What is humility? Google says that humility is “a low or modest view of oneself.” I don’t like that. Humble people can still be confident. God never asks us to take a low view of ourselves. How could he? Remember, he created us in his image!
Another, common definition says that “humility is not thinking less about yourself, it’s thinking about yourself less.” That’s better than Google, but it is still weak. It lets me off the hook. It makes me think that I can be humble, and maintain my position, my dignity and my status. This is not what the Bible says.
Perhaps the best definition of humility comes from Philippians 2:8. It equates humility to obedience. It reads, “And being found in human form, [Jesus] humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” In short, humility is obedience. That is a very demanding definition. It’s obedience, even when it costs us everything. Jesus was robbed of his position, his dignity and his status. That did not stop him. He also lost his life.
Or, did he?
Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 10:39 (ESV)