Humility in Daily Life
By Andrew Murray
“If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. (1 John 4:20 ESV)
WHAT a solemn thought, that our love to God will be measured by our everyday interactions with mankind and that our love will be found delusional unless it is proven true through the test of daily life. The same is true for our humility. The only proof we have that our humility before God is real. is that we are humble before our fellow man. When in the presence of God lowliness of heart has become, not a posture we pray to Him, but the very spirit of our life, it will demonstrate itself in all our relationships.
The lesson is one of deep import: the only humility that is really ours is not that which we try to show before God in prayer, but that which we carry with us, and carry out, in our ordinary lives. The monotony of daily life are the most important tests of eternity, because they prove what our spirit is really made of. It is in our most unguarded moments that we really show and see what we are. To know the humble man, to know how the humble man behaves, you must follow him in the common course of daily life.
Is not this what Jesus taught? It was when the disciples disputed who should be greatest; when He saw how the Pharisees loved the best place at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues; when He had given them the example of washing their feet,--that He taught His lessons of humility. Humility before God is nothing if not proved in humility before men.
It is even so in the teaching of Paul. To the Romans He writes: “Outdo one another in showing honor.” (12:10); “Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.” (12:16) To the Corinthians: “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; (13:4–5) To the Galatians: “but through love serve one another.” (5:13) “Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” (5:26) To the Ephesians, immediately after the three wonderful chapters on the heavenly life: “With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. (4:2); “giving thanks always... submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (5:20-21) To the Philippians: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. “ (2:3); Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who ... emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant.” (2:5-7) And to the Colossians: Put on then... compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another... forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you. (3:12-13) It is in our relation to one another, in our treatment of one another, that the true lowliness of mind and the heart of humility are to be seen. Our humility before God has no value, except that it prepares us to reveal the humility of Jesus to our fellow-men.
Why is it that men who have joyfully surrendered their lives to Christ struggle so much to surrender themselves for the sake of their fellow believers? Is not the Church to blame? It has not taught enough that the humility of Christ is the primary virtue, the best of all graces and powers of the Spirit. Why is it that the church has so little evidence of Christlike humility being a priority, when Christ Himself preached humility of primary importance and necessity? But let us not be discouraged. Let the discovery of this lack of this grace stir us to an even larger expectation from God. Let us look upon every brother who tempts or annoys us, as God's means of grace, an instrument for our purification, and the development of the humility Jesus our Life breathes within us. And let us have such faith in the All of God, and the nothing of self, that, as nothing in our own eyes, we may, in God's power, only seek to serve one another in love.
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Wow! So well said. Profound, true to Holy Scripture, convicting.