Humility: The Root Virtue - 5 Of 14 Series

Lent 5—March 29, 1998

The word this week: "HUMILITY" Philippians 3

HUMILITY: THE "ROOT VIRTUE" I want to know Christ . . .I have not yet attained "Humility" is the word this week— Confession—believing— repentance— openness— and now—humility!

This may be the hardest sermon to preach there can be! The reason is— we all think we have a measure of humility— and yet humility is so elusive!

In honesty— we all have ego, and plenty of it! (Even "inferiority complex is often simply pride turned inside out— occupation with "self.")

What is this elusive thing called "humility"? I am haunted by a line in an old classic by R Newton Flew, it is on page 411, two/thirds of the way down the page on the right hand side where he says "Indeed it is possible that our worst sins are those of which we are unconscious." We've all known egotists, quarrelsome, selfish people who were altogether unconscious of how they were. Remember the Mclandress syndrome?

So I begin with a classic old story I heard years ago, about a little boy was very ill and had an operation and desperately needed a transfusion of whole blood. His big sister, herself just a child, matched his rare blood type. The doctors knew she could spare half a pint, and they asked if she would give her blood to her baby brother. She was naturally quite apprehensive, but still quite readily agreed, for she loved her baby brother very much.

Giving blood is really pretty painless, and the little girl watched every step of the procedure. When it was all over, so the old story goes, she asked, "Now when do I die?" She had thought all along that giving her blood would be the end of her life. She loved her own life— but she had gone outside herself with her love.

It may be that old story is not a perfect illustration of the word "humility." But it comes very close.

TOWARD A DEFINITION

For humility is a very near relative of agape love, love that can center itself outside the self. Humility is akin to love. It is a climate in which agape love can grow.

Humility is the willingness and the ability to live beyond self-serving. A modern writer, Steven R. Covey, has said, "Humility is the mother of all virtue, courage is the father, the child is integrity, and the grandchild is wisdom." Humility is a willingness to learn. It is openness toward God. Humility is saying 'I am not God, and I will not try to act as though I were.'

Humility is a delicate thing— and believe me, it is not often the central subject of sermon. Just the same, it is almost impossible to over-estimate the importance of humility. Humility is what I would call a "root virtue." That is, humility is the root out of which other virtues can grow.

I. HUMILITY AS "A ROOT VIRTUE"

You can think of humility as "a root virtue."

There are root sins — sins of the spirit out of which all other sins spring. The violent and disgusting and horrifying sins that make the headlines seem to make sins of the spirit hardly worth mentioning. But the fact remains that in back of every sin that is ever committed are the sins of PRIDE and UNBELIEF. (It is hard to over-estimate the lessons of Genesis 3 and the Garden of Eden!)

PRIDE is the exact opposite of humility. Pride is not just 'healthy self-esteem.' Pride says "I will put my SELF first, ahead of society, ahead of family, ahead of covenants—ahead of God Himself!"

UNBELIEF is the opposite of faith. Unbelief says "I refuse to acknowledge God's Word! It does not apply to me! God can't tell ME what to do!"

But there are also root virtues: virtues out of which all other virtues can grow — they are HUMILITY and FAITH!

HUMILITY is an attitude of OPENNESS — being able to be taught

FAITH is a desire to believe God. It is the willingness to trust God as He makes His Word plain. Root virtues, like root sins, may not be very spectacular. But HUMILITY and FAITH are absolutely vital.

II. HUMILITY IS A MOVING TARGET

The epistle lesson says two big things: (1) Paul wants to know Jesus, and be like him, and (2) Paul does NOT consider himself to have reached the goal.

Philippians 3:10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, 11 if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.