Humility In Daily Life

The only true humility is not that which we show God in prayer but that which we carry with us, and show in our ordinary conduct. Humility before God is nothing if not proved in humility before men. As believers, we should emulate this kind/nature of humility by being servants to all and let God do all in their lives.

"If anyone says, 'I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen." 1 John 4:20.

What a solemn thought, that our love for God will be measured by our everyday intercourse with men and the love it displays. Our love for God will be found to be a delusion, except its truth is proved in standing the test of daily life with our fellowmen. It is even so with our humility. It is easy to think we humble ourselves before God, but humility towards men will be the only sufficient proof that our humility before God is real. This reveals that humility has taken up its abode in us and become our very nature that we actually, like Christ, have made ourselves of no reputation. When in the presence of God, lowliness of heart has become, not a posture we pray to Him, but the very spirit of our life and it will manifest itself in all our bearing towards our brethren.

The lesson is one of deep import; the only humility that is really ours is not that which we try to show before God in prayer, but that which we carry with us, and carry out, in our ordinary conduct.

The insignificances of daily life are the importance and the tests of eternity because they prove what the spirit that possesses us is. It is in our most unguarded moments that we really show and see what we are.

To know a humble man, to know how a humble man behaves, you must follow him in the common course of daily life. Is this not what Jesus taught? It was when the disciples disputed who should be greatest, when He saw how the Pharisees loved the chief place at feasts and the chief seats in the synagogues, when He had given them the example of washing their feet, that He taught His lessons of humility.

Humility before God is nothing if not proved in humility before men. It is even so in the teaching of Paul. To the Romans, he writes: "Outdo one another in showing honor." (Romans 12:10); "Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight." Romans 12:16.

"Be not wise in your own eyes" Proverbs 3:7. To the Corinthians: "Love," and there is no love without humility as its root, " does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. " 1 Corinthians 13:4.

To the Galatians: "Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another." To the Ephesians, immediately after the three wonderful chapters on the heavenly life: " with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love "; "Submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ."

To the Philippians: "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” Philippians 2:3. “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5 “emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant" Philippians 2:7.

To the Colossians: "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" Colossians 3:12-13.

It is in our relation to one another, in our treatment of one another, that the true lowliness of mind and the heart of humility are to be seen. Our humility before God has no value, but it prepares us to reveal the humility of Jesus to our fellow men. Let us study humility in daily life in the light of these words.

The humble man seeks at all times to act up to the rule, "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves." Philippians 2:3. The question is often asked, how can we count others better than ourselves when we see that they are far below us in wisdom and in holiness, in natural gifts, or in grace received? The question proves at once how little we understand what real lowliness of mind is.

True humility comes when in the light of God, we have seen ourselves to be nothing, have consented to part with and cast away self, to let God be all. The soul that has done this, and can say, so have I lost myself in finding You, no longer compares itself with others. It has given up forever every thought of self in God's presence. It meets its fellow-men as one who is nothing, and seeks nothing for itself. This soul is a servant of God, and for His sake a servant of all.

A faithful servant may be wiser than the master, and yet retain the true spirit and posture of the servant. The humble man looks upon every, the feeblest and unworthiness, child of God, and honors him and prefers him in honor as the son of a King. The spirit of Him who washed the disciples' feet makes it a joy to us to be indeed the least, to be servants of one another. The humble man feels no jealousy or envy. He can praise God when others are preferred and blessed before him.

He can bear to hear others praised and himself forgotten because in God's presence he has learnt to say with Paul, "I am nothing." He has received the spirit of Jesus who pleased not Himself, and sought not His own honor as the spirit of his life. Amid what are considered the temptations to impatience and touchiness, to hard thoughts and sharp words, which come from the failings and sins of fellow Christians, the humble man carries the oft-repeated injunction in his heart and shows it in his life, "bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you" He has learnt that in putting on the Lord Jesus he has put on the heart of compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and long-suffering.

Jesus has taken the place of self, and it is possible to forgive as Jesus forgave. His humility does not consist merely in thoughts or words of self-depreciation, but as Paul puts it, in "a heart of humility," encompassed by compassion and kindness, meekness and long suffering, the sweet and lowly gentleness recognized as the mark of the Lamb of God.

In striving after the higher experiences of the Christian life, the believer is often in danger of aiming at and rejoicing in what one might be called the more human, the manly, virtues, such as boldness, joy, contempt of the world, zeal, and self-sacrifice. Even the old stoics taught and practiced these.

The deeper and gentler, the diviner and more heavenly graces, those which Jesus first taught upon the earth because He brought them from heaven, those which are more distinctly connected with His cross and the death of self, poverty of spirit, meekness, humility, lowliness, are scarcely thought of or valued. Therefore, let us put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and long-suffering, and let us prove our Christ-likeness, not only in our zeal for saving the lost, but before all in our intercourse with the brethren, forbearing and forgiving one another, even as the Lord forgave us.

Fellow Christians, let us study the Bible portrait of the humble man. And let us ask our brethren and the world whether they recognize in us the likeness to the original. Let us be content with nothing less than taking each of these texts as the promise of what God will work in us, as the revelation in words of what the Spirit of Jesus will give as a birth within us. And let each failure and shortcoming simply urge us to turn humbly and meekly to the meek and lowly Lamb of God, in the assurance that where He is enthroned in the heart, His humility and gentleness will be one of the streams of living water that flow from within us.

“I knew Jesus, and He was very precious to my soul, but I found something in me that would not keep sweet, patient, and kind. I did what I could to keep it down, but it was there. I besought Jesus to do something for me, and when I gave Him my will, He came to my heart, and took out all that would not be sweet, kind, and patient, and then He shut the door.” George Foxe.

I repeat what I have said before. I feel deeply that we have very little conception that the Church suffers from the lack of divine humility, the nothingness that makes room for God to prove His power. It is not long since a Christian, of a humble, loving spirit, acquainted with not a few mission stations of various societies, expressed his deep sorrow that in some cases the spirit of love and forbearance was sadly lacking. Men and women, who in Europe could each choose their own circle of friends, brought close together with others of uncongenial minds, find it hard to bear, love, and to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. And those who should have been fellow-helpers of each other's joy became a hindrance and a weariness. This is because of the lack of humility which counts itself nothing, rejoices in becoming and being counted the least, and only seeks, like Jesus, to be the servant, the helper and comforter of others, even the lowest and unworthiness.

Also, why is it that men who have joyfully given up themselves for Christ, find it so hard to give up themselves for their brethren? Is the Church not to blame? It has so little taught its sons that the humility of Christ is the first of the virtues, the best of all the graces and powers of the Spirit.

The Church has so little proved that a Christ-like humility is what it, like Christ, places and preaches first, as what is very indeed needed, and possible too. But let us not be discouraged. Let the discovery of the lack of this grace stir us to larger expectations from God. Let us look upon every brother who tries or vexes us, as God's means of grace, God's instrument for our purification, for our exercise of the humility Jesus our Life breathes within us. And let us have such faith in the All of God, and the nothing of self, that, as nothing in our own eyes, we may, in God's power, only seek to serve one another in love.