Humility

Peyton Johnston

January 28th, 2018

Philippians 2:3-11

It has been said: “humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” Humbling ourselves does not require a low self-esteem by any means… We are sinners saved by grace; priceless jewels in the eyes of our Savior! But in order to obtain a humble spirit, we are challenged to consider others’ interests above our own. Humility means putting aside the rights and privileges we think we should have in order to serve our neighbor.

Consider Jesus – the One who came and lived in the most modest of ways, even though He had every right to come high and mighty. He was the King over all kings and held all power of Heaven in His hands! But He laid all of that aside so that He could heal the lowly and mend the broken. He gave up a life of wealth and luxury on Earth so that He could lead His people to obtain eternal treasure in Heaven one day. He valued the salvation of the outcasts over the approval of the prestigious. He constantly turned the other cheek. He mercifully forgave the ugliest sins over and over.

Woah. What an example to follow! With our human hearts, it’s difficult to surrender our innate pride like Jesus did. We tend to find excuses to justify our self-serving behaviors. But if we say we are disciples of Christ, we must make that true through living a life imitating His character. We must make others our priority – our heartbeat. We must think of ourselves less, so we can serve others more. If Jesus sacrificed a life of “self”, how could we do any less?

Pray: ​“Jesus, I want to show the world the same humble spirit that You so graciously show us. Help me to give up my selfish desires and recognize the needs of others before my own. Give me a heart that values Your people more than my own ambitions.”