Article written by: Rose Bryant (GMOH)
Many people have the wrong idea about God, the Bible and humility, or being humble. They think being humble means groveling in front of others or thinking they are no good and others are better.
That’s not what the Bible says. God says when you are humble, you are free from pride and arrogance. You know that in your flesh you are inadequate, yet you also know who you are in Christ. You know that being humble God will exalt you in due time.
1 Peter 5:6-7, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.”
There are some people in present day culture that believe being humble is a form of weakness. If someone practices humility, it means they’re not “tough”. It’s the weak ones who is humble and let others dictate what they should or shouldn’t do. Why do you suppose the Bible has so much to say about being humble? I’m sure we’ve got it all wrong and the ones who practice humility is actually the strong ones?
God the Father cares for us. He is mighty. He calls us to humble ourselves under Him. He doesn’t want to control us, and He doesn’t demand us to bow down to Him. No not ever, we have our own free will, but God wants to exalt us. When we humble ourselves, it shows that we worship Him? This shows that we trust God with our lives. We know that it is God who provides for us and not by our own power. There are many reasons why it is important to be humble. Such as finding rest for your soul.
If we want our soul to have rest, we must commit ourselves to being humble because Jesus tells us to be humble and because He set us the example of being humble. In Matthew 11:29 says “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”. As you can see Jesus didn’t just say that his followers should be humble. He gave himself as the example of humble service He expected His disciples to follow. Being like Jesus doesn’t mean that you are better than any other, on the contrary, being humble is recognizing truth about ourselves, we are no better than anyone else. This is also how God will know we are humble and that we do not consider ourselves to be no better than others. We must love one another and treat others as we would like to be treated.
1 Peter 1:22; John 15:12; Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:31.
Jesus said that we, his followers, are all equal. In Matthew 23:8 “You have one teacher, and you are all brothers”. The whole of Matthew 23 is all about Jesus telling his followers to be humble and He criticized religious leaders for their lack of humility and their worthless practices.
Based on what Jesus said in Matthew 23, what would it mean for us, as today’s followers of Jesus, to be humble? What would “be humble” look like in our modern culture? It would mean we stop pretending that we are better than others. It would mean we stop promoting ourselves. It would mean we stop saying that members of our group (for example, those who share our religious or political views) are right and that anyone who disagrees with us is wrong, stupid or being deceived. It would mean we stop behaving in many ways that today’s views say we should behave and start behaving in ways that today’s views say we should not. It would mean saying “I could be wrong” and meaning it. But the starting point is recognizing the truth that we are no better than anyone else.
How can we be humble and still live in this world? If we are followers of Jesus, we should not be trying to be like the rest of the world. We should be looking to serve in God’s Kingdom. There is nothing to fear. God is loving and gracious and will take care of us. What a wonderful loving and humble God we serve. Thankfully, the Bible includes much guidance on how to practice His humility on earth.
Ten practical ways to reflect God’s humility by Doug Britton.
1. Humbly acknowledge God in everything
For the sake of our own souls, we need to regularly bow our hearts to our magnificent, awe-inspiring, and humble God who also inspire us to be humble.
2. Confess and repent of pride
Pride eventually destroys us. Let us humbly repent for our pride and all the times we have tried to control our own lives.
Roman 12:3 NLT and Proverbs 11: 2 ESV
3. Thank God every day
We should thank our God in all circumstance because He knows this helps us have a humble heart.
4. Stop grumbling
Instead of grumbling, we humble our hearts and submit to God instead, we will be positive shining lights in our world.
Philippians 2:14-15
5. Stop passing judgment
When we conclude things about other people, we also pass judgment on them. Not only do we judge them, but we also curse them. Such prideful behavior this slanders and offends merciful Father in heaven. This is something we need to actively avoid.
Matthew 7:1
6. Stop boasting
Pride tells us we deserve recognition for our achievements, sacrifices but it is God alone deserves all worship. God promises to reward those who humbly wait on His personal praises, and not crave the recognition and praises of other people. Let us serve, love, and sacrifice joyfully, without seeking the approval of people.
2 Corinthians 10:17-18 ESV
7. Stop seeking attention
Some people enjoy drawing attention to themselves by being pushy, boastful, crude, or antagonistic. Humility, on the other hand, will gently consider others first.
Philippians 2:4 and Ephesians 4:2 ESV
8. Admit mistakes and weaknesses readily
The fear of admitting our faults is driven by a desire to protect our personal image at the expense of God’s. We should not be afraid of exposing our personal weaknesses, so that people will see Jesus’ Holy Spirit working in us. This takes true strength as well as true humility.
2 Corinthians 12:9
9. Consider others as more important
The thought of considering others first is most unnatural to human beings but humility is demonstrated when we do the opposite. It shows our hearts to be free of fears and selfish intentions and that we can love those whom God loves, regardless of how they behave towards us.
Philippians 2:3
10. Forgive and bless others
The choice to forgive and bless those who offend us is a true test of our humility and submission to God. The Bible tells us to pray for and bless others, especially those whom we see as our enemies.
Ephesians 4:32, and Luke 6:27-28
Pride keeps us from being good representatives of a humble God who sent His Son to die for us.
Tips For Teaching Kids Biblical Humility
You may wonder if you can teach humility a child. Yes, you can, but it’s not easy. The way is to show examples of humility in your own life. As you learn it better yourself, you become better at teaching it.
- Be a student of your child. One way of being humble, is being teachable yourself.
- Be slow to speak and quick to listen (James 1:19)
- Direct your attention and theirs to be curious and attentive to God and others.
- Teach them that every gift is from God and meant to be used to serve and honor others (I Peter 4:10).
- Let your child know of your weaknesses and faults and let them know that your glory is owed to God.
- Don’t humiliate your child, but instead help them get through any humiliation.
- Direct their attention to the good things which point to God.
- Recognize their efforts but give God the praise for those efforts.
- Help them to recognize examples of humility you see in them and others.
- Stay clear of competition and comparison.
References used:
Doug Britton, MFT, what is Humility Copyright 1984
https://www.dougbrittonbooks.com/onlinebiblestudies-selfworthandrespect/meaningofhumilityinthebible-humbleinbible/
Jennifer Sum, 10 ways to reflect God’s humility
December 2017
https://teachinghumblehearts.com/en/10-ways-to-reflect-gods-humility/
Aryn the Libraryan, Awesome Devotional About Humility in the Bible and Today
September 1, 2020
https://arynthelibraryan.com/humility-in-the-bible/
Christina Dronan
Building Character July 2020
https://gentlechristianparenting.com/humility/
Written by,
Sister Rose Bryant
Grandmothers of Hope Society Ministry, Inc.