How To Be Humble
“For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.”
Romans 12:3 is often looked to as a helpful description of humility, as Paul instructs the Roman church not to think more highly of themselves than they ought to think, but rather to have sound judgment in line with what God's Word says to be true. Genuine humility stems from having a sober and accurate view of self according to the Scriptures. Now, if we're honest, cultivating genuine humility can be difficult. Here are four realities to remember that will help you to cultivate genuine humility.
Remember Your Position Before Christ
Jesus said in Matthew 10:24, “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master." There's a reason Paul never opens his letter with "Paul, circumcised the 8th day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews. As to my office, the greatest apostle." Instead, Paul clung to and rejoiced in the fact that he was a slave of Christ. This attitude is befitting for Christians as slaves of Christ, we are those who are entirely submitted to the will of our Master. Humility requires that we acknowledge and embrace our position before Christ and then actually live according to it.
Remember the Example of Christ
Philippians 2 tells us Jesus not only took on flesh and came to dwell amongst His sin-stained creation, but He came and laid aside His divine privilege and emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave. He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. You see, humility calls us to imitate Christ and to adopt His attitude, which drives us to do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind. We are to regard one another as more important than ourselves, not merely looking out for our own interests, but also for the interests of others. This attitude was exemplified in Jesus and should be imitated by us.
Remember the Need for Christ
Consider Jesus' words in John 15. In verse 5 He says, "Apart from Me, you can do nothing." Apart from the will of Jesus, we can't take our next breath, let alone bear fruit or be pleasing to Him in any way. What a humbling thought to know we are in all ways dependent upon the Lord. It's in Him that we live, move, and exist according to Acts 17:28. Coming back to this fact of dependence in the everyday events of life is a surefire way to remain humble in heart.
Remember the Grace of Christ
In Titus 3:3, Paul wrote, "For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another." At some point, this was true for all of us. But listen to Paul's words in the following verses. "But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." You see, the grace of Christ ought to strip every believer of any sense of pride, knowing that all we have, including our salvation, is of grace.
Now, you probably noticed Jesus is at the center of all four of these points. That's intentional. When we keep our eyes fixed and our affections anchored to Christ, sober humility is the natural outcome. Do you desire a humble heart? If so, remember Christ, and He will help you in this area.
