Ever So Humble part 1
We're continuing our in-depth look at Colossians 3:12, "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering." And before we get into the humbleness of mind--or the mind of the humble One--I just want to reiterate that the "putting on" is really a "sinking in." Its not a garment that we don't have on but need to put on. Its a garment that we've been wearing all the time but are just starting to get comfortable with. And I know I use these two verses any time I talk about the mind of Christ, but I want to set a strong foundation to build on for the next few days. So I'm going to link 1 Corinthians 2:16, "For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ," and Philippians 2:5, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." That, to me, is the key. We HAVE the mind of Christ. But we must LET the mind of Christ (that we already have) BE in us. We have to USE the mind of Christ. Not just KNOW the thoughts of God--thoughts of goodness, and peace, not evil, and an expected end that came 2,000 years ago on the cross--but THINK the thoughts of God. Set our affections on things above, not on things on the earth. Love people because of who they are (and who WE are) not because of what they do (or don't do). So, again, this humbleness of mind is not something we need to aspire to. It is something we are already capable of. Not something we need to get. Something we've already got. Something (someONE) we already are! So. Foundation. The phrase "humbleness of mind" is number 5012 in Strong's Greek Concordance and it means, "humiliation of mind, that is, modesty: - humility (of mind), lowliness (of mind)." And I've always said, being humble doesn't mean thinking less of yourself, it simply means thinking of yourself less. That's the difference between being self-centered and Christ-centered (people-centered). You look within, and you know and believe that you have what you need... and then you look without, and you share what you've got with those that need it. And, by the way, EVERYBODY needs what you've got. Because what you've got is love. And that is the basic human need. That is the desire of all of our hearts. The trick with letting the mind of Christ (that's already in you) be in you is being humble. Jesus said, "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:4). And what did that little kid do? Jesus set him in the midst of His disciples. Basically he sat on Jesus' lap. That was what always marked a humble athlete to me: He didn't want, or take, any of the credit. He exalted his teammates, or his coaches, or his God. When we sit in our heavenly Father's lap, in a posture of rest, and stop trying to be a big shot... stop trying to do everything for ourselves and by ourselves... that's when GOD can exalt us. "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up" (James 4:10). And, listen, if your goal is to be lifted up you've kind of completely missed the point. Because the point is: When you're humble, God can use you. He can live in you, and through you, and as you. Availiablity is more important than ability. What you're willing to do is more important than what you can do. And that's where we'll pick up tomorrow.