Humility: Reflections on Philippians 2

What do you think of, when you contemplate humility? If you’re like me, you probably don’t ponder it enough to even ask that question… but we certainly should be thinking about it as Christians. Humility is something spoken of throughout Holy Scripture, and a theme taken up by the prophets (cf. Micah 6, among others.) St. Paul would draw us into such a consideration, by pointing us to Christ—His incarnation, passion, and resurrection. What do we learn from meditating on the image of Christ’s humility?

For starters, we learn the absurdity of our own pride. I don’t care how many degrees you’ve earned, or positions you’ve held, or money you’ve made, or trophies you’ve mounted on your wall—your pride isn’t worth squat. You can rack up all the awards and honors and trinkets that your “I-love-me” wall will hold, but at the end of the day, you’re just another damned sinner waiting for your day to die. You didn’t decide when to enter the world, and chances are you won’t decide when to leave it. Truth be told, you’re not even in control of much of what happens between those two pivotal events, as the wisp of your life’s few short years dissipate in the breeze of eternity, to be forgotten entirely by your own progeny within a couple generations. When we step back and look at ourselves for who and what we really are, pride should be the farthest thing from our minds.

But Jesus, on the other hand, has everything to be proud of. He is the eternally begotten Son of the Father, uncreated and never-ending. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He is the Light of the World, which no darkness can overcome. He is the Wisdom and Word of God, through whom all things were made. He is perfect, and in perfect harmony and unity with the Father and the Spirit—the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. If there was ever anyone who had reason to be prideful, it is Jesus.

And beyond His eternal attributes of deity, out of love and compassion for us, He took upon Himself our created flesh, deigning to be born of the lowly Virgin, receiving from her his humanity. He condescended to live amongst us in our fallen world, made subject to the authority of human parents whom He created and sustained. And for the sake of the whole of humanity, from the dawn of time to the end of time, He submitted Himself to torture and death, that through His wounds we might be healed. He descended to the dead, and after three days in the tomb, rose, never to die again.

For all His unfathomable greatness, Jesus demonstrated humility and submission, for the good of His creation. And we, who by grace through faith in Him alone, inherit the wonders of His magnificent merit, live grafted into Him—His life becoming our life, conquering our sin, death, and the devil. We live because He lives, and gives His life for us. We no longer stand on our own blighted and deformed merits, but upon the solid rock of His eternal grace. We, who could not stand on our own, are made to stand, in and through Him.

So, when St. Paul calls us to have the mind of Christ, he not asking of us anything unreasonable. He is calling us to look to Christ our Savior, and see how He has come to serve rather than be served, and to give His life as a ransom for many. He calls us to surrender our false pride, and trade it for the humility of the Son of God, who has promised that none who believe in Him shall ever be put to shame. We, who have been given life in our Savior, are to be reflections of our Savior, even as He works out His will in and through us. This is humility—not that we work out our humbleness so that we might brag of it later—but that Christ’s humility be worked out in His people, through His own power moved through us, such that He is lifted up for all the world to see.

And He has said, as He is lifted up, He will draw all men to Himself. Amen—so may it be.