Being humble is divided into two categories
1. Being humble in your relationship with people
2. Being humble in your heart(God looks at the heart)
1. Your relationship with people: To have a humble relationship with people around you; you have to work on something we call "attitude". If you have a good attitude or a bad attitude, it determines whether you are humble or proud respectively.
Am not going to talk about theories today but am going to use practical examples to help us practical examples of situations that we come across everyday.
The issue of greetings
When somebody does not greet us atall or does not greet us well, we become offended and don't greet the person again because we feel we are too big to be treated like that. We say things like "who is he?", "Does he know who I am?", "Does he know the kind of people i move with?", "We are not in the same level, so i don't want insults from people like him".
No, It shouldn't be like that. If somebody doesn't greet you you can as well greet him. And we shouldn't be nasty when we do so. Do we know the story of Haman in the book of Esther. Everywhere he went people bowed before him because the king has exalted him to the level of a prince. Then one day his friends asked him if he noticed that Mordecai does not bow to him. The bible records that he didn't bow because he knew the wickedness of Haman. Haman's pride was hurt that he believed it was in insult to kill Mordecai alone, He then decided to kill all his people, but God disgraced him and he lost his life and his family in the process. So greeting somebody tat doesn't greet us does not take anything from us. Maybe if oneday Haman decided to greet Mordecai maybe he would have had a change of heart and started respecting Haman.
The issue of recognition
You are the guitarist, the way you played made people love your band so much; but then you friends come to you one day and ask you why you are not recognized. You shouldn't be angry or moody, you should have the right attitude by saying; i made the music work out, my joy is fufilled i therefore do not care if i am recognized or not.
Let us apply this in our daily activities.
Don't ever think you are better than someone else and as a result look down on them
We can look down on people through our words body language and so on. It is as a result of thinking we are better than them.
Romans 12:16b
"Do not be proud but be willing to associate with people of low position"
There is an exception to that verse tho'
Do not be conceited
When you are humble, it dosent mean you should do unskilled or domestic work for people in the name of being humble. Let's be wise.
What what you say and how you react to what you hear
After Jesus Christ had being baptized by John the Baptist. Some time later he went to someplace with his disciples where he spent sometime with them and baptized people.
Some of John's disciples now came to him and said that the man who was with him at the other side of Jordan-that he testified about) is now baptizing and everyone is going to him. Hear what John says in John 3:27-36.
Most importantly in verse 29b he said that joy is mine and it is now complete. He must become great and I must be less. That is humility. He didn't seize the opportunity of speaking ill against Jesus because he was not there. He did not condemn the action of Jesus because he(John) baptized him(Jesus) or because he was the one who was given the ministry of baptism.
Let us learn from John
Do not condemn Others
We should not condemn people and their actions even if they are wrong. Do we remember when God was angry with the Israelites Genesis 32:9. God told Moses that he should let him destroy the Israelites completely; then he will make him into a great nation. At this point God wanted to start a new nation with moses. What an honour
“I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. 10 Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”
11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
LIsten to his prayer to God in verse 32
Then Moses returned to the LORD, and said, "Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a god of gold for themselves. 32"But now, if You will, forgive their sin-- and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written!
What manner of lowliness and love.
2. Your heart: let us guide our hearts; how and what we think. When we imagen ourselves in so much wealth, do we treat people like trash in our imaginations??
When we imagine our selves in high desirable positions? do we look down on people or rivals in our imaginations??
David had it in his heart to build God a temple now see what God did in return for him
1st kings 8:18
But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 19 Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name
Psalm 132:11-12
The Lord swore an oath to David,
a sure oath he will not revoke:
“One of your own descendants
I will place on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant
and the statutes I teach them,
then their sons will sit
on your throne for ever and ever.”
Let us watch and guide our hearts. Its very important.
Good luck in being humble; the Holyspirit will guide you and tell you how to go about it
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