Humility – Part 3

Don’t you just love meeting people who exude the humility and fragrance of Christ? I remember working at McDonald’s on St. John Street in Portland many years ago and struggling greatly with anger, sexual sin, and loneliness when a man came into the dining room with his meal and sat down. There was something about him that made me ask if he was a believer in Christ. Turns out he was the pastor of a small church in Otisfield, Maine. God is so good! 

Oh, that people would sense that about me! Is that your desire, too? I am convinced that this can happen, but how? It can only come through humility. 

I believe that the answer to gaining that kind of humility is found in Acts 4:13. After Peter and John had stood before the Sanhedrin and boldly defended the faith the Scripture says this about them, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John, and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” 

There it is men! The key to developing the humility of Jesus and the fragrance of Christ is to spend lots of time with Him. Our intimacy with Jesus grows only in the “prayer closet.” When we read, study, and meditate on the Scriptures, we learn of our Savior, His amazing love for us, His strength on our behalf, and His mighty power that works for us and in us. We get to know Him.  

Then, as we learn to abide and rest in Jesus, we start to experience the power of His Holy Spirit in us transforming our nasty old ‘selves’ into the new creation He intended us to be. Instead of anger, we exude love; instead of relating to women in lust, we put on purity; instead of selfishness, we offer ourselves to Him as a living sacrifice, holy, and acceptable to God. 

All these attributes are the fruit of the Holy Spirit who is already in us. Our part is to surrender to Him in obedience and receive by faith the new life that has already been given to us. It is all waiting for us at the end of our self-will.  

Are you ready to lay down your sword? Are you willing to offer every area of your life to Christ? What have you gained by holding on to your life? What freedom have you experienced by your stubbornness?  

Why not start today, right now, and choose life!