Tag: Virtue of Humility

Ministry Monday

On By BrianIn Ministry Moments

Here are some challenging posts that I’ve been saving by Paul Tripp.   Though written for pastors, they would be helpful for anyone.  I’ve included excerpts; follow each link for the whole post.

Lost the Awe
I am convinced that many of us live and do ministry day after day without any awe whatsoever. We live days, maybe even weeks, without wonder and amazement even in gospel ministry. What should stun us doesn’t stun us any more. What should leave us in silent, amazed worship has become so familiar it barely gets our attention in clutter of all the other things in ministry that command our attention. We walk through our daily ministries without an overwhelming sense of gratitude. We don’t notice the glory displayed all around us that points us to the one glory that is truly glorious: the glory of God.

If You Think You’ve Arrived
If you think you have arrived, you prepare material from above for people who sadly still need what you no longer need. Are you desperately hungry for the truths that you regularly prepare to expound to others?

If You Still Think You’ve Arrived
Communion with Christ is fueled by humility. Communion with Christ is fueled by sadness and celebration. Communion with Christ is propelled by an accurate sense of who you are, what you need, and a celebration of the One who gives it. Awareness of sin and the promise of salvation daily drives you to Christ, not to rush through a passage in his Word and say a quick prayer, but to sit at his feet and grieve your sin and give praise for the grace that meets you in it. Assessments of arrival crush personal worship.

No Pastor Is Greater Than His Master
As you consider these diagnostic questions, remember the grace that frees you to look at yourself and your ministry with humility and honesty.

  • Where in your ministry is there evidence of self-glory?
  • Where are you more dominant than you should be?
  • Where do you fail to listen when you should?
  • Where do you attempt to control things that you do not need to control?
  • Where do you find it hard to delegate ministry to others?
  • Where are you tempted to speak more than you should?
  • Where do you fail to recognize and esteem the gifts of others?
  • Where are you unwilling to examine your weaknesses and to admit you failures?
  • Where are you tempted to think of yourself as more essential than you actually are?
  • Where do you care too much about people’s respect, esteem, and appreciation?
  • Where to you find it easier to confront than to receive confrontation?
  • Where are you less than thankful for the ministry partners whom God has connected you to?
  • Where are you too confident of your own strength and wisdom?

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

In Evil Long I Took Delight – John Newton (via Trevin Wax)
In evil long I took delight, Unawed by shame or fear,
Till a new object struck my sight, And stopped my wild career.
I saw One hanging on a tree, In agonies and blood,
Who fixed His languid eyes on me, As near His cross I stood…

Why Are You Afraid of Humility? – Chrysostom (via Trevin Wax)
Before he humbled himself, only the angels knew him.
After he humbled himself, all human nature knew him.

Free Me From My Need To Exalt Myself – Prayers For Today (via Trevin Wax)
Lord, free me from my need to exalt myself.
Where I am prone to seek things for myself,
help me to seek the best things for You and others…

John Calvin’s 4 Rules of Prayer – Joel Beeke (via Ligonier)
For John Calvin, prayer cannot be accomplished without discipline. He writes, “Unless we fix certain hours in the day for prayer, it easily slips from our memory.” He goes on to prescribe several rules to guide believers in offering effectual, fervent prayer…

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day humbly worshiping our great Savior!

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

The last few weeks have been busy, and I haven’t had much chance to blog.  Hopefully next week will be better.  In the meantime, here are some good posts to ponder for the weekend on two important Christian virtues.

Humility

Joshua Harris gives us a good quote from J. I. Packer suggesting that humility is essentially a true sense of reality.  Russell Moore talks about how the devil encourages us to rethink reality by exalting ourselves.  And Kevin DeYoung reminds us that if we think we are humble, we probably are not.

Contentment

Stephen Altrogge has a new book out on contentment.  I haven’t read the book yet, but the excerpts I’ve read are helpful.  He invites us to consider the lies that keep us from contentment.  Pondering the cross and our adoption will also teach us contentment.  Meanwhile John Temple has a book on resisting consumersim, and Tim Challies shares from it several practical suggestions to fight against the constant urge for more.

Have a great Lord’s Day celebrating our risen Savior with your local church!

Passions Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

It has been a busy week with little time to write or reflect on anything to write.  But here at the end of the week are some good posts from others for you to consider:

Mark Altrogge reminds us that Christian growth takes time.  Growth isn’t instant, yet it is simple.  We can get caught up in so many details and disciplines, but in the end, Stephen Altrogge reminds us it comes down to one thing.  Certainly one discipline that can help us do that one thing (you really need to follow the link to find out what it is), is to be in the Bible.  Ray Pennoyer gives us a fresh challenge from a recent movie and a one of my heroes of the faith to be in God’s Word.  Don’t let the habits of the “hero” cast you down – most of us don’t have the time he had to devote to such things, but do let his example challenge you to hunger more for the Word.

Meanwhile, over at Crossway we get some excerpt’s of C. J. Mahaney’s new book Don’t Waste Your Sports, addressing the important issues of  humility and the temptation to play for our glory rather than God’s.  While focused on the athlete, the principles can be applied to all of life.

That is probably enough for this week.  Have a blessed Lord’s Day as you gather with God’s people to worship our great God!

Fire From Heaven

On By BrianIn Book of Luke, Virtue of Humility

In Luke 9:51-56, the Samaritans reject Jesus, so James and John suggest that they might call down fire from heaven to destroy them.  Jesus rebukes them.  He has come not to destroy but to save. 

Are we more like Jesus, or more like James and John?  Like Jesus, do we seek to love and serve and save those who reject us, oppose us, are against us?  Or like James and John, do we want to destroy them? 

I fear the American church often fails miserably in this, for too often we are not known for our love toward those who oppose us.  Atheists, cults, other religions – we believe these are wrong, but how do we treat them?  With respect, love, and humility, as people made in the image of God? 

Or consider the cultural issues of the day.  Do homosexuals know us by our love, or are we more like James and John?  Could we be losing the culture war because we have made it a war, because we fight like the other side?  Our mission is not to destroy them but love them into God’s kingdom.  If we follow Jesus, we will treat them with humility.  Too often we respond like the Pharisees with pride, an attitude of – “I’m better than you.”  Somehow we forget that we are all sinners, and I have nothing in myself to boast in.  I am saved by God’s grace alone.  That does not mean we shouldn’t stand up for what we believe in, the issue here is how – our attitude.

Closely related to cultural issues is politics.  We may disagree with our President on many things, but what is our attitude toward him?  Proud, angry, and hateful?  Or humble and loving?  Jesus calls us to give up our fire from heaven and to love like he did.

Father, make us more like your Son who came in humility and love.  Remove the pride and hate from our hearts.  Let us treat others with the respect your image bearers deserve.  Amen.

Better Than You

On By BrianIn Virtue of Humility

“An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest” (Luke 9:46).  Can you imagine that?  Grown men arguing about who was the greatest!  And this, just after Jesus, the truly great one, had spoken of becoming low for us! 

To get their attention, Jesus takes a child – with no status, no power – clearly not great.  “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.  For he who is least among you all is the one who is great” (Luke 9:48).  The child, least in their eyes, is great.  Greatness is not about status or power.  It is not about being better than others, exalting oneself above others.

If receiveiving a child is like receiving Jesus, like receiving God, then the child has great significance.  And so do all of us, for we are all made in the image of God.  No one is better or worse than others, we are all equally valuable.  So arguing about who is greatest is nothing short of foolish.

I suspect few of us would argue with someone else about who was greater.  And yet, how easy it may be for us to act like we are greater than another.  How easy to start thinking we are better than another.

I’m better than you because I am a Baptist, a Methodist, a Charismatic, a Calvinist, an Arminian, a Dispensationalist, and the list could go on.  I’m better than you because of my spiritual gifts, and I minister this way, and you don’t.  I’m better than you because my family does things this way, and your family does it that way, and that seems really odd to me.  I’m better than you because I make more money than you, I have a higher standard of living.  I’m better than you because you hurt me which makes you a terible sinner.  I’m better than you…. 

Father, how easy it is for us to begin to think that we are better than others.  The smallest differences can introduce this idea to our minds, and our pride grasps and feeds the idea.  Guard our minds.  Throw down our pride.  Help us to give up our pursuit of being being better than others.  Let us learn from Jesus who, though greater than all, humbled himself and became one of us to save us.  Amen.

Web Weekly

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

The summer seems a bit slow in the blogosphere with many taking breaks, but here are a few posts to chew on:

One of my desires is not only to live this three passion life, but to pass it on to my children.  This requires me to spend time teaching my children about Christ and our response to him.  In that vein, Brian Croft has a helpful blog about fathers shepherding their children.

Humility is essential for true compassion for others.  If we love to be first, we simply will not show compassion toward others.  With that in mind, consider Scotty Smith’s prayer for humility.

The Holy Spirit Humbles Us

On By BrianIn Biography/History, Humility Quotes

Continuing our thoughts on humility, consider these words from Charles Spurgeon:

“One way in which the Holy Spirit glorifies Christ is this – He gives us more and more debasing views of our own selves.  There are two Gods, as it were – one the true, the other the false.  Self first mounts the throne in our hearts; the higher the throne of self is exalted, the lower must Christ go.  Much of self, little of the Savior.  With exalted views of self, self-power, or self-righteousness, then there are sure to be low views of Christ, but when self goes down, then Christ at once rises.  It may be said of self, as John the Baptist once said of Christ and himself, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30).

“If you have had shallow views of your own natural depravity, then you have had very shallow thoughts of Christ.  If you think sin to be delightful, if Gethsemane and Golgotha and Calvary seem to you to be names without weight or meaning, if you have never groaned under your sin, I do not wonder that you think little of Christ’s groans and griefs and bloody sweat.

“But when you come to know yourself as verily lost and undone, then you will prize your Deliverer.  When the dread word lost has seemed to fall like a death knell upon your ear, then the tidings that the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost will be sweet to you as the Christmas carol of the angels when they sang, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14).  If you feel the disease, you will value the Physician; if you know your own emptiness, you will prize Christ’s fullness. But if you reject the teaching of the Holy Spirit, which shows you your utter helplessness and worthlessness, in so doing you have rejected Christ and put far from you that Savior who alone came to save sinners.

“It is, then, a most precious thing when we begin to sink lower and lower in our own estimation.  At the commencement of spiritual life, we believe that we are nothing; as we advance, we find that we are less than nothing.  May the Holy Spirit so work in you!”

(From his sermon, The Spirit’s Office Toward Disciples)

Still Swaggering

On By BrianIn Virtue of Humility

Yesterday I wrote about the swagger wagon commercials and our tendency to swagger despite God’s call to humility.  It struck me a few hours after I wrote the post, that I was swaggering about the post.  I thought pretty highly of myself for coming up with it, especially that last line with the pun (did you notice?).  I even placed a comment on the blog where I found the commercials in hopes that it might send more people to see my post.  How blind can I be?  Swaggering while writing against swaggering.  How sin can blind us to the truth.

“Search me, O God and know my heart!  Try me and know my thoughts!  And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  (Psalm 139:23-24)

Swagger Wagon

On By BrianIn Virtue of Humility1 Comment

Toyota has a hilarious series of “swagger wagon” commercials that in their words feature “two self-absorbed parents and the only vehicle that matches their awesomeness.”  The entire series is done tongue-in-cheek, but captures a real attitude in our world today.  While the commercials are funny, what is not so funny is our tendency toward a self-absorbed “look-at-me” attitude.

I remember when I first got my current car (which I have now nick-named the swagger sedan).  When I first drove it, I had a bit of a swagger attitude.  For some it might be a new set of clothes, the newest gadget, or some accomplishment that brings out the swagger attitude.  What is certain is that my swagger sedan after several years no longer has a swagger affect, and if we take an honest look at ourselves, we are not as awesome as we sometimes think.

The Bible calls us to humility.  Humility is not an “I am scum” attitude.  Humility is seeing ourselves rightly.  We are made in God’s image and so of great value.  But we are also sinners, rebels against God.  We are broken, not what we were made to be.  We are far short of awesome.

At the same time, humility calls us to look at ourselves in comparison to God.  God is awesome – the only one who deserves this adjective.  In comparison to him, we are small.  No one can honestly swagger in front of God.  Rather humility calls us to exalt the one who is truly awesome.

Though we are small compared to God and rebels against God, God still loves us.  He came to earth and actually became one of us.  He died on a cross to pay for our sins.  He rose from the dead to remake us into the people we were made to be.  This too humbles us.  He did this not because we are awesome, but because he is.  Not because we are great, but because he is.

At the same time, God’s love lifts us up.  Though we are broken and small, he loves us.  In him our sins are forgiven and we can be who he made us to be.  We can have a relationship with him.  We can spend all of eternity with him.  But this should not lead us to swagger.  We don’t deserve any of this.  Instead we ought to praise him for all that he has done for us.

I will continue to enjoy these commercials.  But they also now serve as a reminder to me of the folly of self-absorbed pride and swagger, a reminder to get off the swagger bandwagon, and humbly praise the one who is truly awesome.