by Ladydenise Coleman

Philippians 2:1-11 (New International Version)

 ¹If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

 ⁵Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
 ⁶Who, being in very nature^[a] God,
      did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
 ⁷but made himself nothing,
      taking the very nature^[b] of a servant,
      being made in human likeness.
 ⁸And being found in appearance as a man,
      he humbled himself
      and became obedient to death—
         even death on a cross!
 ⁹Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
      and gave him the name that is above every name,
 ¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
      in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
 ¹¹and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
      to the glory of God the Father.

Webster defines humility as the quality or state of being humble. So what does it mean to be humble?  Webster defines one that is humble, as one that is not proud or haughty, not arrogant or assertive. Now let’s take this definition and see how it applies to Jesus:

Jesus Christ is the ultimate definition of Humility." .... he achieves his merit and does not rest (arrogantly) in it: -- he does not wish to display his superiority. Jesus acts without claiming the results as His own.

Mark 10:45 states, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.”  This was the motivation for Jesus’ ministry.  Everything Jesus did was in order to glorify His father, to benefit someone other than Himself!

The Apostle Paul appointed by God commanded humility of mind by the junction of the Holy Spirit.  "Do Nothing from selfishness or empty conceit" (Phil 2:3)

Paul didn't limit this to any people or within any specific relationship. We need to put away that erroneous perspective that we are better or more deserving than another person.
We all are made by God's hand - all creatures. We are made of the same stuff -chemicals. (Genesis 1-2)
Paul furthermore tells us how we should view others. "...With humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself"

From the commandment of Jesus, we are told to love another as one would love himself.
"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up." (James 4:10) God will lift us up, just as He did Jesus. 

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name. (Phil 2:9)

The question is not, whether you or I will be humbled. The question is when, will we be humbled? Is not Jesus' example a good enough reason to be humble in mind, especially when it is for you and I that He denied Himself for?

I have learned that it is “people” that are important to Jesus, not things of material value. And it is important how we treat people, especially those that we do not even know. It’s easy to be nice to someone you know. What about those that we do not know? True humility comes from the heart. Paul writes to us in Philippians 2:5 that our attitude should be the same as Christ Jesus; meaning that we should have a servant’s attitude, serving others out of love for God and for other people.  We should look, not only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others.

And speaking of, serving others out of love for God, I am reminded of an event that happened when I was a Senior in high school that I would like to share that forever changed the way I view others.

It was the beginning of summer, and the Texas heat had already climbed to triple digits. My younger sister, Lori and I were home alone. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Expecting it to be one of the neighborhood kids, I was greatly surprised to see an older man in his mid-fifties who was extremely overweight.  I could tell that he had been walking awhile because he was sweating profusely, had a stutter and was out of breath. My first instinct was to slam the door shut and lock it.

Despite all his unpleasant conditions, the man managed to tell me that he was selling magazines for the American Veterans Society and asked if I were interested.  As I reluctantly declined and began to close the door, he said, “Ma’am, do you mind if I use your hose a moment to get a quick drink?” After thinking for a second, I said, “Sure, why not.” But just as he reached to cut the hose on, I said, “Wait, let me get you a glass of ice water!” He then replied, “But I don’t want to put you out – this hose is just fine.” I smiled at him and said, “No problem, it would be my pleasure.”

After giving the man the glass of ice water, he carefully placed one hand around the glass and used the other hand to wipe the sweat from his face. I stood in silence as the man gulped the water down. He gave a slight sigh of relief and returned the glass to me.

It took humbling myself and God's love and faithfulness to conquer my fear of this un-slightly looking person. It was only then, that I was able to serve him as Jesus would have done. This experience also took away my lackadaisical attitude as a Christian.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. (Phil 2:3)

Humility, followed by being exalted by God, is a theme that runs through the New Testament, especially in Jesus' own teaching. It is no accident that genuine, self-imposed humility is the only way that love and unity can flourish in the Church, the Body of Christ. And Jesus himself leads the way.

Take the lowest place when you are a guest at a banquet, "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 14:11)

Jesus' way is the best way, the only way to a blessed life and ministry.