The great teacher, preacher and evangelist Oswald Chambers, who I
have learned so much from, says "the great characteristic of a saint is
humility..."
If we are saved by Jesus Christ, we are saints. If we are saints, we should be humble.
One
definition of humble is to have or show a modest or low estimate of
one's own
importance. This may not be difficult when we are comparing ourselves
to our awesome, powerful and majestic Creator, but the challenge can
increase dramatically when we compare ourselves to some others in our
lives, possibly a brother or sister, the neighbor or a co-worker.
In
the first chapter of our book on humility, we read that author Jim
Collins, has identified two specific character qualities shared by the
CEO's of companies which have succeeded in progressing from a standard
of good to great. He found the leaders were unsurprisingly, driven.
They were willing to endure anything to make their company a success.
Collins goes on to show that these driven leaders were also "self-effacing and modest". Did that come as a surprise to you?
When you think of leaders who you know or have heard of, are these attributes you see?
Of
course all leaders aren't CEO's. We see leaders in all walks of life.
Do the descriptions of self-effacing and modest fit the ones that come
to your mind?
The evaluation by Collins seems to show us that
humility works, even in the worldly sense. We read that humility gets
the worlds attention, but even more importantly, it gets God's
attention.
Can we find what God is after, when He says in Isaiah
66:2,
..."This is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and
contrite in spirit and trembles at my word."
I looked up a few other
translations of that Scripture, hoping to gain a richer understanding.
The
New English Translation Bible says,
"I show special favor to the humble and contrite, who
respect
what I have to say."
The God Version says,
"I will pay
attention to those who are humble and sorry for their sins and who
tremble at my word.
And lastly, the Holman Christian Standard Bible
says,
"This is the LORD's declaration. I will look favorably on this
kind of person: one who is humble, submissive in spirit, and trembles at
My word."
So pause there and reflect on what He is telling us.
Then ask yourself, where am I, in all of this?
Are you in the "camp" of
the humble and submissive in spirit, trembling....
TREMBLING...at His word?
The word of God claims that the characteristics of humility, submissiveness and repentance, will draw God's favorable attention.
I want God's favorable attention.
I want Him to open my eyes to every prideful thought and deed.
I want Him to allow me to comprehend the power of His word, causing me to
tremble.
I want, and will choose, to believe His words in Hebrews 4:16, to come boldly unto the throne of grace, that I may obtain mercy, and find grace to help me in my time of need.
As
we go through this study on humility, we will all find it transforming to
bow before the throne of God, and to ask His
Spirit to show us all of those places in our lives where pride has
taken hold.
Oh but beware...pride is insidious; subtle; sly.
We
may be astounded at what we find - but that's a good thing!
Bring it
all to Jesus, and leave it there.
When we acknowledge our pridefulness and humbly confess
it to Him, His grace is with us. He looks favorably upon us.
And there's no better place to be than under His grace.
If
you'd like to share any thoughts or questions on this first study, or anything else in the first chapter, please do. We'll give it a few days for discussion
and then move on.
May God teach us, transform us and draw us together
by His Holy Spirit, graciously revealing new things to each of us, so
that the body of Christ will be strengthened and equipped to do His will.
~God bless each of you.
.jpg)
