Humble
Pertaining to Wednesday Night’s Service
February 13, 2008
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Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
I Peter 5:6
It is very clear by scripture that being humble and meek are qualities that are pleasing to our Father in heaven and that He "giveth grace to the humble" but "resisteth the proud " James 4:6
1. | not proud or arrogant; modest: to be humble although successful. |
2. | having a feeling of insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc.: In the presence of so many world-famous writers I felt very humble. |
3. | low in rank, importance, status, quality, etc.; lowly: of humble origin; a humble home. |
4. | courteously respectful: In my humble opinion you are wrong. |
5. | low in height, level, etc.; small in size: a humble member of the galaxy. |
–verb (used with object)
6. | to lower in condition, importance, or dignity; abase. |
7. | to destroy the independence, power, or will of. |
8. | to make meek: to humble one's heart. |
Synonyms: | apprehensive, backward, bashful, biddable, blushing, content, courteous, deferential, demure, diffident, docile, fearful, gentle, hesitant, lowly, manageable, mild, modest, obliging, obsequious, ordinary, polite, quiet, reserved, respectful, retiring, reverential, sedate, self-conscious, self-effacing, servile, sheepish, shy, simple, soft-spoken, standoffish, submissive, subservient, supplicatory, tentative, timid, timorous, tractable, unambitious, unobtrusive, unostentatious, unpretentious, withdrawn |
Antonyms: |
What the bible says about “humility.”
And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me. | |
And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, [and] to prove thee, to know what [was] in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. | |
Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; | |
Behold, [here is] my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing. | |
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. | |
Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard [thee] also, saith the LORD. | |
When [men] are cast down, then thou shalt say, [There is] lifting up; and he shall save the humble person. | |
When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble. | |
Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble. | |
LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear: | |
My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear [thereof], and be glad. | |
The humble shall see [this, and] be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God. | |
Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend. | |
Better [it is to be] of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. | |
A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit. | |
For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name [is] Holy; I dwell in the high and holy [place], with him also [that is] of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. | |
Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, [even] the crown of your glory. | |
Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. | |
And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. | |
[And] lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and [that] I shall bewail many which have sinned already, and have not repented of the uncleanness and fornication and lasciviousness which they have committed. | |
But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. | |
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. | |
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all [of you] be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. | |
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: |
The following scriptures make it very clear that humbleness is a character that all men
would do well to acquire.
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Numbers 12
3(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
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Deuteronomy 8
2 And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.
3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.
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1 Kings 21
28 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
29 Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days: but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house.
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2 Chronicles 7
14 If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
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2 Chronicles 34
27 Because thine heart was penitient, and thou didst humble thyself before Elohim when thou heardest His words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before Me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before Me; I have even heard thee also, saith Yahweh. HNB
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Psalms 22
26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise Yahweh that seek Him: your heart shall live for ever. HNB
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Psalms 25
9 The meek will He guide in judgment: and the meek will He teach His way.
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Psalms 34
18 The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
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Psalms 37
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
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Psalms 147
6 The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.
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Psalms 149
4 For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation.
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Proverbs 3
34 Surely He scorneth the scorners: but He giveth grace unto the lowly.
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Proverbs 16
18 Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, that to divide the spoil with the proud.
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Proverbs 19
23 The fear of Yahweh tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.
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Proverbs 27
2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.
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Isaiah 57
15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
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Isaiah 61
1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
~ (see Luke 4:19)
Isaiah 66
2 ...but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word.
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Zephaniah 2
3 Seek ye Yahweh, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought His judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be his in the day of Yahweh's anger. HNB
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Matthew 5
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
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Matthew 11
28 Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy lade, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me: for I am gentle and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
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Matthew 18
4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
23:12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
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Luke 17
10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
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James 4
6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
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1 Peter 5
5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
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Colossians 3
12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
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Several Ways to be Humble
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1. Routinely confess your sin to God. (Luke 18:9-14) All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God. However, too few of us have a routine practice of rigorous self-honesty examination. Weekly, even daily, review of our heart and behavior, coupled with confession to God, is an essential practice of humility.
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2. Acknowledge your sin to others. (James 3:2, James 5:16) Humility before God is not complete unless there is also humility before man. A true test of our willingness to humble ourselves is being willing to share with others the weaknesses we confess to God. Wisdom, however, dictates that we do so with others that we trust.
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3. Take wrong patiently. (1 Peter 3:8-17) This has been a difficult one for me. When something is unjust I want to react and rectify it. However, patiently responding to the unjust accusations and actions of others demonstrates our strength of godly character and provides an opportunity to put on humility.
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4. Actively submit to authority…the good and the bad! (1 Peter 2:18) Our culture does not value submission; rather it promotes individualism. How purposely and actively do you work on submission to those whom God has placed as authorities in your life? Doing so is a good way to humble yourself.
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5. Receive correction and feedback from others graciously. (Proverbs 10:17, 12:1) In the Phoenix area, a local East valley pastor was noted for graciously receiving any negative feedback or correction offered. He would simply say "thank you for caring enough to share that with me, I will pray about it and get back to you." Look for the kernel of truth in what people offer you, even if it comes from a dubious source. Always pray, "Lord, what are you trying to show me through this?"
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6. Accept a lowly place. (Proverbs 25:6,7) If you find yourself wanting to sit at the head table, wanting others to recognize your contribution or become offended when others are honored or chosen, then pride is present. Purpose to support others being recognized, rather than you. Accept and look for the lowly place; it is the place of humility.
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7. Purposely associate with people of lower state than you. (Luke 7:36-39) Jesus was derided by the Pharisees for socializing with the poor and those of lowly state. Our culture is very status conscious and people naturally want to socialize upward. Resist the temptation of being partial to those with status or wealth.
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8. Choose to serve others. (Philippians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 4:5, Matthew 23:11) When we serve others, we are serving God’s purposes in their lives. Doing so reduces our focus on ourselves and builds the Kingdom of God instead of the Kingdom of self. When serving another costs us nothing, we should question whether or not it is really servanthood.
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9. Be quick to forgive. (Matthew 18: 21-35) Forgiveness is possibly one of the greatest acts of humility we can do. To forgive is to acknowledge a wrong that has been done us and also to further release our right of repayment for the wrong. Forgiveness is denial of self. Forgiveness is not insisting on our way and our justice.
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10. Cultivate a grateful heart. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) The more we develop an attitude of gratitude for the gift of salvation and life He has given us, the more true our perspective of self. A grateful heart is a humble heart.
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11. Purpose to speak well of others. (Ephesians 4:31-32) Saying negative things about others puts them "one down" and us "one up"…a form of pride. Speaking well of others edifies them and builds them up instead of us. Make sure, however, that what you say is not intended as flattery.
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12. Treat pride as a condition that always necessitates embracing the cross. (Luke 9:23) It is our nature to be proud and it is God’s nature in us that brings humility. Committing to a lifestyle of daily dying to self and living through Him is the foundation for true humility.
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13. Admitting when you’re wrong
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14. Putting others first
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15. Not gloating or criticizing when you’re right
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16. A humble person says that one will do the best one can to learn.
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17. Take care of your family and give them support in all that they do.
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18. Don’t be aggressive to others.
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19. Recognize that you knows little but can learn much more.
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20. Be grateful for all you receives.
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21. Search for wisdom.
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22. Love God and recognize that God will lead you to truth and knowledge.
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