Learning to Live Humbly
Have you ever met an angry Christian?
You may have come across Christians who love to grumble, complain, or even speak harshly about other people. Maybe you’ve even been that person at times in your own life.
If we're not careful, we can easily become self-righteous within Christianity. After all, we know the truth and others may not. You might see how tempting it can be to look down upon other people, demean them, or consider them as worse off than ourselves.
But this misses the point of the gospel of Jesus.
The gospel tells us that all of us begin at the same starting point. And it’s only through grace that we come to salvation and learn the truth about God’s love for us.
That doesn’t make us any better than other Christians! In fact, as Paul says in Ephesians 4:2, we should actually be humble and gentle with others, rather than harsh and critical. He says we are to be patient with one another, helping one another in every way that we can—so that we all grow together.
These ideas aren’t original to Paul. They actually came from how Jesus lived his life. As followers of Jesus, we too should strive to be gentle, humble, and patient with everyone in our life. Regardless of whether they look or think a different way, every person deserves dignity, patience, and love.
Take some time today to think of a few ways that you can grow in patience, humility, and love with others. It could be slowing down long enough for people to know you care, saying something encouraging to someone, or admitting to someone that you’ve made a mistake.
Make the decision today to live in humility and grace with others.
“And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him. And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judæa, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumæa, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what ...