Dr. Peter Masters

‘Serving the Lord with all humility of mind’ (Acts 20.19).

More helps to humility

If you have been given success, do not become proud and praise yourself. Recognise instead how much you owe to colleagues, fellow workers, praying believers, and most of all to God, who gives the increase. Fear pride, dear friends; it will devour your love, your mind and your years.

Some Christians may become very proud of what they know. The antidote to this is to reflect on how much you do not know. Some people are even proud of the length of time they have been saved, finding superiority in this. To cure this, think about what you have done with that time, and how you will account for it. This is very humbling, and leads to deep gratitude to God for grace, which disperses the odour of pride.

Satan can bring you to derive pride from holding office, or from possessions, and even from possessing a good physical build.

Let us come to the apostle’s words in Acts 20.19, where he speaks of ‘serving the Lord’. What a concept is encompassed here! The word ‘serving’ strictly means ‘bond-slaving’, for Paul is a bond-slave of Jesus Christ. This tells us more about humility, providing both signs of humility and steps toward it.

Humility in committedness

A bond-slave is committed to the service of his master. He looks out for his every need, is receptive to his every command, and goes wherever he is sent. Humility, therefore, as we have already noted, is ready to work by the Book of God. Humility keeps its eye on the Master, to obey and please him.

Even preachers sometimes seem to have their eye on people rather than their Lord. They ask, ‘What will attract the most people, and what will please their tastes? What will give me a good reputation or make me well-known?’ The apostle looked only to Christ for instructions on methods or for approval. He never adjusted or compromised his teaching or approach to please carnal tastes.

Humility in self-review

A bond-slave of Christ constantly reviews his conduct through humble self-examination every day, asking himself, ‘What have I done? Have I offended my Lord? What are my sins of omission? Could my work be better done?’ Pride seldom reviews, except in the scantiest manner, but humility often does.

Humility in gratitude

A bond-slave of an emperor was always conscious of his privileges, and so are we in serving no less a Lord than the Saviour and Judge of the world. ‘Why was it,’ we ask, ‘that the Lord worked in my unbelieving, sinful, proud heart to bring me to himself? I would never have sought or come to him of myself.’ Humility remembers this often, together with the ongoing patience and mercy of the Lord. The Newton-Cowper ­Museum at Olney has the framed text that hung on John Newton’s study wall bearing the words, ‘Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt.’ He never forgot what God had brought him from, and this spurred him forward in dedication.

Humility in accountability

A bond-slave is accountable, and so Christian humility keeps in view the coming day when we will return our commission to the Lord who called us, to receive the undeserved eternal reward. When we find ourselves in harsh circumstances, tempted perhaps to anger, resentment or self-pity, we maintain our composure by saying in our heart, ‘I am a bond-slave of the Lord, accountable to him for my reaction to everything, for my words and my manner, and I will not disappoint him or let him down.’ This is humility.

Humility in self-denial

A bond-slave cannot have luxuries, and humility willingly forfeits them as dangerous. Every unnecessary luxury is seen as a pride-promoting missile to the soul, and avoided. Humility is not unduly concerned about appearances. It is not averse to being smart, tidy, neat and clean, but humility does not strain to stand out as special, and to be noticed.

Humility does not mix comfortably with boasters. It does not find it enjoyable to be with those who brag and boast, and it knows how easily the bragging virus is caught.

Humility in a shared cause

Just as the lifelong bond-slave learned to have the interests of his master in mind all the time, so Christian humility has the cause of Christ in constant view. Occasionally we see this go wrong, even with ministers. One hears of a dispute in a church leading to the minister being hurt and offended, but his reaction is to do and say things which bring the cause into disrepute and harm the work. He is thinking of himself rather than the cause. Humility thinks of Christ and the honour of his work, not of its own vindication and comfort.

Humility in serving others

In fact, like the bond-slave of old, humility always thinks of others before itself. It is an outgoing, sympathetic virtue. Look again at the apostle’s humility, and how he was able to say, ‘Remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears’ (Acts 20.31).

What were these tears? They were certainly not tears of self-concern, but tears for the lost, and for the safety of God’s flock. They showed the apostle’s great concern that false teaching might come in and hurt the people of God. They were tears of pastoral concern when believers quarrelled, longing that they might be reconciled and restored. Humility is an outgoing, sensitive, sympathetic virtue, and if we become supportive, outgoing people, we promote humility in ourselves. The humble person wants to know how other people are faring, and goes out of his way to help.

Humility in accepting trials

The dedicated bond-slave of old both triumphed and suffered with his master, and so does Christian humility. It readily absorbs trials and troubles for Christ. Paul had so many trials. We read of some of these in the Acts of the Apostles, but he suffered far more than the record narrates in detail. Just look at Acts 20.19, where he speaks of ‘temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews’. We have some record of that, but when he puts it in the plural, we realise ambushes and traps were common and continuous for him. However, he never said to himself, ‘I should not be subjected to this; I should not have to put up with this; I am an apostle; I am aging and sick; this is not fair.’ Humility meant that he took everything that came upon him for the sake of the ministry of Jesus Christ, and out of love and gratitude to him.

Humility in diligence

Humility, as reflected in the dedicated bond-slave, is diligent, Acts 20.20 providing the details: ‘I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house.’ The apostle aimed at thoroughness, preaching to promote conversions, sanctification, and to furnish minds with the doctrines of the faith. He preached also to draw believers into Christian service, and to bring about their separation from the world. He preached the glorious things of Christ in all their fulness, covering everything, because humility is diligent. It is pride that preaches only the themes that are most appreciated, and gain most applause.

Humility, like love, does not cling to its own interests, or even its own life. Paul was able to say, ‘Neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy’ (Acts 20.24). Humility is prepared to do the lowliest things: ‘Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities’ (Acts 20.34).

Humility watches for other people, whereas pride looks at number one. Humility does not covet; pride does. Remember Acts 20.33: ‘I have coveted no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel.’

Humility is constantly dependent upon the Lord in prayer, and the humble Christian still commits every act of witness, every journey even, to the Lord, in prayers that ascend often throughout every day.

They imprisoned Paul, derided him, counted him as nothing, and called him a madman. He was often cold and hungry, sick and exhausted, arrested and flogged, but God mightily used him, because humility is a magnet to blessing.

Used with permission