From Helen
Humility - what a great word. It makes you think either of people who are very perfect or people who are falsely humble.
Winston Churchill was once asked, "Doesn't it thrill you to know that every time you make a speech, the hall is packed to overflowing?" "It's quite flattering," replied Sir Winston. "But whenever I feel that way, I always remember that if instead of making a political speech it was my funeral, the crowd would be twice as big."
This is one example of humility another comes from the great missionary Hudson Taylor, who was once asked to speak at a Large Presbyterian church in Melbourne, Australia. The moderator of the service introduced the missionary in eloquent and glowing terms. He told the large congregation all that Taylor had accomplished in China, and then presented him as "our illustrious guest." Taylor stood quietly for a moment, and then opened his message by saying, "Dear friends, I am the little servant of an illustrious Master."
This morning we have heard the best statement of humility ever from Paul the writer of the Philippians (2;1-13). In his letter Paul was explaining to his readers how they were to behave as followers of Jesus. He pointed out, and to be honest it’s not rocket science really, that if they really wanted to know how they should live they needed to look to Jesus.
The reading begins with Paul giving the view of a perfect community of believers. He painted the picture of a loving and supportive community of believers who were united in their love of God.
To be fair, Paul’s list is pretty conclusive in not being conceited, not thinking of yourself before others, always putting others needs first and being in agreement with one another.
This is how we are to be as well. Seriously, did Paul really think we can alwaysbe this perfect and idyllic? Can you imagine the people hearing and reading this for the first time?
But then Paul showed them how to do it. They were to follow the example of Jesus who became as nothing for us.
In the reading we heard that Jesus emptied Himself of all His majesty and became human. As a human who lived amongst us, yes, but He also died for us that we could be saved. Now, I don’t know about you but this is an incredible statement of humility. God, who by very nature of being God is greater than us became like us so that He not would only die for us, but die a very humiliating death. There is here the sense of obedience as well. Jesus in His obedience as God the Son died and was then glorified and worshipped as King.
If Jesus could become as nothing for us, well, it’s not that much for us to do as well ? The only problem is we aren’t Jesus. We follow Him, but we aren’t actually Him ! In the reading the writer Paul reminded the readers that actually if they worship Jesus, and if they all believe that Jesus has come amongst us and died and been resurrected then this affects the way that they live.
A check list almost is given of all the things that would make people able to be more like Jesus, to love one another, not to be conceited or selfish, to care for one another above ourselves and then the crunch point to being like Jesus is to be humble.
The check list though wasn’t just for the Philippians it is for all of us who follow Jesus. The list reminds us not only of the way to live but why we live that way. To be more like Jesus who in true humility became as nothing for us.
When we focus our behaviour on Jesus, then we not only try but actually do become more and more like Him. We will be humble and not in the Charles Dickens character Uriah Heap type of way – ‘I’m ever so umble I am !’ but in a genuine way .
We are in the season when coughs and colds are beginning, they can be so infectious. Have you ever noticed that if one person yawns everyone else does as well ? It’s like that for us with our faith. The more we live like Jesus and become like Him, well thats the more infectious we become. We will want others to see and know that we are different.
It can be quite disheartening at times when things have been tried and not seemed to have worked, or when we feel downtrodden because our our faith but, when you think of it for Jesus He was killed for being Him.
Yes, He did rise again but when we feel like giving up and saying that we tried such and such before to show people our faith and it didn’t work then we can remember that we are called to share this incredible love and good news of Jesus.
When we are a community that is truly like Jesus then we become infectious almost by the way that we live. I once read a book called, ‘Being a contagious Christian’. To be honest I only bought it because the title was so good. But actually it was about the fact that if we live like Jesus then we will attract other people to Him. If we praise God and show that He is the best news ever then others will not be able to fail to notice that God is good.
We love and follow Him who became nothing for us, we turn to Christ and we want to show in our lives and in our humility that this is what it is all about. Not false modesty but real love. Being truly humble by listening to one another and caring for one another. We need to join together in ensuring that in our community of the Church, and in our local community that the name that is glorified is not our own but that of Jesus. That it is Jesus we worship and want to encourage others to worship.
The reading ends by saying that, ‘… it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and work for his good pleasure.’
The list may seem endless when it comes to the right way to live, it may seem tough being a Christian sometimes, frustrations may come up in Church and outside, we may feel a little bit like our noses are being put of joint, or that we are being asked to do the impossible. But God who became nothing for us who showed us true humility and love is still at work in us. We just need to let Him work, as we turn to Him more and more every day. AMEN
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