I recently discovered a book called Humility: the beauty of holiness by Andrew Murray, which is possibly the most significant book I have ever encountered (apart from God's own inspired Word) that I know not only has the potential to change me, but also to change others also. This book is about our wicked selfish pride and the only way to truly be free of it is to lay down our lives and acknowledge we are nothing; of no value and there is nothing in us that is good. In order to be able to even begin to grasp the greatness of God we have to understand how unworthy we are of Him- only when we come to the end of ourselves can God begin to take up His rightful place in our hearts.
I was amazed to listen to this book - even as I heard about the wonderful humility of Christ prideful thoughts entered my head. While I have always been aware of the truth that I am a sinful human being- this book brought clarity to the depth of my own wickedness. The author suggests that pride is one of the most underrated sins, and yet the very reason the devil became a fallen angel was no other reason but pride. Adam and Eve chose to eat the forbidden fruit because of pride. The author says that when we are hurt, offended, bitter, jealous etc most often comes down to pride- because we value ourselves more highly than we ought.
Murray takes the reader on a journey through the Bible and shows that Jesus was humble, meek, gentle and lowly. Jesus continually referred to the lowly life- 'if you want to be first- you must be last'; 'if you want to be the greatest then you must be the servant'. Everything our culture associates with leadership and greatness is the complete opposite to the example Christ set for us. The author also says that not only do very few people ever achieve a life of humility, but very few even think about achieving a life of humility.
I want to be like Jesus and the pursuit of being humble like Jesus is the most difficult challenge I have been faced with. Sadly I like my 'self'. I'm so attached to my own sinful nature- yet I know if I am serious about my seeking of Him then I must lay down my own 'self' and desires so that Christ and Christ alone may live through me in all His fullness. The more there is of 'me' then the less there is of Christ or vice versa the more there is of Christ in my life the less there is of me.
I hope more people read or listen to this book. It's interesting how we assume that the more we see ourselves in the true light of just how dirty and wicked we are then the more depressed we feel, yet I have found listening to this book to be one of the most freeing and liberating experiences. Why? I think it is because only when we realise our true worth (we are nothing) and acknowledge God in His rightful place that it is how it is meant to be. God is God, we think we can do His job better but we were never designed to do His job so why not start seeking Him with everything inside of us; to follow Christ in His example of what it means to be humble, meek, gentle and lowly.
This book is in the public domain as it is over 100 years old and you can listen to it through librivox.org as an audio book http://librivox.org/humility-the-beauty-of-holiness/
