havok20x
Nov 19, 2013
Brothers and sisters,
What is the difference between true and false humility? I was reading Colossians 2 when I started thinking about this. Thanks!
Brothers and sisters,
What is the difference between true and false humility? I was reading Colossians 2 when I started thinking about this. Thanks!
I believe true humility is found in thinking and saying of yourself precisely what God thinks and says of you in His word. It is coming to a place where you agree with Him, even though you might naturally be tempted to think otherwise.
We often equate pride with arrogance. But arrogance is only one manifestation of pride, one side of the coin so to speak. Extreme shyness is the other side of the coin of pride. An extremely shy person will often be overly concerned about how people see him or perceive him. This is self focus just as surely as arrogance.
Humility is condescending to God's opinion of you, and accepting that opinion. The only way we can do this is to take our eyes off of self and fix them steadfastly on Him. This is the very opposite of self focus.
Twayneb, you are making an excellent point, but you might want to re-read your post and edit a couple things that inject a bit of confusion?
Humility has to be framed in twayneb's point that true humility is seeing yourself as God sees you. If you have not had the experience of a confrontation by the Holy Spirit to see yourself as a gasping worm at the bottom of the garbage pile, you will not be able to also see yourself as the mighty warrior wielding the two edged sword of truth against the armies of Satan in full power and gentle humility.
"A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not extinguish," Isaiah notes of God's mighty man. (42:3)
Power without humility is simple destruction, but power embraced with humility can tear down kingdoms.
Why don't you just say "Pride" since "False" humility is pride?
Here is the difference in action.
Luk 18:10-14 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
sidewalk.
Thank you. I am the victim of cell phone word replacement.
I once heard this example. Often someone gets up to sing a song in church. He says something to the effect that he knows he does not sing well, but he is going to attempt to make a joyful noise for the Lord. He then proceeds to sing in what sounds like a trained voice fit for an opera. why did he make the statement he made? often it is a backhanded way to fish for a complement. what would he say if after the service you told him he was right and his voice was terrible? Would he agree, or be offended?
When I no longer see me, but instead due to me and find my identity only in Him, then I can begin to walk in true humility. Consider this. Moses is said in scripture to have been the meekest man on earth. Do you know who made that statement about Moses?
Your example, twayneb bolsters the proposition that "false humility" is really just pride.
Who made the statement about Moses being meek? Whose heart did it come from? The Holy Spirit.
Whose hand wrote it? Moses.
2Ti 3:16 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God..."
true humility comes from obeying God.
I can try to be humble but somewhere in my walk when I am not submitting to God it will come out as false humility, or forced humility, where I am exalting myself over God's clear leading in some area.
I suppose we could prefix other fruits of the Spirit with "false".
False-love......but it is really HATE
False-joy.......seeking approval of others, maybe?
False-peace.....just call it fear.
Again, False-humility...isn't it just pride?
I mean, we don't say false-goodness, false-patience, etc.
When people say false-humility, it makes me think that they know how to create true humility and really, we can't. If the "Humble One" is not living inside you, you won't have true humility. Oops, can you believe I said it? True-Humility! Woe is me.
As in "Let another praise you and not your own lips," my humility is mostly your perception, and your humility mine.
So the psalmist's cry, "Search me and know me O God, and see if there be any wicked way within me!" Seems to be the beginning of the search for personal humility.
I may think I am humble, but my opinion does not count.
The reason I said "false humility" is because of how Paul in Colossians speaks about it. Did anyone read those verses (chapters 2 and 3)?
Everyone knows pride is sin. But from what I was reading, the heretics in Colossae were practicing stuff that looked really humble, but in reality were completely rejecting Jesus Christ as their head. It says "self-abasement" in the translation I was reading.
A good example of this is during prayer, especially when it is public. Let's say I said this in church, when I prayed:
"Lord, I am not worthy to come to you at all. I am the worst sinner here, worse than any of these other brothers here. So, I am asking You that you would look kindly on me and answer my prayer, even though I don't deserve anything from you at all, because I am the worst sinner..."
That prayer might seem really, really humble, but it is a de facto denial of the finished work of Jesus Christ in the life of a believer. However, what is worse is that the next person who prays is likely to try to out-do the previous person in humility...see what I'm saying?
Now, if in prayer I acknowledge my unworthiness apart from the Lord and then give thanksgiving for the finished work of Christ and that through Him I am righteous, thereby boldly approaching the throne of grace, then it is true humility, I believe. Look at the Psalms. Although the Psalmists paint abysmal pictures of themselves, they always exalt the work of God in forgiveness and the work of cleansing them.
Not that this is the definitive definition, but what I get from Colossians is this: if what I do points to me, then it is false humility. But if what I do points people to Jesus Christ, then it is true humility, because it exalts Him.
I know this has been posted before, but I thought it might be of edification to include it in this post.
Sermon preached by Gerhard Du Toit "Humility VS Pride":
Here's the transcript of this message, the audio/text link can be found at the end, Kenneth:
BROKENNESS
"The Lord is near to the brokenhearted…” -Psalm 34:18
”¢ When God has given me a broken heart, I’m overwhelmed with a sense of my own spiritual need.
Ӣ When I live a broken Christian life, there is a spirit of compassion about my life because I can forgive much because I know how much I have been forgiven. I always esteem others better than myself.
Ӣ When I serve God with a broken heart, I have a dependant spirit and I recognize my need for others.
”¢ When I serve God with a broken life, I’ve learned the secret of denying myself.
”¢ When my heart is broken before God, I have a motivation to serve others. I’m motivated to be faithful before God, and to make others a success.
”¢ When my heart is broken before God, I have a deep desire to promote other believers. I have a sense of my own unworthiness. And I’m so thrilled that God would use me in any kind of a ministry or any kind of a fellowship. I’m always eager for others to get the credit.
Ӣ When my heart is broken, I rejoice when others are lifted up and I never defend myself.
”¢ When my heart is broken before God, I have a heart attitude that says, "I do not deserve to be part of this fellowship. I know that I’ve got nothing to offer God, except the life of Christ that is flowing through my broken life.”
”¢ When I’m broken before God, I’m so humiliated by how much more I have to learn. I’m not concerned about the self-life. I’m willing to take risks to become vulnerable, and to be close to others, and to open my life to love other people.
Ӣ When I serve God with a broken heart, I always take personal responsibility and I can see where I have done wrong in any kind of a situation.
”¢ When I’m broken before God I always receive criticism with a humble and with an open spirit. I'm concerned about being real. And what they care about and what matters to those who are broken, is not what others think, but it’s what God knows about them. And I’m willing to die to my own reputation.
”¢ When I live a broken Christian life, I’m willing to be open and transparent with others, as God will direct me.
”¢ When I’m broken before God, I don’t care who knows or who finds out about me. I am willing to be exposed because I have nothing to lose in my relationship with God.
”¢ When I serve God with a broken heart, I’m always quick to admit my failures, and I want to seek forgiveness whenever it is necessary.
”¢ When I live a broken Christian life, and I’m under the conviction of God’s Spirit, I’m able to acknowledge the specifics about my sin. I’m grieved over the cause of my sin, and I’m grieved over the root of my sin.
”¢ When I’m broken before God, I truly and genuinely repent over my sin, and the evidence in the fact is that I want to forsake that sin.
Ӣ When I live a broken Christian life, I want to take the initiative to be reconciled when there has been a misunderstanding, or a conflict in any kind of a relationship. I want to race to the cross, I want to see if I can get there first no matter how wrong the other person may have been.
”¢ When I’m broken before God, I compare myself with the holiness of God. I sense the desperate need of the mercy and the grace of God. I always want to walk in the light.
Ӣ When I serve God with a broken spirit, I realize that I have a need of a consistent cleansing of heart and repentance.
”¢ When I’m broken before God, I continually sense my need for a fresh encounter with God the Holy Spirit.
PRIDE
"God opposes the proud…” ”“James 4:6
Ӣ When there is pride in my life as a Christian, I always focus on the failures of other Christians and other fellowships.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’ve got a very self-righteous spirit, I’ve got a critical spirit, I have a fault finding spirit, and I look at everyone else’s faults through the microscope, but I always look at my own faults through the telescope and I always look down upon the lives of other people.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I have an independent and a self-sufficient spirit. I’m protective of my time. I try to protect my reputation and my rights as a Christian, and I focus on the deficiencies of other Christians.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I want to be served by other Christians. I’ve got a desire to be successful. I want to advance the self-life.
”¢ When there is the sin of pride in my life, I’ve got this drive, I want to be appreciated, I want to be recognized. I’m offended and I’m wounded when other Christians are promoted, and I have been overlooked, because of what I have done.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’ve got this inner attitude, and this is what I say: "This fellowship is very privileged to have me and my gifts.” And all I think as what I can do for God.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’m confident, about how much I’ve learned of the Scriptures, and how far I have gone in my relationship with God.
Ӣ When there is pride in my life, I always keep people at a distance.
Ӣ When there is pride in my life, I want to blame other people.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’m unapproachable.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’m defensive when I’m criticized by other Christians.
”¢ When there is the sin of pride in my life, I’m so concerned to be respectable, I’m concerned about what other people think of me, and I try to protect my image and my reputation.
Ӣ When there is pride in my life, I find it very difficult to share my spiritual needs.
Ӣ When there is the sin of pride, I wanna be sure that no one else finds out that I have sinned. And I try to cover up sin. And I have this instinct to try not to reveal it.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I always want to make sure that no one else finds out when I have sinned, and I try to cover it up. And I find it very, very difficult to say, "You know, I'm wrong, will you please forgive me?”
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’m concerned about the consequences of my sin, I’m remorseful over my sin, simply because I’ve been caught, that I have sinned before God and sinned before man.
Ӣ When there is pride in my life, I always wait for others to come and ask for forgiveness, when there is a misunderstanding or a conflict, in my relationship with God.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I try to compare myself with other Christians, and other believers and other fellowships. And I always think that I’m better than them.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I’m blind. I become blind to my own heart condition.
”¢ When there is pride in my life, I don’t think that there is anything in my life that I need to repent of. I don’t think that I need revival. Oh but I’m so sure that everyone else needs revival in my relationship with God.
Sermon Audio:
https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/singlefile.php?lid=16813&commentView=itemComments
Sermon Text:
https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/articles/index.php?view=article&aid=24003
Thanks, soldout!
by havok20x on 2013/11/20 13:26:44The reason I said "false humility" is because of how Paul in Colossians speaks about it. Did anyone read those verses (chapters 2 and 3)?
Everyone knows pride is sin. But from what I was reading, the heretics in Colossae were practicing stuff that looked really humble, but in reality were completely rejecting Jesus Christ as their head. It says "self-abasement" in the translation I was reading.
When it comes right down to it, sin is "anything that is not of Christ", actions or thoughts that are fleshly rather than of the Spirit (of Christ).
So, "false humility" is not of Christ, therefore false humility (a form of pride) is sin.
Quote by C.S. Lewis:
Humility in not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less.
Some people have a misguided notion that humility involves grovelling in self-hatred and revulsion along with the idea that God can just barely stand them. While there is a crisis experience in true repentance of remorse and regret for a life lived apart and/or against God and love, we are meant to move on to feeling accepted and reconciled to God by the finished work of Christ on the cross and His shed blood. I have a feeling that some folks are trying to impress God and earn forgiveness by trying to act overly dramatic in their emotional display of remorse for their sins. I believe that a person can be forgiven totally by a simple prayer of confession and asking forgiveness without any emotion displayed in one minute if they are genuinely serious and sincere. Some people are genuinely overcome with emotion when God opens their eyes to their lostness and guilt and need more time to work out finding peace with God. The important thing is the sincerity of the individual. God can see the heart. He can see if someone is ginning up over-wrought emotion as a ploy to placate God. Children do this sort of thing all the time with parents when they get caught behaving badly. And they also resort to making oaths that they won't ever offend again. Never make such oaths. Even though you may really be sincere in such an oath, you are actually telling God that you are trusting in your own innate goodness (apart from Him) to make good on your promise. God will surely allow you to fall on your face. The devil will also work overtime to make certain you fail in keeping your promise. When you break your promise to God, your afflicted conscience may be overcome to the point where you avoid God, the Bible, Church and all things of God for life. Faith is shipwrecked.
Also, a humble person cannot be offended. When someone does or says something offensive, I tell myself that they have "issues" and I forgive them and pray that God will bring them higher. I well remember when before I became a Christian and even while I was a baby Christian I said and did things I now regret. Thinking about how I was shown mercy and forbearance by God and people back then, I find it easy to pass on the same mercy and forbearance to rude or downright mean people. If someone is rude or hurts me with the intent to hurt me, they obviously have even bigger "issues" and I forgive them and pray for them that God would bless them and send His Word to heal them. I don't dwell on the offense myself because "I've got it made with Jesus" and I want everyone to find Him like I did when He opened my eyes to His Word and gave me a mustard seed of faith to believe. May Christ dwell in mine and your heart by faith, being rooted and grounded in love.
True witness: The quote be C.S.Lewis is spot on.
true humility comes from obeying God.I can try to be humble but somewhere in my walk when I am not submitting to God it will come out as false humility, or forced humility, where I am exalting myself over God's clear leading in some area.
This I believe is the best answer so far. I agree with C.S Lewis quote and it is one of my favorite one. But I believe it is very tough to measure whether we are thinking of our self less. But we can easily find our humility level based on the desire to submit. Jesus submitted to his earthly father and mother though they were imperfect compared to him.
It is easily for someone to acknowledge that he is a sinner. All most all prostitutes have no problem calling themselves prostitutes. But that does not make them humble. Knowing your problem means you are ready to be saved, a field ready for harvest. That will not make one truly humble. So luke 19 is not the definition for true humility.
But to submit to the authority that God has placed over you requires true humility. Suppose you are in a Church where you are absolutly certain that God has placed you there. But you find it difficult to submit to the elder in that Church, because you think he is unreasonable or less in education or less gifted than you then you are not truly humble. This is a fundamental reason why many of the believers are nomads, they do not have a home Church. They keep jumping church to church but never able to settle. Some of those have even given up to find a Church. All because they are not humble and they think they are too much perfect to be under submission in a church.
I want to add to my previous post by telling a story in the life of Zac Poonen, when Zac was young (late 20s or early30s) he was already getting popular for his ability to teach God's word. He was a full time minister then. He was part of a Church run by a very Godly man in India who recognized his gifts and allowed him to speak in his conferences. This privilege he gave to very few people. But one day because of a misunderstanding he asked Zac not to speak in Church anymore. It was over 2 years Zac attended the Church, never speaking a word in the meetings. Many thought that he has fallen into some kind of Sin and that is why he is not speaking anymore. But it did not bother him, he submitted to the leadership that God gave him. Now we see how much God has blessed him in his ministry. All because of the true humility found in him.
Humility, the place of entire dependence on God, is, from the very nature of things, the first duty and the highest virtue of the creature, and the root of every virtue.
Brothers and sisters,What is the difference between true and false humility? I was reading Colossians 2 when I started thinking about this. Thanks!
i don't know.....but you know "it" when you're around it.
in short?...miss a few meals, ruin a few relationships, weep, get refined in a lonely fire.....and suddenly you're broken......struggling lonely saints have only true humility for food.
not crying, "woe is me", but rather "He was pleased to crush me"...or "bend me", as Evan Roberts would beseech many with anguish.
beloved, have you been broken yet?....my prayer is that process wasn't too harsh for you. God love you, neil
this:
Humility, the place of entire dependence on God, is, from the very nature of things, the first duty and the highest virtue of the creature, and the root of every virtue.
what better can be said?, except amen, neil
This discussion is locked.