Humility Breeds Unity

Friday - March 4th

Scripture to Read Today: Ephesians 4:1-6

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Be completely humble and gentle; be patient,

bearing with one another in love.

Ephesians 4:2

In the 1970s, Mac Davis boldly sang, "Oh Lord, it's hard to be humble when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror cause I get better looking each day." But, of course, the song had a tongue-in-cheek nature to it. As I understand it, Davis wanted folks to be able to laugh at the sense of false humility in the song's lyrics.

Unfortunately, we have all met individuals who reek of arrogance and selfishness. When we read those lines from Davis' song, we may even picture the face of someone we know. Hopefully, no one thinks of you or me when they hear self-absorbed lyrics like these.

The Apostle Paul called on believers to pursue unity with each other. The posture or attitude he encourages within the family of God should be marked by humility, not pride. Our relationships together in Christ depend on it. "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love" (Ephesians 4:2).

In an era of great division in our world, our nation, and our churches, we all need to work hard at being humble with each other. As Christians, the attitude we carry should be distinct and different from those who do not know Christ. When the world thinks of Christ's followers, humility should be on the top of the list of characteristics that quickly come to mind.

For the world to see a humble spirit in Christians, we need to have that posture among ourselves first and foremost. The community of believers becomes the proving grounds of the character of Christ lived out in and through us. If we cannot show Christ-like humility within the family of God, we cannot begin to show it to those outside that family. So let's work hard to approach one another with this spirit rather than a haughty spirit.

Humility is one of the first requirements for us to have unity. If we carry the kind of attitude communicated in Mac Davis' old song, we cannot begin to walk in harmony with our brothers and sisters in Christ. So do some assessment regarding your humility. Ask a few Christian friends what others see in you and say about you. Do they see a humble spirit or a haughty spirit? Remember, humility breeds unity!

When we approach each other with a heart of humility, we can thrive together with a spirit of unity.