Humility: Jesus' Teaching - In Word and Deed

I lift up my eyes to you,
  to you whose throne is in heaven.
As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the LORD our God,
  till he shows us his mercy.  (Psalm 123:1-2)

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  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.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-30)

The chief glory of heaven, the true heavenly-mindedness, the chief of the graces, is humility. "He that is least among you, the same shall be great. "

Just as water ever seeks and fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds the creature abased and empty, His glory and power flow in to exalt and to bless.

Let us study the words [of Christ] we have been reading, until our heart is filled with the thought: My one need is humility. And let us believe that what He shows, He gives; what He is, He imparts. (Andrew Murray, Humility, Chapter 4)

Faith without humility can only be placed in oneself.  The essence of pride is trusting oneself above everyone else.  The essence of humility is faith in God and in those he sends to me.  So humility is the right placement of trust in my life; pride is the wrong placement of trust.  Humility is pictured so well as a servant looking to his master for mercy and kindness.  May my eyes be lifted up only to see you, Lord, and seek your merciful grace.


Humility is rest for my soul.  In humility, I lay my burdens down and take up the yoke of Jesus: a gentle and humble heart.  Compared to the ever-increasing burden of pride, which always takes more than it gives and burdens the soul with worry and suspicion, humility lightens my soul as I give up more and more of my worries and desires.  They are replaced with the peace and joy of Jesus, who looked for God's glory and relied on God for his needs and desires.  May I throw off the burden of pride and run to you, Lord, crying, "Life, life, eternal life!"

There are physical laws through which creation obeys the word of God.  Water flows to the lowest place.  There are spiritual laws that also govern spiritual beings.  God's glory and power flow into his humble servants. Understanding the laws of creation, we use the fall of water to make power, beauty, and even health.  It is harder to acknowledge and use the moral and spiritual laws that can also bring power, beauty, and healing.

Probably the hardest thing is that humility cannot be obtained without God.  And yet, it can be learned, if what Jesus said was true.  It may be that much of the reason God does not act in my life is because I lack humility.  I will not let him act as God, but only as an idol I can control.  I ask for his help, but live like I do not want or need it.  I look to him for healing, but refuse to stay in his care until I recover.  My words sound humble, but my daily life belies them: I live depending on my own resources.

Lord, I have so much to learn!  I speak like I trust you, but find that I quickly turn elsewhere for help.  I am burdened with my pride's demands, but I refuse to lay it down in fear of what humility might ask of me.  Help me to live as I pray, with you as my daily bread and deliverer.  Amen.


What kind of burdens does your pride lay on your shoulders?  How often do you ask God and actually wait for him to answer and work in your life?  Do you think you can trust God to come through?