Sunday, October 25, 2015

ARROGANCE AND HUMILITY

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Proverbs 25:6

Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence,

and do not claim a place among great men;

it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,”

than for him to humiliate you before a nobleman.

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When you think wisdom quite possibly you think of wise ole Solomon, the son of King David.  And this morning’s scripture is but one of over... three thousand such wisdom thoughts from out his fertile mind.    

       "Do not exalt yourself..."

       In Hebrew exalt carries a heavy handed meaning - "swelling up"...like in what can happen to all of us...if we "get a big head." 

       And then the scripture reads, "Do not claim a place among great men..."

All around Solomon were those who did just that...claimed to be great...indeed to such a degree that if an award were given, they felt certain they deserved it most.

       Oh, how easily it happens...when fueled by arrogance and self-satisfaction, to then become a self-serving and self-appointed know-it-all.  To give out high and mighty advice to someone who has not even asked for it....

       And then actually get angry when people don't take your advice.

       Perhaps you have heard the account of the fellow who attempted to give such advice on the subject of humility...by writing a book about it.

       However, he ran into trouble choosing a title for his book. "Humility and How I Attained It" somehow didn't seem to fit; nor did "How I Became Humble."

       He finally decided on "Me and My Humility" -- and then so you would recognize this purveyor of such wisdom should you happen to meet him on the street.., he included a twelve full-page pictures of himself! 

Humility...if you think you have it...you are probably in danger of losing it.

       An admirer once asked the famous orchestra conductor Leonard Bernstein what was the most difficult instrument to play.

       He responded with quick wit: "Second fiddle. I can get plenty of first violinists, but to find one who plays second violin with as much enthusiasm or second French horn or second flute, now that's a problem...

       And yet if no one plays second, we have no harmony."


       Ah, what a terrible FATHER pride is...as it begets bitterness, anger, jealousy, resentment...the list goes on and on. ..until it ends with the final word STUPIDITY underlined and in capital letters.

Warning...when I say "humility" you most likely think

of being a doormat... wrong thought.

       Rather think of humility as a threshold to a door to learning… because a humble person is willing to admit they don't know it all.  A humble person is an ongoing student.

       What's another good thing about being humble?

       Humble people get to know and understand others better because they are willing to deal with them as equals rather than play the role of the arrogant divider.

       In short, don't live as if the world revolves around you...but rather that you and others are living on this same revolving globe ...with each of you learning from and teaching each other all at the same time.

       The bowl was full and so was His heart; a heart full of love and humility and sadness for soon the hands that held the bowl would be pierced and He would die... and there in the upper room, the bowl was filled with water, ready, as was the custom, so that a servant could wash the feet of the seated guests.

       When the disciples entered the room, arrogance was in full bloom as they loudly argued who was the greatest among them...and therefore who would be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven...


       It would be a cold day on the sands of the Sahara before any of them would even think about

washing of these feet dirtied by Jerusalem's  streets... To perform such a menial task would be demeaning. And in particular since they were the twelve chosen ones.

       An inferiority complex was certainly the last thing they were suffering from.

       So the son of man and the Son of God did what they could not – would not do, removed His outer cloak... tied a towel around His waist... knelt down and began to wash their feet...and His humility was a lesson devoutly made.

       Oh, He had tried to teach them this lesson many, many times before...the importance of servitude...but it was just as hard a lesson for the disciples to accept then… as it is for you and me to accept today....

       But then they finally got it – the big picture.  Or as Mark describes it in chapter 10 verse 45, "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." 

       You most likely do not attend a foot washing church... but for the sake of inward discussion, think about it... how would you feel if I asked you to wash my feet? … Or if I asked you to allow me to wash yours? (that is assuming of course that we could solve our present problem of time and space)

       Oh, I know at least for some it would be embarrassing.  I can understand that – never have done it myself.

       And for others, PRICKLY PRIDE WOULD RISE

UP… and…wellit is hard to wash another's feet                                                                                          when you're standing on a pedestal.

       And, oh yes, please remember...Jesus washed ALL their feet...EVEN THE FEET of Judas.

(to be continued)
 
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