The world has co-opted humility as a way to be successful in the world without bravado. “‘Conventional wisdom is that you’ve got to be Machiavellian and self-promote and bully to rise to the top, but humility is also a catalyst for leadership success,’ said David Hekman…[who] co-authored the study, published in January 2024 in the journal Human Resource Management. That’s good news for leaders who naturally shy away from self-promotion and praise the strengths of others—and aren’t afraid to admit their own shortcomings. This path to promotion hinges on status and involves cultivating a network of loyal followers in the workplace.” (1) This may be good news for people who want to climb the corporate ladder, but it’s worse for Christians who are called to be humble servants to God and others. Godless philosophies of the world typically adopt a biblical idea for their own use. Because the source of these philosophies is paganism, their uses are all opposed to God, no matter how truth-adjacent they may seem. Recently, someone in our Bible study was encouraged by players’ comments after the Super Bowl when one player said he encourages youth to engage in the self-talk that says, “I am somebody, I am important.” However, only in Christ are we somebody special to God; without that link, this is only truth-adjacent. Humility would say I am special and important because of what Christ has done for me, which is what he does for all believers. Humility gives God the glory for our reverence and devotion to him, which are key elements of biblical wisdom. No matter where we live or work, or what we do, Christians are challenged to be humble, practicing the wisdom that glorifies Christ, who blesses the meek.
The Humble Wisdom of John the Baptist
When some disciples of John the Baptist came to him to complain about would-be disciples going to Jesus instead of him, John replied, “He [Christ] must increase, but I must decrease…A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.” (John 3:27, 30) “Humility is required to pay attention. Humility involves admitting that we don’t know everything and requires realizing our sinfulness and submitting to a higher authority. We must gather strength from God for our journey and give credit to Him when anything good happens. We must be willing to wait rather than charge forward, to serve others, and use the gifts and strengths God has given us to use as He directs. Ask the Lord to help you pay attention and increase your vision for Him. As He becomes more to us, we become less. As we see the strength He provides, we can repent of our self-sufficiency and be available for His purposes for our lives. When we have a right thinking about ourselves in relationship to God, we can humbly surrender to His purposes for us.” (2) “The fear of God and humility go together, where the one is the other is; and as the one is the way to wisdom, the other is the way to glory; Christ’s humiliation was before his exaltation; men [and women] are first humbled and laid low in their own eyes, and then they are raised out of their low estate, and are set among princes; and shall inherit the throne of glory, being made kings and priests unto God…it is a frequent saying of Christ, ‘he that humbles himself shall be exalted’, Luke 14:11; such a one is raised to a high estate of grace, and at last to eternal glory.” (3) “The fear of the Lord will dispose us to search the Scriptures with reverence; and it will cause us to follow the leadings of the Holy Spirit. While we humbly place all our dependence on the grace of God, we are exalted in the righteousness of Christ.” (4) “The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.” (Proverbs 15:33)
Humility Here and Now
When we get to heaven, and then in glory to our eternal home in the new heavens and new earth, we will be perfect without the need for humility. Christ’s character will be ours. However, now we need all the help we can get to grow in humility. Jesus knows how much we need his help. In his Sermon on the Mount, he taught, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5) “Many of the beatitudes are based on Old Testament texts; this one…comes from Psalm 37:11, which says, ‘The meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace’… In a series of powerful statements, it says that they ‘do not fret because of evil men’; they ‘trust in the Lord and do good’; they ‘delight’ in the Lord, are ‘still before’ him, and ‘refrain from anger.’ People like this are genuinely blessed by God. They possess the earth because they take what God spreads before them and enjoy it, while others fight for more and fail to enjoy even what they have.” (5) Humility gives God the glory for our reverence and devotion to him, which are key elements of biblical wisdom. “Considering how safe, and quiet, and easy the humble are, we see that with the lowly is wisdom.” (6) “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.” (Proverbs 11:2)
Humility Leads to Wisdom, which Leads to Honor
“One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” (Proverbs 29:23) “The sin of pride does not allow the fool to benefit from another’s wisdom.”(7)“Honour shall uphold the humble in spirit; not who are humble in appearance only, or merely in words, having a show of humility, a voluntary and affected one; but really in their hearts; whose spirits are humble and contrite; who are so in spiritual things, and are made so by the Spirit of God: they are such who are truly sensible of sin; of their folly, and want of spiritual knowledge; of their impotence, and weakness to do anything that is spiritually good…and that whatever they have is owing to the grace of God…who submit to the righteousness of Christ, and give all the glory of salvation to the grace of God. These, as they are honourable, being clothed with humility, which is itself an ornament of great price; so they are honoured with more grace from the Lord…beautified with the garments of salvation; have the honour to have the spiritual and gracious presence of God, and fellowship with him.” (8) As a reminder—wherever we live, wherever we work, and whatever we do, we are challenged to be humble, practicing the wisdom that glorifies Christ, who blesses the meek.
Child-like Humility
“The disciples had been asking about greatness in the kingdom they believed Jesus would establish. They assumed that greatness was all they had to worry about. They assumed they would be in the kingdom. But instead,…Jesus explains that unless they possessed a nature that was entirely different from what they were betraying by their question, they would not even enter the kingdom…People are not humble by nature. We are self-seeking, selfish, and driven by pride. What do we need if we are to become humble, trusting what God has done for our salvation and not what we can accomplish for ourselves? The answer is clear: We need to ‘turn’ or ‘be converted,’ which is God’s work. We need to pray the prayer of Jeremiah 31:18: ‘Turn me, and I shall be turned, for you are the Lord my God.’ We ‘must be born again’ (John 3:7)…The evangelical bishop John Ryle said, ‘The surest mark of [any] true conversion is humility.’ It is when we humble ourselves and trust Jesus alone to save us that we can be sure we are converted.” (9) For those of us who have been followers of Jesus Christ for a while, Tim Keller writes, “Sacrifices and good deeds that are not backed up with a righteous life are detestable to God. But Proverbs 28:9 goes deeper, telling us that even seemingly heartfelt prayers are detestable to God unless accompanied by a humble, teachable spirit. [‘If anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are an abomination.’] This is true, heartfelt, soul humility that pleases our Lord.” (10) “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful…Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” (Colossians 3:12-15; 4:5-6)
Related Scripture: Psalm 37:11; Proverbs 16:18; Ecclesiastes 2:9, 13, 26; 7:11-12, 19; 8:1; Isaiah 57:15; Micah 6:8; Mark 4:11-12; Ephesians 5:15-17;
Notes:
1. Katy Marquardt Hill, CU Boulder Today, To Succeed in the Workplace, Be Humble, https://www.colorado.edu/today/2024/04/03/succeed-workplace-be-humble
2. “Humility: Available for God’s Purposes,” Katie Flores, PCA CDM Ministry, Made For More, https:// women.pcacdm.org/made-for-more
3. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, Proverbs 15:33, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/proverbs-15.html.
4. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, Proverbs 15:33, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mhn/proverbs-15.html
5. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 5:5, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.
6. Henry, Proverbs 11:2, Ibid.
7. Reformation Study Bible Notes, 29:23
8. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, Proverbs 29:2, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/proverbs-29.html.
9. Boice, Matthew 18:4, Ibid.
10. Keller, Proverbs 28:9, Ibid.
February 20, 2025
Divine Wisdom for Daily Living by Joanne Colvin 