Tag: Humility

Scum and Refuse

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We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.

1 Corinthians 4:13 (ESV)

The heavenly mindset of Paul is always a helpful barometer to examine my heart and soul. Paul encourages me to not just focus on the surface level appearance of presentation but to dig deeper and examine the cracks and crevices that are open within my heart. This passage from 1 Corinthians 4 is a good example of this. Paul is challenging the thinking and mindset of the Corinthian believers to move away from their pride, arrogance, and sense of entitlement in which they had grown accustomed. Their hearts were puffed up and filled with boasting over the blessings from God that they had been freely given. Paul is calling them back to a mindset of weakness and humility. He is calling them to be counter-cultural in their thinking. They are wanting to be seen as rich and wise in the eyes of the world, when they should be as “the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.”

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Prayer of Contemplation

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Holy Father. You are beyond the simple words that come to my mind. As I sit and reflect on who you are, my heart struggles to process the vast nearness of your presence. As I think about the expanse of the universe and the ever expanding boundaries that humans think they can observe of its outer edges, I am drawn back to the immensity of your presence. I have no perspective to help me understand the reach of the stars in space, and it causes me to realize that I have no perspective to know the magnitude of your presence. What is the universe in your presence? It is but a grain of sand compared to the infinite. All we can see and observe is but a miniscule speck in the true reality of the Creator.

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Weak Foolishness

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But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;

1 Corinthians 1:27 (ESV)

Wisdom and strength… These are two qualities and characteristics that we all aspire and desire to have in our life and we invest a tremendous amount of time and resources in their pursuit. We prize these two traits above all others in that they form the basis for all other qualities and characteristics that we deem valuable. Foolish and weak are two insults that will sink a person’s heart when they hear them. To be proven foolish brings shame. To be proven weak brings fear. Yet, for the follower of Christ, they are a marker of faith. What the world sees as foolishness and weakness is the power and strength of God. In the economy of God, the foolish ones who trust in Christ are wise and the weak ones who trust in Christ are strong. “For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” 1 Corinthians 1:25

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Boasting Excluded

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Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith.

Romans 3:27 (ESV)

What becomes of our boasting? The assumption with this rhetorical question that Paul raises is that all of us will struggle with boasting in our life. Our pride and our arrogance will produce within us a boastful heart when we are living by a law of works instead of faith. A boastful heart is contrary to a heart living by the law of faith. A boastful heart seeks self-promotion and wants everyone to know the reasons why. A boastful heart is not content to be secondary to anyone, including Jesus. Yet, Paul tells us that there is no room at all for boasting in the life of faith. He goes even further by telling us that is excluded. Boasting goes against the life of faith bound together with Christ.

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Desiring More

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‘Jesus’ said to them, “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 (ESV)

I have been troubled in my thoughts from yesterday as I battle to understand the simple truth of this statement from Jesus in Luke 9:48. There has seemingly always been within me a rising tide of jealousy, envy, and pride that ebbs and flows over time. Days where I am content with where God has placed me in His great story. Days where I am only concerned with being a faithful, obedient, humble servant to my loving Master. Then there are times when my heart becomes stirred and moved to jealous thoughts. Last night was one of these times that saw me move from a place of contentment and happiness with my calling to one of envy at the apparent “success” and “comfort” of others. The enemy knows that my heart is weak and frail. The enemy knows that I often desire to be more and have more in this life. He uses this to strike easy blows that often rattle me for days. These words of Jesus calm and quiet my heart and soul. These words are a comfort to me. Success is not measured by worldly standards, it is measured only in the accomplished work of Jesus upon the cross.

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Strength in Meekness

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Journal Entry // February 8, 2023

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. (ESV)

Matthew 5:5

Who are the meek? This word always seems to come across as a character trait that is not truly something I would desire.  It sounds the complete opposite of what the world and the culture around me tell me I should pursue. Meekness in my mind is a timid, shy, passive, and cowardly person who lets anyone and everyone walk over them and treat them unfairly. Yet, this is not the picture that the Bible presents of the meek and this is where I typically go astray. I read this verse (and many others) and I think I understand what is being said, but I completely misunderstand or deviate from the truth due to my lack of understanding. As the ESV Study Bible says, “The meek are the gentle, those who do not assert themselves over others in order to further their own agendas in their own strength.” The reason I struggle with truly understanding and embracing this characteristic, this beatitude, is that meekness goes against my basic fleshly desire to assert myself and take control of life and every situation. As the saying goes that I hear spoken so often in various ways, “God helps those who help themselves.” This 10-word phrase of Jesus puts my self-centered, self-righteous, prideful attitude in check and points me back to humility and hope, trusting in Jesus to meet my every need.

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Jealous Pride

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Journal Entry // December 2, 2022

But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command delivered by the eunuchs. At this the king became enraged, and his anger burned within him. (ESV)

Esther 1:12

Reading the beginning of the story of Esther, we see the actions of king Ahasuerus set the stage for the focus of what is to come in the story and how this one incident leads to a sweeping change throughout the king’s land that brings pain, suffering, and death. It all begins with a small statement by the author that the king’s heart was merry with wine. I don’t know if it means he was drunk or just that he had lost some of his inhibitions through drinking. Whatever mental and physical state he was in, he decided to make his wife, the queen, an object for the viewing pleasure of his guests. There is this sense that the king wanted these men to be jealous of his beautiful queen as they lusted after her in front of him. So when the queen refuses, the king is moved from a place of superiority to these princes to one of embarrassment. And in his embarrassment, he becomes enraged with a burning anger. An anger fueled by the loss of his inhibitions and the rationality of a sober mind.

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Meekness of Wisdom

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Journal Entry // November 16, 2022

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. (ESV)

James 3:13

We all want wisdom. We all want and desire to be wise and have an understanding of the way of the world to make good and proper decisions. What most of us do not have is the meekness and humility of wisdom. We want wisdom because we see that it is necessary to attain the desires of our heart and for us to have power and glory in this world. We want wisdom to enhance our own selfish ambition, pride, and arrogance. James here is telling us that this is not the way of true wisdom that is found only in God. True wisdom does not puff up but brings low. The wisdom of Christ brings meekness and humility as it reveals the weakness and inability of our flesh to do any good. True wisdom from the Father enlightens our heart to our inability and our great need for a Savior, namely Jesus. This is wisdom.

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A True Heart

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Journal Entry // November 12, 2022

let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (ESV)

Hebrews 10:22

It is always interesting to see the pattern of phrases that God brings to my attention during these times of meditation and thought. This morning I sit and consider the words of Christ calling me to draw near to him. It is an important and essential part of following Christ, yet I find it challenging to draw near. Not because I don’t want to draw near but that I am too prideful and arrogant. Yesterday in Hebrews 7, I read that I was to draw near to God through Jesus as he continually prays for me. Now I read that I am to draw near with “a true heart in full assurance of faith.” Looking at the study notes in my Bible, it tells me that a true heart is one that has been cleansed and is in full submission to God. This is just another way of saying that I am to draw near to God through Christ in humility. That I am to rid myself of all the pride and arrogance that seeks to assert itself in my life and I am to clothe myself in humble submissiveness that brings my heart before the throne of grace and mercy.

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Humble Confidence

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Journal Entry // November 1, 2022

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (ESV)

Hebrews 4:16

When the writer of Hebrews talks about the people in the days of Joshua not entering God’s rest because of disobedience, he challenges us not to fall into the same trap. The writer wants us to strive to enter God’s rest. What is this striving that we must wrestle with? It is nothing more than understanding the weakness of our flesh and a call to humility. This striving is not a call to work harder or try harder to be perfect and impress our holy God. No, this is a call to let the word of God penetrate our hearts and soul and bring about an understanding of the still remaining sin that is at work in our lives. To see our sin and repent by faith. Then… we can have this confidence to draw near to Christ and receive mercy and grace. There is no need to perform an act of penance. There is no room for making myself right before Christ. There is only Jesus sitting on his throne of grace. He alone will freely give grace and mercy to the humble. Those who are confessing and repenting and understanding the weakness of their flesh and their complete need for a loving Savior are the ones that can have this confidence. A humble confidence that the One who saved them is the one who will cover them with grace and mercy and love.

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