Always be Humble honor with Humility comes Proverbs 3:34 God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humility is a virtue not often valued in today s world. It is seen as an outdated virtue of the past. But in the Bible, being humble is considered one of the best character traits to possess. Jesus spoke of putting others first and Proverbs lists honor as something that comes from humility. Staying true to God s directive to be humble and put others before ourselves will directly conflict with today s society. So how can we do this? Not by our own strength. Honor, wisdom, and thankfulness flow from humility. Jesus tells us those who are humble will be exalted. But Jesus kingdom is not of this earth. Our exaltation may not come on this side of heaven. In this world, humility is often viewed as weakness, but God does not see it this way. Serving others, being gentle, kind, patient and humble are what we are to be as God s children. God calls us as His children to shine His virtues into this dark world in which we live. For this month s Bible study, let s dig into what God tells us about being humble and living with humility.
Isaiah 57:15 The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this: I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts. God loves a contrite, repentant and humble spirit. He will revive our courage as we repent. Jeremiah 49:15-16 The Lord says to Edom, I will cut you down to size among the nations. You will be despised by all. 16 You have been deceived by the fear you inspire in others and by your own pride. You live in a rock fortress and control the mountain heights. But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles, I will bring you crashing down, says the Lord. God does not tolerate prideful spirit. Edom was a rock fortress in what is now Jordan. They believed they were invincible and ended up being destroyed by their pride. Pride snakes the belief into our minds that we don t need God. Even when doing things God would like, if we are doing them with a sense of pridefulness and not humility, God knows. Let s ask God to remove all pride from our thoughts and deeds so we won t be hampered from living the life He has planned for us! Repent & remove all pride in order to be humble
Proverbs 11:2 Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. When we are humble, we become wise because we are not always seeing ourselves, our thoughts, and deeds as best. We can open our eyes to the wisdom God will show to us. Proverbs 29:23 Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor. Pride will only lead to destruction, while humility brings honor. Proverbs 15:33 Humility precedes honor! Fear of the LORD teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor. Putting God first, having an attitude of fear and awe sets the tone for being humble. Only when we know God is first can we be lifted up in honor. Proverbs 22:4 True humility and fear of the Lord lead to riches, honor, and long life. Being truly humble will be rewarded. Proverbs 16:20-22 Those who listen to instruction will prosper; those who trust the Lord will be joyful. 21 The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive. 22 Discretion is a life-giving fountain to those who possess it, but discipline is wasted on fools. Discretion is a life-giving fountain we all need to be refreshed in at times! Being humble realizes we don t have all the answers and seeks God s wisdom.
Humble Yourself! We now lead into the New Testament to find Jesus wisdom on humility Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. References Jeremiah 6:16 discussing how if we travel the godly path, we find rest for our souls. Matthew 23:11-12 The greatest among you must be a servant. 12 But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. What Jesus describes here goes against most worldly paths to success. But we trust, not in the ways of man, but in the ways of God! Luke 14:7-11 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: I thank you, God, that I am not like other people cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income. 13 But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner. 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Ephesians 4:2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other s faults because of your love. While there is a famous country song with this lyric, it originally came from the apostle Paul echoing Jesus words. James 4:6-10 And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. (Reference-Proverbs 3:34) 7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor. Coming close to God is the only way for us to truly have a humble heart. Our natural tendency is to be sinful and full of pride. So when we choose to humble ourselves with repentant hearts, we choose God s way over ours. We recognize we cannot do this on our own and begin to live as humble children of our King! Colossians 3:12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Clothing ourselves is a conscious choice, just like choosing these godly virtues over the worldly ones all around us. Actively choosing God s way is always best. Philippians 2:3-11 Don t be selfish; don t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal s death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Jesus is our perfect example of being humble and living a life of humility. We look to Him as we try to emulate His humble life of service not only to God the Father but to us as our Savior. May we seek His repentance for our pride as we strive to live our lives more like His: full of grace and humility. Dear Lord, we ask you to forgive us of any pride as we come before you. Fill our hearts and minds with the will to speak, act and live emulating the virtue of humility as Jesus did. Let us come close to you as you show us how to live humbly. In Jesus name, Amen.