“Thus says the Lord, ‘Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For my hand made all these things, thus all these things came into being? Declares the Lord’, “But to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My Word” (Isaiah 66:1-2).
Time and time again in His Word, God turns our attention toward our need to be humble. In fact, it is discussed over 80 different times in the Bible. In our Isaiah passage the Hebrew word has a definition that includes to be “afflicted, humble, lowly, needy, poor.”
In the New Testament Greek it carries a similar meaning of “to be cast down, of low degree, lowly.” The opposite of humility is pride, arrogance, conceit, boastful, or proud.
How does a man achieve this posture of humility? It is certainly something that God has called the man of God to investigate and pursue.
In fact, God says in Zephaniah 2:3 “seek the Lord all you humble of earth who have carried out His ordinances: Seek Righteousness, SEEK HUMILITY, perhaps you will be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger.”
The passage instructs us to SEEK humility in addition to SEEKING righteousness. The seeking of humility is as important as, and should be to the same degree, that we seek righteousness. We are to PURSUE it, CHASE after it, be DILIGENT towards achieving this “posture” of humility.
So how do we do this?
I propose to you that a man’s ability to seek, find, and walk in humility, is directly related to two factors.
- What is a man’s concept and view of God?
- What is a man’ concept and view of himself?
The degree to which a man has a Biblical view and understanding of these two issues will directly impact his ability to “walk humbly with his God” (Micah 6:8).
Let’s look at the first one; what is a man’s concept and view of God? God begins Isaiah 66 with a description of His (God’s) self-sufficiency. The essence of verse 1 is a reminder that there is nothing that God needs from Man. He is sovereign, and without need. However, do I really believe that He is a sovereign, good, merciful and an all-sufficient God?
Do I understand the depths of his love for me, do I understand His expectations of me, do I see Him as my Faithful Master and me as his slave? Is my concept of God growing and expanding as I spend time getting to know Him in the Word, or is my concept of God small, stunted, and limited.
Secondly, what is man’s view of himself? Soloman says in I Kings 3:7, “I am but a little child: I do not know how to go out or come in.” Do I view myself in this way? As completely dependent on God in all aspects of my life.
The Apostle Paul warns us in 1 Corinthians 4:7, “For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it.”
Do I view myself as a beggar completely 100% depend on a Sovereign God?
Growth and diligence in these two areas will greatly impact man’s ability to “walk humbly” in his sojourn on earth.
Reflection and Action Items:
- Do I think God would see me as cloaked in Humility?
- What am I doing to grow my concept and understanding of who God is?
- Do I have a Biblical view of who I am? If not, why not?
- What actions can I take to course correct?
- What would those who are closest to me say about me in response to the questions above?
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