He [God] mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed. (Proverbs 3:34)
When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2)
Wisdom’s instruction is to fear the LORD, and humility comes before honor. (Proverbs 15:33)
Before a downfall, the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor. (Proverbs 18:12)
Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life. (Proverbs 22:4)
We’ve all heard of the proud man whose five-hundred-page book was titled “Humility and How I Attained it…with Fifty Full Color Pictures of Myself.” Humble? Not so much.
Having served in the entertainment industry for so long, I can tell you that humility is a really scarce commodity there. For that matter, it is a scarce commodity in our entire culture. The executive director of the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences told me what an awful time it is right before the annual Emmy Awards event. There are hundreds of fights with attendees over the location of their seats in the house! Near the front. In full view of the TV cameras. Next to big celebrities.
Not next to a “seat filler”—an attractive young nobody who fills the seat of a celebrity while they are on stage, etc. My friend told of the many actual threats the academy staff receive from those who do not get a seat location to their liking!
These folks never read Proverbs on the roadmap to honor. God’s wise sages explained that, basically, the absence of humility indicates a lack of fear of God!
The more godlike we view ourselves, the more we diminish the God to whom we owe everything. Thus, our self-exaltation creates a rival to God and seeks to steal His glory. God tolerates no rivals.
Principle: A key to success in life is living by John the Baptist’s statement, “He must become more important; I must become less important” (John 3:30 NLV). Self-imposed humility actually is blessed by God with “riches, honor, and life.”
The road to honor goes through humility, not self-promotion. When God spots overwhelming pride, He visits it with “mockery” and “disgrace.” In life, we can choose—humility or humiliation.
One more note. I think it is extremely risky to pray, “Dear God, please humble me.” God’s desire is that we humble ourselves. Being humbled is wildly more painful than humbling ourselves. As the praise chorus states, “Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
[from “Wisdom for the Trenches” by Dr. Larry W. Poland]