“Pride is your greatest enemy; humility is your greatest friend.”
John R.W. Stott
On the night before his crucifixion Jesus’ disciples were have what they thought (and our society would agree) was a critical discussion concerning which one of them was the greatest. Jesus’ response was unexpected. He pretty much told them to get the focus off themselves and look to meeting the needs of other people.
Having just witnessed one more Super Bowl, which is a non-stop celebration of personal achievement and athletic greatness, it’s hard to get our thinking around terms like “humility” and “looking out for the needs of others”. And yet, that is exactly what Jesus Christ’s earthly life was all about. In one part of the Bible it says that even though Jesus is in every way God himself, he didn’t tenaciously cling to his rights and privileges as God but instead humbled himself to become a human being and then allowed that he be put to death on a cross! That is a quantum leap from jumping up and down shouting, “I’m Number One”.
During the next six Sundays we will be commemorating the season of Lent which is a forty day period leading up to Easter Sunday. It’s a time of serious reflection about who Jesus Christ is and for what reason he came to this earth. Even a casual reading of the Gospel accounts shows clearly he didn’t come to flaunt his greatness but to change our eternal future through humility.
“Pride is your greatest enemy; humility is your greatest friend.” If humility was the path of God, will it be any different for us?
Saturday evening worship: 6:00 pm
Sunday morning worship: 10:00 am
Hawaii Lutheran Church (WELS)
- Community Lutheran Church
- Honolulu, HI
- Community Lutheran Church holds protestant chapel services in Honolulu, Hawaii near Pearl Harbor, HI. We are next to the USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hickam Air Force Base, and Fort Shafter Hawaii. Look for us directly behind the Salt Lake, Hawaii, Target.