“Humble
yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He
will exalt you” (James 4:10). In writing or speaking, variety
of expression is
important. You are taught in school that using a variety of phrases to
express
the same thought better communicates the idea, rather than using the
same
phrase over and over. Not using variety in our speech creates a sense
of
monotony and ultimate boredom in others, and affects the way our
message is
perceived.
Therefore, in
thinking about all that, I was wondering
what synonyms might come up for the word humble or humility. Modesty
and
meekness come up in a search through a thesaurus, but I believe a
better term
is servant or slave. It is the model Scripture uses to illustrate what
humility
is all about. For example, during His earthly ministry,
Jesus’ disciples had a
running debate between themselves about which was the greatest.
Jesus’ greatest
response to this was before His crucifixion, when He washed His
disciples’
feet. He, Lord over all creation, took the role of a lowly house
servant, a
position no one wanted then, or even by us today. Yet, Jesus tells us,
“For I
gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly,
truly, I
say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is
sent
greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are
blessed if
you do them” (John 13:15-17). The example Jesus gave is to
live humbly with
each other.
This is not easy to
do in a society that tells us if we
don’t pursue our goals and desires we will never amount to
anything. For the
sake of ego, people are pushed and shoved aside for desires to be
fulfilled. To
be recognized, the needs of others go ignored while another’s
personal agenda is
placed in the limelight. For one’s ambitions to be realized,
others may be hurt
and suffer. Exalting oneself, for whatever reason, is the antithesis of
humility, which is having the heart of a servant, which is the example
of
Christ. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served,
but to serve, and
to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
We realize, then, why
exalting ourselves keeps one from
knowing the exaltation of God. God can’t honor us when we are
too busy honoring
ourselves. God can’t offer His greatest blessings when we are
too busy seeking
blessings for ourselves. If God isn’t the source, then it
comes from the world,
and anything the world offers is short-lived at best. Many of the times
when we
seek our own way, we are seeking that which is based in sin, not in
righteousness, which separates us from God. Only by developing the
heart of a
slave, a slave of Christ, of submission to Him and His will, do we
allow God
access to our lives, and allow Him to bless us, exalt us and honor us.
No
wonder Scripture tells us, “God is opposed to the proud, but
gives grace to the
humble” (James 4:6).
Taking the role of a
servant before God is appropriate,
as He is God, not us. He alone possesses immortality and dwells in
inapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16). How dare we exalt ourselves and
seek our
own way before such a great and awesome God! By recognizing our role as
a slave
of Christ, we humble ourselves and allow Him access to who we are, to
bless us
and mold us in His image, to lift us up as beloved children. Peter
reminds us
of this when he writes, “Therefore humble yourselves under
the mighty hand of
God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety
on Him,
because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7). To find His
blessings, submit to Him.
It may seem like an oxymoron as far as the world is concerned, but if
you will
humble yourself to God, to become a slave for Him, His exaltation far
exceeds
any we can contrive for ourselves. In the end, that’s what
really matters. “Do
not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the
greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall
be
humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted”
(Matthew 23:10-12).
