While megachurches and televangelists pander to the world with feel-good teaching or theatrics, those that seek to follow the truth should not try to emulate these prominent “religious figures”, but to emulate Christ, making Him our role model. As we try to be more like Jesus, there will be traits and characteristics that we must take on to grow in our Christlikeness.
Of all the traits needed as a Christian, humility is possibly the most challenging. Roots for both the Greek and English words indicate the idea of something that is low-lying or close to the ground. It has been said that “humility is not thinking little of oneself, but thinking of oneself little”: the idea that thinking little of yourself is still thinking about yourself, still putting the focus in the wrong place.
For the Christian, humility is not just valuable, it is absolutely necessary — it makes the Christian more like the Master. Humility was one of the most outstanding characteristics of Christ. This is seen so clearly in His life: He came from heaven to die for the sin of all mankind (Hebrews 2:9; Romans 5:7-8). Paul wrote to the Philippians “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus … He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death” (Philippians 2:5-8). For us, humility shows the importance of the Master rather than the servant. Keeping things in perspective and remembering that we are simply servants is crucial.
Humility is a selfless attitude. Our attitude, our mental perspective, is something we develop. Having a good attitude is entirely up to each one of us and is one of the most valuable contributors towards being an effective worker for the Lord. A good attitude must involve work — often hard work — and a meekness of heart. We must seek the yoke of Christ rather than looking for our own liberties. Our priorities must be well-ordered and proper, seeking first the kingdom of God above all else, even our own food and clothing. (Matthew 6:33)
To be the Christians the Lord expects us to be, as workers in His kingdom, effort will be required, sometimes requiring us to push aside things we would like to do for ourselves — relaxation or refreshment — to do the things that must be done for the Master. Humility causes regular self-examination, and to examine one’s own self is much harder than examining someone else. Humility keeps us walking the walk, not just talking the talk.
To be like Jesus there are many things that must be done in our lives, but there is something that must be done to our lives: We must be emptied out of it.
— Stefan Richardson