FOR THE BENEFIT OF OTHERS

Philippians 2:5-8
Your attitude should be
the same that Christ had.
Though he was God,
he did not demand and
cling to his rights as God.
He made himself nothing;
he took the humble position of
a slave and appeared in human form.
And in human form
he obediently humbled himself
even further by dying
a criminal's death on a cross.



Are you a humble person? Better yet, what exactly is humility? I'm reminded of a story about a young foreign military commander that traveled to Europe for a special mission. Upon his arrival, he held a lavish party at a grand hotel and invited notable dignitaries to be honored guests. As the banquet came to an end, the young host rose to say a few words as dictated by his own national custom saying, “I am greatly honored by your presence tonight. However, the food was meager and simple, and I may have slighted you, for which I wish to offer my apologies.” After the guests had left, he was presented with a bill and to his great surprise, the chef's claim of defamation. The chef felt that his culinary reputation, and the reputation of his restaurant had been publicly slandered. The young commander’s self-expressed humility was offered at the expense of other people. True humility is meekness of oneself for the benefit of others. Jesus is a perfect example of humility because it was at Christ's expense that the whole world would benefit. Take the time to humble yourself like Jesus because it is completely for the benefit of others' salvation and the relationships that are needed to spread the Good News.