Defining Discipleship
Step Ten: Be Humble
Jesus led in a different fashion from the leaders of the day, and he expects his disciples to do the same. We are all selfish people. It is easy to consider our own needs before the needs of others. It is also easy to value our own gifts, and miss the gifts of others. So what does it mean as a disciple to show humility
Let others take the place of honour
“When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this person your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Luke 14: 8-11 (NIV)
Honouring other people has two benefits. Firstly it takes the focus off ourselves, and allows others to flourish. Secondly it prevents our own humiliation if other people see things differently to us.
Letting other people have their say without interrupting. Not stealing another's credit for a good job. If our contribution is worthwhile, others usually eventually notice it. It is better to be asked for an opinion than to offer an unwanted one. It is better to hold back, and be asked to come forward than the push forward and be sent back.
Would you benefit from someone walking through this with you? Get connected with a mentor
Don't take on fancy titles or positions
Exaltation should never be our aim. Jesus in very critical of the pharisees, saying that “Everything they do is done for people to see” (Matt 23: 5). Instead he tells his disciples
“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Matt 23: 8-12 (NIV)
Allowing people to give us positions of honour or titles stokes our egos, and sets us up to fail. True disciples point people to Jesus and not to themselves.
Give all the glory to God
In the sermon on the mount Jesus instructs his disciples:
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven”
Matthew 5:16: (NIV).
We do what we do in order that God is glorified. If he chooses to exalt us that is great, but it is not the point.
Lead as a servant
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20: 24-28 (NIV)
As we make disciples, people will look to us for leadership. Some of us may even be appointed to named positions. It is imperative to remember that our role as leaders is to serve those we lead, not dominate them. God makes all with gifts and talents. Our role is to encourage them to use those gifts in the service of the kingdom.
A leader who insists that they are always right, who always wants everything done their way disempowers their followers and burns themself out. Far too often we hear of leaders engaging in bullying behaviour and spiritual abuse. This arises when we forget our role as servant and start to think of ourselves as being special. When leaders think that the success of the mission is all down to them, things begin to go awry.
I have often hear leaders say that people need to come under authority, by which they usually mean their authority. This is not a biblical perspective. We are all under God's authority, and a leader's question is no how will you obey me, but how will I serve you in order that you will obey God.
Be realistic about our own abilities
In his great chapter on Christian behaviour Paul says this:
“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function”
Romans 12: 3-4
None of us are immune. As disciples our primary duty is to God, and it is to him that we will be accountable.
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked”
Luke 12: 48 (NIV)
It is important to remember that success in God's Kingdom is measured not by results but by how we treat others.
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world”
James 1: 27 (NIV)
Take Action
- Are there areas of your life where you have not been giving God the Glory?
- How can you serve those who you are responsible for?
- Do you need to humble yourself?
- How will you let others speak?
