Humility is the recognition that, spiritually speaking, one has no pretension of place or position; one is low, and God is all.

As you encounter Him, you come into an excruciatingly painful realization of how low you are, so low that you cannot stand anymore, and you have fallen to your knees. Or on your face and groveling in the dust like Isaiah, Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!

Humility is the response to the awe-inducing recognition that there is a God and that my relationship with Him depends on who He is.

First, He is the Creator, and the heavens declare his glory. I am the creature. What am I that God should even notice? On what basis do I have a relationship with him? By His grace (hesed) the grandeur of His eternal love alone.

Again, humility is both a recognition and a response. It begins with awareness of the creature-creator consciousness followed by proper conduct. The Bible speaks of humility more as a verb than a noun. We are to humble ourselves and walk in that humility.

Humility is more than just a disposition; it is a way of life. It is walking in repentance with a continual awareness that God is the very one who gives you the gift of life and that He is the sustaining source of your life. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change (James 1:17).

Suppose we were to darken this room entirely, and I turned on my battery-operated penlight. It might seem impressive until I take it out into the sunshine, where it pales by comparison. Now imagine what happens when we recognize that not only did God make this Sun, but scientists tell us there are a billion suns like ours in our galaxy and perhaps even a billion galaxies! Our little penlights are not so impressive anymore.

Humility is the creature being in a right relationship with its Creator.

The supreme example is Jesus, and the critical text is Philippians 2:5-8. This hymn of the early church is one of the most ancient texts in the NT. It was in circulation long before Paul used it in his letter.

• Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. This is to be our attitude, our disposition.
• Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself. This means that he divested himself of all divine privilege.
• By taking the form of a servant. No wonder people think Christianity is foolish. That the infinite should become finite—not only finite but to become a slave to everyone else—is scandalous!
• Being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

If you and I want to be contributing members of Jesus’ kingdom movement, we must imitate him. Humility is all about imitating (following) the Son the way he imitated the Father. You and I have to empty ourselves of any spiritual pretensions, just as Jesus emptied himself of his spiritual reality.

We cannot arrogate divine prerogatives to ourselves as Adam and Eve did. The natural man wants to exalt himself, to take prerogatives that belong to God, and say, “I will decide what is good and what is evil, not you, God.” Humility divests itself of pretense and says, “God, you are the one who has the right to say what is right and what is wrong. My responsibility is to obey you.”

Unlike the first Adam, the second Adam came in precisely the opposite way.

The first Adam began as a glorified mud-ball (breath and fine particles), who, from this exalted state, says, “I will be like God.” What happened? He was humbled, bringing misery upon himself and his progeny. But then the second Adam comes, who is,

The image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him (Col 1:15-16).

And he does just the opposite. He empties himself and becomes a man, obeying God wholeheartedly. What is the result?

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

In other words, the entire cosmos is now subject to the humble Christ.

The way to spiritual greatness is humility, while the way to spiritual destruction and impotence is pride. Pride says: I will, I will, I will! Humility says: thy will, thy will, thy will.

We must continually recognize that we are but earthen vessels; the transcendent power is God. Yes, we enter via the low gate, but we must remember that our continued progress is by way of the same. Humility is how you both enter and walk in the kingdom.

Listen to our apostle Paul’s depth of understanding. On the one hand, I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh (Romans 7:18). On the other hand, I can do all things through him who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). This is the paradox of humility.

We must hold both of these truths in tension, and this is where so many Christians miss the mark, leaning too far one way or the other.

For instance, when we acknowledge that we are existentially insignificant compared to God, we must balance that truth with another. Namely, we have dignity because our Creator made us in His image. And now, in Messiah Jesus, He is reshaping us for His purposes.

Yes, by all means, put down the old man, but do not deny Christ within you—the new man trying to grow up into maturity. If you disparage yourself excessively, you are putting the wrong thing down. You must understand that God humbles in order to elevate. You are humbled in order to enter His kingdom where the indwelling of His Spirit lifts you up to go forth boldly into His service.

Put the old self down, but do not ever put God down. Isaiah falls on his face, but he does not stay there. He is purified when a coal from the holy altar touches his lips; then he is sent on the mission.

I picture humility as an extension cord. It is a lowly little thing, mostly hidden under carpets and behind furniture. But the electricity that flows through it can light dark places. Sometimes, we are more like transmission lines with the power of God surging through us, but I hesitate to use that image because it sounds too exalted. The temptation for us preachers is to think we are the power station.

There is probably not one New Testament leader who would be kept as a pastor in one of the big successful churches of our day. No, they are not impressive enough. They were men and women broken and spilled out in service to their cross-carrying King. We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us (2 Cor 4:7). We are earthen vessels capable of being conduits for God’s power.

I am giving you images in hopes that something will connect with you. Humility is the willingness to set your sail continually and let the wind of God’s Spirit propel you to His destination for your life. And believe me, it can move you into some improbable places. Jesus learned obedience in the school of suffering. He was innocent but did not defend himself. With the angels and powers of the universe at his command, the Son of God submitted himself to the ultimate low place, crucifixion—the disgraceful, tortuous death of a criminal.

My friends, humility is submitted strength. It takes guts to be humble. It is not human weakness but supernatural strength made possible by a faith that grasps the truth: God is for you.

My child, do not despise the LORD’s discipline
or be weary of his reproof,
for the LORD reproves whom he loves,
as a father, the child in whom he delights.