's child and is seated with Christ in heavenly places?" Indeed, that is
a great question: There is a troublesome tension between realizing what we are
and remembering what we were. If we are to live a victorious Christian life
that bears fruit and pleases God, we must forget neither our past nor our
future condition. We should always remember our high standing, but though we
have the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, and many blessings because we are in
Christ, we must never forget that all are undeserved gifts.
On the other hand, we see that the result of receiving the
gospel is lifting one's head. People
should be humble, but at the same time, they should have holy pride in the
values of their sonship. We should live in awe and wonder of the good fortune
that found us when we were taken from sin's gutter and brought into God's
family.
Godly humility does not mean we should dress poorly to draw
attention to ourselves, boast about how little we spent on our wardrobe, speak
about how undeserved we are, or do anything to bring attention to ourselves. A.
W. Tozer wrote, "I have met two classes of Christians: the proud who
imagine that they are humble, and the humble who are afraid to be proud.
There should be an additional class: the self-forgetful who
leave the whole thing in the hands of Christ and decline to waste any time
trying to make themselves appear good and humble. They will attain their goal
way ahead of those who seek recognition of the world.
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