I'm reading a new book by Andrew Murray titled, "Humility and Absolute Surrender". It is two of his works combined into one book. My plan is to write a thought or two from each chapter for the edification of those who may read. I desperately desire humility and surrender to mark my life as it did Christ's and desire for both to be revealed to a greater degree as I read scripture and read through this new book.
Chapter 1 is titled, "Humility...the glory of the Creature" -
"God has so constituted us as reasonable beings, that the truer the insight into the real nature or the absolute need of a command, the readier and fuller will be our obedience to it."
Has humility been regarded too lightly? Has humility been sought after through means of guilt from sin and self loathing? How can true humility be born of either of those things...if humility is to be born of guilt from sin or self loathing what does that say of Christ's humility? Guilt and condemnation can't be the vehicle for our humility before Christ. It must be His nature, who He is, what He has done, His grace and redemptive sacrifice, His forgiveness, the fact that He saved me while I was yet a sinner and continues to sanctify me and one day will glorify me before Himself as I stand in the righteousness of Christ fully pardoned though not deserving not even a little! My humility must be for His glory!
Humility is a complete recognition that we are entirely dependent on God, therefore we live like it. Murray says, "its simply the sense of entire nothingness, which comes when we see how truly God is all, and in which we make way for God to be all."
This does not just happen in our lives...it takes some doing on our part. At the end of chapter 1 Murray says, "humility must be made the object of special desire and prayer and faith and practice". Some may say that sounds like legalism and works, I say it sounds like the evidence of faith and trust in Christ who is our ultimate example of humility.
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