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LEARN & GROW
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Week of February 1, 2009
KEY VERSE
"The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted" (Matthew 23:11-12).
CENTRAL TRUTH
Humility of mind and heart is foundational to a fruitful Christian life.
DEVOTION
Some have said, "Humility is the virtue nobody wants." What does the Scripture tell us? Our verses for today come from the Lord Jesus Christ, the perfect example of a servant. As Jesus began His public ministry, He called to those who would listen, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls" (Matthew 11:29). Paul described Jesus to the Philippians, "He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of a cross" (Philippians 2:8b). On a vacation trip to a large city, my wife and I wanted to walk across a bustling boulevard to a beautiful city park. Because the traffic was so heavy, crossing the thoroughfare safely would have been impossible. Seeing no clear way to the lovely park on the other side, I finally asked a police officer, "Can you tell us how to get over there?" "You'll have to go down, sir," he replied. "But you don't understand. We want to go across to the park." "That's right, sir, you have to go down," he said, pointing to an underground crosswalk, which we had completely overlooked. That's it, isn't it? The pathway to God's best for His children is to walk in humble obedience. Humility has been called the foundation of all other Christian virtues. To be certain, it shone, not only in our Lord's condescending to come from the glories of heaven to a sin-ravaged world, but it is also prominent in God's message from the first century church and still important to us today. The once boastful Peter said, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble" (1Peter 5:5b). When we humble ourselves before God, we honor Him as sovereign Lord of the universe and Lord of our life. The garments that suit us as His elect are cut from the fabric of tender mercies and kindness, and as we wear them, we are never more fundamentally Christ-like. In humility, let us acknowledge our dependence upon Him to meet all of our needs as we rest in the finished work of Christ.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- How have you seen of the virtue of humility demonstrated in the life of fellow Christians?
- How can you show servant attitudes in your life?
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