Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. (Colossians 3:12-15 ESV)
Continuing in this exhortation by the Apostle Paul, we are encouraged to put on humility. As the people of God who are called loved, precious and chosen, we are to walk in humility. This is a vital aspect of our walk of faith. We are to humbly submit ourselves to the authority of our Lord and Savior, Jesus. We are to humble ourselves to His Lordship in our lives as an act of reciprocal love that was first demonstrated to us.
I have been reading through a short book titled, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness by Andrew Murray. Actually this is the third time reading this book, I have found it to be encouraging. In the book Murray addresses humility as an aspect of our discipleship. He considers humble submission to the authority of Jesus as a “distinguishing feature of discipleship.”[1] I agree. As we choose to follow, we must seek the Lord to help us walk in humility. Our attitude of humility is not generated through efforts of the flesh to be humble. For Murray humility must become “a distinct object of continual”[2] prayer. Petitioning the Lord to help us humbly submit to His Lordship in our lives should be spoken daily from our lips. Humility is not an attitude acquired and then stored away for a rainy day. It is found only in the continual recognition of the authority of Jesus. It is only in recognition of the love lavished upon us in the redemption of our very souls bringing life to death. It is only when we truly attempt to grasp, admittedly in our human frailty, at the profound love of God given for those who choose to receive His gift of mercy. Humility then is not an act of the human will, but a recognition of grace. It is not necessarily hardship or the struggle with sin that truly brings us to a place of humility. It is love. As Murray wrote, “it is not sin that humbles but grace.”[3] This is profound. It is in the reception of grace that we can begin to grasp at humility. It is in the recognition that our Messiah first humbled Himself to the penalty of the Cross so that we might live. Therefore, humility is not something we bring to God, rather it is something He imparts upon us in our willingness to allow Him to speak into our hearts.
Humility comes from the recognition of our utter inability to save ourselves from the curse of sin. Humility comes when we begin to recognize our weakness and in turn seek His strength. Humility is realized at the reception of an unimaginable gift of grace given through His humility. Murray compares humility to that of water, “Just as water seeks and fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds the creature empty, His glory and power flow in to exalt and to bless.”[4] When we come to a place where we are empty of ourselves, the Lord rushes in to fill us with mercy and grace. It is in our lowest place where the Lord offers us hope because of His humility. When we are empty of pride, empty of self-centered desire, there our Messiah lifts us up. Seek humility. It is when we allow the Lord to help us walk in humility that we truly begin to follow.
[1] Murray, Andrew, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness, (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 2001) pg.12
[2] Murray, Andrew, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness, (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 2001) pg.39
[3] Murray, Andrew, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness, (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 2001) pg.11
[4] Murray, Andrew, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness, (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 2001) pg.41
Corby Shuey 