Humility And Love Are The Keys
Humility And Love Are The Keys
There are times that we hear voices from every corner saying; “My way, we need to do thus and so, my way. Or I have the right to…”
But, as tough as it is sometimes, we need to take pride and put it in its place. There is freedom, power, strength gained when we do.
Humility is a tough subject because when we think we are, we most likely are not. But how does humility affect our choices? What does humility have to do with being a foghorn in someone else’s life? In fact, how does humility or lack thereof affect me?
Humility affects every area of our lives. From our mindset and what we need, want, or choose in our lives to our responses to others.
Pride drives us away from God. Humility draws us to God.
When we least expect it, pride wriggles in and catches us unaware. All of a sudden, it’s our rights we want to defend. We want our position promoted. Then there are our feelings that are hurt or those we have offended because of our pride or stubbornness.
Wow, does that sting.
But we think we’re right. We may be; however, Jesus has some words on the subject that puts humility, pride, and it’s conflict in perspective.
When studying the book of Revelation a few years ago year, there was a profound and overwhelming realization of how much Jesus loves us. The character and determination for Christ to wait (before destroying Satan) for the very last person to say yes to salvation and turn to God. That was so remarkable. The book of Revelation is the culmination of the love story of God and mankind.
But let’s go back to the beginning of the story for a moment. The first few chapters of Genesis show God’s intentionality as He created the earth, with every living thing; the moon; stars; and the galaxies. God then formed man and then the woman in His image and likeness, with free will, that they could relate and have a relationship with one another. God is all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent. He is the Alpha and Omega: the beginning and the end.
And yet, He chose to create mankind with a free will, man and woman had the ability to say yes or no to that relationship with God. To my notion that seemed a bit risky. But God chose to do it knowing some would say yes and there would be those who said no. That is incredible love.
He then chose to come to the earth in human form as a sacrifice to free all mankind from sins’ grip. God humbled Himself for us rather than wiping us off the face of the earth and starting over without free will. He had created us in His image and likeness and loved us so much He didn’t exercise His might. God exerted His humility; strength under control. He was determined to make way for those that chose to follow Him.
God could have said in anger and fury, “Satan, you are finished” and cast him into hell for eternity, thus causing the few rebellious souls to go with Satan.
But He didn’t.
God being who He is, knew who would turn and who wouldn’t but was unwilling to violate their free will. He let them choose. But He wouldn’t leave them behind either.
So God waited; with all the saints, He waited. (Revelation 6:10-11) God could have destroyed all, but He chose to control His strength to achieve His mission: allow everyone the freedom to choose, choose God or Satan.
God’s ego didn’t get in the way. His rights didn’t stop Him. God’s power and authority didn’t usurp His plan.
Humbly God waited; He guided those still here who were faithful. God’s Holy Spirit empowered them to be a reflection of God in a horrifically evil time. He placed them here to walk alongside the last few people that would ultimately choose God’s love amid fierce opposition.
He had the power, right, and authority to defeat the enemy. He brought all of that under control to achieve God’s plan of ultimate love for an eternity with Him for those that chose it.
No man or woman left behind.
We say “but we are not Jesus in all of His power.” We are correct to a point. But, He showed us “the way.” When Jesus, tempted by Satan in the desert, said: “it is written, get thee behind me, Satan.” Temptation, in the form of Pride, stared Him down at His most vulnerable times.
Before Jesus went into the desert to be tempted, He was told who He was. When Jesus came up from the water, when John baptized Him, God opened the heavens and said, “this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” – Jesus knew who He was. Even though, as the Son of God, he could summon 10,000 angels with a word and destroy the enemy, yet he chose to deny his rights. Jesus knew the end of the journey, both for Himself and Satan, and yet decided not to give the information to Satan so Satan couldn’t thwart the plan of salvation. Jesus allowed Satan to think he had the power. Jesus had the power, under control – Humility.
Jesus knew we couldn’t walk His walk alone, so he sent us The Holy Spirit to help, guide, and give us the strength to walk humbly before God and man. We need to remember we are here for a purpose, a God-given purpose, and we need to guard our hearts, minds, and souls so we can achieve that purpose. Stay focused.
Our biggest enemy would be Pride. The late John R.W. Stott put it this way.
“Pride is your greatest enemy; humility is your greatest friend.”
And CS Lewis was quoted saying:
“According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind – it is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.”
Make no mistake about it: Pride is the great sin. It is the devil’s most effective and destructive tool.
True humility is strength under control. “Christ’s likeness” is the ultimate image of true humility.
The only way to acquire humility is to lean into God Himself. When we ask God for His plan for our lives, he gives us what we need to accomplish all that He has called us to do. We ask His Holy Spirit to fill us with His power, wisdom, and strength. Reading His Word and spending time with Him and praying without ceasing.
I think it is the coming together and studying God’s word getting to know what His heart is for us and all people that we find hope and love. In this place, we have a chance to show his love to those we come in contact with. It is in loving, hoping, serving, knowing who we represent that we can find humility.
Today remember it is in staying close to God that helps us love like God. All over this earth, there are millions that could use the practical touch of God’s love with humility, mercy, and grace.
