Humility
This week is on Luke 14:7-11:
These verses are a great description of humility. In fact, "humiliate" and "humility" have the same root words. If you have to take a less honourable seat in front of everyone because you overestimated your awesomeness, the ego pain you're feeling is from being hit with the humility cluebat. Humiliation.
People read these verses as though they're some sort of etiquette lesson from Jesus on how to sit in gatherings. That's part of it, but what Jesus is actually doing is giving us a metaphor for how we should approach life. All of those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all of those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Humility is an awareness that you could be wrong without realizing it. Young people and stupid people have the hardest time being humble because they can't think of very many ways they could be wrong or haven't been around long enough to see how many ways there are to be wrong. But we're all a bit stupid, and so we continue to be humiliated from time to time. We think we're right and then we get corrected, or we think we're pretty awesome and then we get shunned.
Our modern society teaches us to have the highest self-esteem possible, which clashes horribly with how Jesus tells us to live. Mommy's precious child can do no wrong, and yet Jesus tells us that we may very well be doing worse than the next guy. Modern society says "I am not perfect but I'm pretty great. Better than most." Humility says "I am flawed but God's grace is sufficient to spare me."
Jesus tells us to start from the bottom and get invited up. You see that in early Christians like Paul who refer to themselves as "the worst of sinners." How can you even know you're the worst? Statistically that's very unlikely! But the best way to not puff yourself up is to start at the bottom. If you are not just a sinner, but "the sinner," you're not going to focus so much on what other people are doing wrong.
Humility plays into how we handle our life circumstances too. If you were poor, or if you were crippled, would you be angry at God because you deserve better? If your fellow Christian needed your help, would you withhold it because they hadn't worked as hard, or volunteered as much, or been a Christian for as long as you had? How patient are you with the shortcomings of others? How well can you endure hardship?
Like the people at the wedding Jesus was commenting on, we make assumptions about what we deserve, and about how others see us, that may not be true. Paul was happy in all circumstances, rich or poor, persecuted or at peace, because he didn't anchor himself in where he thought he deserved to be. When he was in great circumstances, he appreciated it as grace, and when he was in horrible circumstances, he was still okay with it.
These verses are underscore how the richest Christian life is not the life of a hermit. How can you know if you have humility if you don't encounter other people? If someone cuts you off, or gets promoted over you, for instance, are you enraged, or do you not notice because you're already in last place? These are tests we can't enjoy on our own. We need other flawed people to experience them.
Pray for humility. If you're okay with being humble, you could end up in a very good position. But if you insist on being number one, you could be in for a lot of trouble.
When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
These verses are a great description of humility. In fact, "humiliate" and "humility" have the same root words. If you have to take a less honourable seat in front of everyone because you overestimated your awesomeness, the ego pain you're feeling is from being hit with the humility cluebat. Humiliation.
People read these verses as though they're some sort of etiquette lesson from Jesus on how to sit in gatherings. That's part of it, but what Jesus is actually doing is giving us a metaphor for how we should approach life. All of those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all of those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Humility is an awareness that you could be wrong without realizing it. Young people and stupid people have the hardest time being humble because they can't think of very many ways they could be wrong or haven't been around long enough to see how many ways there are to be wrong. But we're all a bit stupid, and so we continue to be humiliated from time to time. We think we're right and then we get corrected, or we think we're pretty awesome and then we get shunned.
Our modern society teaches us to have the highest self-esteem possible, which clashes horribly with how Jesus tells us to live. Mommy's precious child can do no wrong, and yet Jesus tells us that we may very well be doing worse than the next guy. Modern society says "I am not perfect but I'm pretty great. Better than most." Humility says "I am flawed but God's grace is sufficient to spare me."
Jesus tells us to start from the bottom and get invited up. You see that in early Christians like Paul who refer to themselves as "the worst of sinners." How can you even know you're the worst? Statistically that's very unlikely! But the best way to not puff yourself up is to start at the bottom. If you are not just a sinner, but "the sinner," you're not going to focus so much on what other people are doing wrong.
Humility plays into how we handle our life circumstances too. If you were poor, or if you were crippled, would you be angry at God because you deserve better? If your fellow Christian needed your help, would you withhold it because they hadn't worked as hard, or volunteered as much, or been a Christian for as long as you had? How patient are you with the shortcomings of others? How well can you endure hardship?
Like the people at the wedding Jesus was commenting on, we make assumptions about what we deserve, and about how others see us, that may not be true. Paul was happy in all circumstances, rich or poor, persecuted or at peace, because he didn't anchor himself in where he thought he deserved to be. When he was in great circumstances, he appreciated it as grace, and when he was in horrible circumstances, he was still okay with it.
These verses are underscore how the richest Christian life is not the life of a hermit. How can you know if you have humility if you don't encounter other people? If someone cuts you off, or gets promoted over you, for instance, are you enraged, or do you not notice because you're already in last place? These are tests we can't enjoy on our own. We need other flawed people to experience them.
Pray for humility. If you're okay with being humble, you could end up in a very good position. But if you insist on being number one, you could be in for a lot of trouble.
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