Last Sunday we looked at Jeremiah 7:30-8:3 and The Valley of Slaughter, an awful place where children were sacrificed to pagan gods and where those responsible were punished without mercy.
We asked the question “Could this happen in America?” and saw that indeed many are capable of sacrificing their unborn children through abortion and many more are capable of metaphorically sacrificing their children for other selfish concerns. Sadly, “slaughter” is still occurring all around us.
We also saw that at the root of our country’s abortion problem is a spiritual problem—a selfishness, a me-first heart-attitude that is found in all of us. So, we concluded with a call to humility, recognizing that we are all sinners in need of God’s grace and that Christ alone freely offers himself as the complete sacrifice for sin.
Today, I’d like to explore a little further about what humility is and our need for it. First of all:
What Humility Isn’t
Humility isn’t low self-esteem. People may put themselves down in front of others, which appears humble, but is really just a result of having an inferiority complex. These same people might minimize their accomplishments in order to get the praise of others. Or, they might go the opposite direction and exaggerate the facts to make themselves look better then they really are.
Humility isn’t vocal. A person who is constantly telling you how humble they are, isn’t humble. “In my humble opinion…” isn’t the beginning of a humble statement; it’s usually the beginning of a prideful one. Humility doesn’t draw attention to itself, it doesn’t seek fame or notoriety (see 1 Corinthians 13:5).
Likewise, just because a person is silent, or not very vocal about their opinions, doesn’t necessarily mean that they are humble. It’s possible that they might be silently thinking they’re too good to bless the rest of us with their enlightened opinion, and that others probably aren’t capable of understanding anyway.
Humility doesn’t play the victim. I’ve observed many times how people, especially those who are politically motivated, persist in telling others about how awful things are and how “everyone is against us.” Even though their beliefs have a foundation in truth, this woe-is-me attitude often results in exaggerating the facts (or even making up facts) to make our victimhood look worse than it really is. That’s not humility.
What Humility Is
Humility, in a psychological sense, is “authenticity” and that definition has more in common with the biblical definition than you might think. Biblically, humility is often defined as “genuine gratitude and a lack of arrogance,” but it is more than that. Biblical humility is authentic humility because it means living in a way that accepts the truth about yourself and others. It’s what is meant when someone says that person is “real.”
A humble, or authentic Christian, knows the truth about themselves. They recognize their brokenness and need for healing. They know they are loved by their Savior and that He is restoring them to be “better than new,” and as a result they don’t see the need to pretend to be more, or less, than they are.
A humble person also recognizes the truth about others, too. They acknowledge in how they live that all people (including the unborn) are made in God’s image and therefore deserving of respect.
I love this quote from C.S. Lewis: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” What he’s saying is that a humble person thinks of others more than he does himself. A humble Christian recognizes his own worth in God’s eyes, but he doesn’t use that as an excuse to promote himself above others, because other people have great worth, too.
Again, it’s helpful to look at our political world for a moment. Those that are “entrenched” tend to describe their side in exclusively positive terms—“The greatest leader…the kindest person there is, etc.” But along with that, people entrenched in politics are usually unwilling to seriously discuss the failings of their candidate or party, and are often far too willing to make excuses rather than accept a negative truth. This attitude is a bipartisan issue that reflects a lack of authentic humility.
The Necessity of Humility
1 Peter 5:5 says, “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another.” In other words, let humility reflect who you are on the inside and on the outside. Let it flow from the very core of your soul. Now, that’s a lot of humility.
In the world of business, popular advice says it’s possible to have too much humility. Common sense even tells us that people who don’t showcase their talents and “toot their own horns” get overlooked in the business world.
It’s probably good advice to not be “too humble” if our primary goal is success in business or politics. But if our goal is to be pleasing to God, then we need to give greater priority to what matters to Him.
Did Jesus have too much humility when he came down to earth? What about when He went to the cross? From a business point of view He made some pretty bad decisions, but Jesus’ goal wasn’t to please the bigwigs of his day but to please His Father.
Humility in Times of Crisis
2 Chronicles 7:14 is a verse that is often quoted during times of national crisis, which many think we are in right now. But I don’t think this passage is often properly understood or applied. God says in verse 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, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
What is usually emphasized is the need to seek God in prayer, which is true, but I think we often fail to mention the emphasis on humility in this verse. Humility is the first thing mentioned because it provides the context for what follows: praying, seeking God’s face, and turning from wickedness. Without humility it’s implied God won’t hear, forgive, or heal. As a result, we are unlikely to turn from wickedness and our country is unlikely to change.
This is where understanding humility as “living in a way that accepts the truth about yourself and others” is especially helpful. A humble person, or country, doesn’t need to exaggerate the facts about themselves because they know God sees it all. A humble person doesn’t need to exaggerate the faults of others, either. God knows.
If there are positive things, they can be acknowledged honestly. But if there are bad, sinful things, they don’t need to be hidden or watered down, either. A humble person is honest about themselves, others, and the country they live in. And when we are, God listens, and things start to change for the better.
Jesus was the most humble person to ever walk this earth. He was God’s Son and never for a moment was He unaware of who He was. But He was also fully aware of those He came to save. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and died for sinners in perfect humility.
He left an example for us to follow which is perfectly stated in Philippians 2:3. “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.”
That’s what Jesus did, right? He went to the cross regarding the lives of others as more important than His own. Of course, our lives could never come close to being of equal value with God’s, but in perfect humility Jesus acted as if they were. That’s amazing grace.