Pride, humility, and kindness

Last night at Bible study, we were asked to share memories of people being kind to us, and then share when we had been kind to others. The most powerful story came from a woman who heard God telling her to help two different people, and she didn’t do it. Her heart was broken, and she burst into tears telling of her failure to obey the Lord. Some told of their opportunities to do good, but I cannot remember any of them. Humility seems more attractive and often is a rare attitude.

In my reading through the Bible today, these passages also speak to my heart:

“And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” (Deuteronomy 8:2–3)

“Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you.” (Deuteronomy 9:4)

Pride says, “I did it.” Humility gives glory to God. Tozer tells of a godly man named Macarius who was told in a letter that his spiritual advice had been helpful. He replied, “This cannot be, only the mistakes are mine. All good advice is the advice of the Spirit of God, His advice that I happened to have heard rightly and to have passed on without distorting it.”

Tozer goes on to say that this man’s humility was not an impulse, but a settled conviction. God is helping me understand what a settled conviction means. It isn’t an easy change for God must bring the proud to a place of helplessness, a mindset that is totally convinced that nothing can be done without Him. Convictions do all things for His glory, demonstrating who He is and what He is like. As the psalmist wrote . . .

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness! (Psalm 115:1)

Last night I felt both conviction and pride. I thought “I’m not boastful” and at the same time heard the Spirit whisper, “Oh yes you are.” It seemed as if my old nature was standing hands on hips looking at the new nature for the first time and wondering who would be the first to bow and leave the room. However, I also knew that the old must go for it is ugly and unhelpful. Only the spirit of humility gives evidence to godliness — which is helpful, even attractive to others. As Tozer says, a humble spirit is a childlike, Christlike disposition. It is exclusively the effect of the almighty power of God upon the heart.

^^^^^^^^^

Jesus, few people know and welcome helplessness. Sinful pride wants to be capable, even obedient so it can pat itself on the back. It can even boast that ‘no one knows about that good thing I did’ instead of bowing and leaving the room. Pride stutters to say, “No, I make mistakes.” Humility easily admits that whatever goodness was done came from the Lord God and was definitely a God-thing. I get it. Keep working on the helplessness part and with Your grace, perhaps I can do better with the humility part.