Love is ... (Pt 5)

I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another. For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? (1 Corinthians 4:6-7 ESV).

As we come to the fifth principle describing true love, the Apostle Paul says: The believer must learn to be humble but not timid. Life is unique. Leadership is unique. The skills that work well for one leader may not work at all for another. However, the fundamental skills of leadership can be adopted to work well for just about everyone: at work, in the community and at home. John Piper said, “I know that the best and humblest person who has walked the earth was tortured to death because he was accused of blasphemous arrogance. ‘This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him because . . . he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God’ (John 5:18). So I don’t expect his followers will ever be able to avoid the accusation of arrogance. If you are the humblest outspoken witness for Jesus as the only way to God, you will be accused of arrogance.” Humility is far easier to recognize than portray. I’ve found that the best definition and practice in humility is to make sure that God gets all the credit. This grows from the truth that all good things come from God. Our reading states this principle clearly. Humility gets under God and His sovereignty and power knowing if He doesn’t do it, it simply doesn’t get done. Anything we get to do is by His power (cf. Colossians 3:12-13). Humility recognizes that this virtue is only found through Jesus Christ and His word. Without the gospel of Jesus Christ there would be no humility found in the world and man. Humility always serves others (cf. Philippians 2:3-8; Mark 10:45), Humility is concerned with the needs of others. When we are always thinking of ourselves then we are not humble. Our model, Jesus came to serve not to be served. He came because He wanted to serve us. Jesus’ entire life was an example of this kind of love. He taught his disciples often and plainly. When he washed their feet, he said, “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all” (Mark 10:42-45). C.S. Lewis had the right idea when he said, “A real humble man will not be thinking about humility; he will not be thinking about himself at all.” Real love is humble, but not timid.