“And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted” (Luke 18:9-14)
Balloon stomp
There once was a fourth grade class in which the teacher introduced a game called “balloon stomp.” A balloon was tied to every child’s leg, and the object of the game was to pop everyone else’s balloon while protecting one’s own. The last person with an intact balloon would win. The class really got into the game. Balloons were relentlessly targeted and destroyed. A few of the kids tried to stay near the walls, but their balloons all got stomped just the same. The game was over in a matter of seconds, with only one balloon left un-popped. The winner turned out to be the least liked kid in the class, which is not surprising, because you have to be pushy and rude in order to win at balloon stomp.
The interesting part of the story was that a second class was introduced to the same game. Only this time it was a class of mentally handicapped children. They were given the same explanation as the first class. But, this time, the game went very differently. It may have been that the handicapped kids didn’t completely grasp the instructions; but the one idea that got through was that the balloons were supposed to be popped. So it was the balloons, not the other players that were viewed as enemies. Instead of fighting each other, they began helping each other pop balloons. One little girl knelt down and held her balloon carefully in place, like a holder for a field goal kicker. A little boy stomped it flat. Then he knelt down and held his balloon for her. It went on like this for several minutes until all the balloons were destroyed, and everybody cheered. Everybody won.
It makes you wonder: who got the game right, and who got it wrong?
In our world, we tend to think of another person’s success as one less opportunity for us to succeed ourselves. For example, it’s often the case that if one person gets a job promotion, that reduces the chance of others getting a promotion. I was watching my 12-year old son’s basketball game yesterday. When one team got a basket, half the parents cheered, while the other half sighed or just sat quietly. Then the other team would score and the first group of parents sighed while others cheered. But, you never have all the parents cheering at the same time (unless one of the kids gets up after being hurt). That’s just the nature of competition.
In the Ecclesia
But, in the ecclesia it’s different, (or at least it is supposed to be), because we’re here to serve Christ, not ourselves. And, the most effective way to do that is by elevating others while humbling ourselves.
My family talked about this one Friday night because it was our Family Home Evening (an idea I got from a Mormon friend of mine); it’s something we do one night a week where we’re all together as a family and everyone participates. This week’s theme was humility, and the parable of the Pharisee and the publican in Luke 18 was our reading:
“I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14 NET).
The kids thought Jesus was saying it was the Pharisee who went home justified.
So, I had to explain that even though the Pharisee praised God, fasted, and gave up 10% of his income, he didn’t have God’s approval; because the quality God was actually looking for was humility.
Humility is a Christian characteristic, because it was part of the character of Christ. Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt 11:29).
What that means is: if we learn to follow Jesus’ example — to be gentle and humble in heart — we will find peace. Pride and arrogance throw us into tension and turmoil, but humility gives us peace from that competitive spirit.
“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment. . . Do not be proud. . . Do not be conceited” (Rom 12:3,16).
Consider the ways in which Jesus showed humility.
First of all, his focus was on God’s will, not his own. This is the crux of the Christian faith. Whether or not we follow Jesus is determined by whether we are doing our will or God’s will. To be a Christian means you are no longer living by your own will, but have surrendered to and are seeking to live out God’s will in your life. “For I [Jesus] have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me” (John 6:38). Facing the cross, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matt 26:39).
And, that’s the mind we need to have if we want to belong to Jesus.
“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:5-8).
Pride and arrogance are destructive to our lives, but humility enables us to surrender to the will of God and experience peace. Jesus humbled himself by surrendering his entire life to God; and, in so doing, he proved what he said in the parable that: “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” Being humble means I understand that I don’t know it all, and that I can’t do it on my own. Even Jesus said, “I can of my own self do nothing… my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me” (John 5:30). Being humble means I give up my pride and surrender to God’s will.
The second way in which Jesus demonstrated humility was that his focus was away from himself, not on himself. He came to do his Father’s will, not his own. He came to serve, not be served. He came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Since we’re supposed to be like Jesus, the Bible says, “Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others” (1 Cor 10:24). Proud people are self-focused. They love talking about themselves. They tend not to ask how someone else is doing, or what is going on in others’ lives. It is all about them. They are the most important person in their universe.
Consider the argument Jesus disciples were having at the time of the Last Supper. Jesus just got through telling them that one of them would betray him to death; and the very next verse says, “A dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest” (Luke 22:24). How sad is it that, at a time like that, they were only thinking of themselves!
Jesus had just told them that one of them is going to betray him. He explicitly stated that they would all fall away from him and that Peter would deny him. He warned them to pray so that they would not fall into temptation, but all they could think about was their status — about who would sit on Jesus’ right and left in the kingdom. It should have been a time for humility, not pride and self-righteousness. It’s been said that “Humble people don’t think less of themselves . . . they just think about themselves less.”
Humility means that our focus is away from ourselves, not on ourselves. The Scripture says:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Phil 2:3-4).
The third thing about the humility of Jesus is: his focus was on serving, not being served. Nowhere do we see the humility and servant-spirit of Christ more than at the Last Supper when he washed the feet of his disciples — the very ones who would betray him, deny him and desert him.
“Because Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into his control, that he had come from God, and that he was returning to God, therefore he got up from the table, removed his outer robe, and took a towel and fastened it around his waist. Then he poured some water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel that was tied around his waist” (John z3:3-5).
That was humility. He knew he was sent by God and was about to ascend to God’s very throne in heaven — and what did he do? He performed the task of a slave in front of his own disciples!
“After Jesus washed their feet, he said to them: ‘Do you understand what I have done for you? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you’ ” (John 13:12-15).
I am certain Peter was remembering this episode when he wrote: “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” (1 Pet 5:5-6). After all, Jesus had said to Peter at the time, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand” (John 13:7).
Our example
Bro. Gillet wrote these wise words in his “Genius of Discipleship”:
“Humility is an attitude of subjection out of love for the King’s goodness. How can understanding men and women ever be proud in the presence of the God of eternal time, of unlimited space, of unchangeable character — God infinite in grace and matchless in love? It is the knowledge of God which generates the birth of humility in the soul.”
As we remember the example of the humility of Jesus in his sacrifice of our behalf, how often do we miss the most powerful argument we have for defending our faith — the example of our lives.
So we come now to remember the sacrifice of our Lord — the one who said:
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt 11:29).
As we draw near to the Father and His son, let us do it with humility:
- That focuses on the Father’s will, not our own;
- That focuses away from ourselves, rather than on ourselves,
- That focuses on serving rather than being served.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One