The Elitist vs. The Humble

Elitist – of a person considered superior by other or by themselves, as in intellect, talent, power, wealth, or position in society

Humble – not proud or arrogant; modest

The attraction to “be” somebody special and superior is the new humble today.  Even those wanting to be known as humble are doing humble things to win the “humble competition.”  It seems that life is a competition where if we are on the top we win.  Bigger house=WIn.  Bigger bank account=Win.  Bigger office=Win.  Bigger team=Win. And of course, it is better to win than to lose…..right?   The old adage “the bigger the victory, the harder they fall” just seems to be wrong doesn’t it?  Ours would be “the bigger the victory, the bigger the pride (Christian Pride of course) In what we have accomplished.  If that were right then Jesus would have taken His Godly power and rounded up all the wrongdoers and struck them down with one fatal swoop.  He would have been the omnipotent Thor to their wickedness and the good guys would have taken a victory lap.  I can see Simon Peter doing backflips now as he taunts the Pharisees with the taste of the Messiah’s victory.  It would have been like this; no humiliation, no whipping, no carrying a cross through the city, surely no death, and no grave.  The Son of God would have knocked some heads and taken some of the gold He made and built a beautiful castle on a hill overlooking his domain.  We would have been saying, “Wow, did you see that hit!”  Jesus would have been the ultimate warrior King and we would have been riding in on his coat tails in victory.  Whoop Whoop!!  Talk about The Whip and The Nae Nae.  It would have been “off the charts!”  Whoa…  That would only work in today’s world.  We want to take how we have molded and shaped our faith and put Jesus in those terms to be able to do what we think He needs to do.  A new, modernized version of the Messiah would be needed today to make the impact we believe He should make.  The only thing we would need to leave out would be God’s Word and it would so work for us.  Hmmm, God’s Word.  The writer of Hebrews spoke this way about the Word of God.  Hebrews 4:12 – “For the word of God is living and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit; joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitude of the heart.”  Oh now that really throws a wrench into our plans for a new, updated version of what humble means.  If it weren’t for the Word of God, we could keep on getting more and more elitist in our attitude and lifestyle.  If it weren’t for the Word of God, we could morph this Christian Faith into something that would really elevate us into a group of elite individuals in our society.  It it weren’t for that Word………..  So the plan must be to get rid of or edit the Word of God to make it fit our circumstances to make what “we think” be like what God thinks, but in reverse.  Now that plan surely will work and make us more highly thought of in our social circles.  We can even put in some fake righteousness that will make the wrong look less wrong.   Compromise is good!!  Of course, I am being rather silly in this “crazy scenario”, but as crazy as it seems, we have done this.  We have somehow been able to morph our faith into something that is palatable and justifiable to make us fit into our society without much trouble at all.   It seems that everybody is almost a Christian in this very apathetic scenario and that almost anything is acceptable if it meets the elitist way of thinking.  Remember the definition of elitist at the beginning of this blog?  If we think we are superior, I guess we are superior.  When others start saying we are superior, then we are REALLY superior.  Put down the cup and stay away from the cherry Kool aid.  The Word of God is still the Word of God and Christ has won the battle, but only by the terms decided by God and His Word.  So where does the elitist attitude come from?  The devil!!  In Luke 3:1-13 Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert where he was tempted for forty days by the devil.  Part of that temptation had to do with Jesus elevating himself to rule the earth at that time. Jesus, being God, knew what was awaiting Him.  Jesus knew about the humiliation, the pain, the death that was awaiting Him , and still he refused to be persuaded by the devil offering him something he couldn’t supply to keep Him from completing His course.  The temptation was real, but the humility was real too.  Jesus was not an elitist, even though He had that very power at His disposal.  Here is the attitude of Jesus.  In John 13 He washes His disciples feet and teaches them and us, a lesson in true greatness.  In verse 17 Jesus says, “Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”  Try this on for size!!  A humble heart=ministry mindedness  A humble heart=receives the blessing from God.  A humble heart=bowing to God’s Word.  A humble heart=denying the world’s offers for a better offer from God!!  So…Do we still want to be elitist?  Those who will trade what God offers through humility for temporary position?  Or do you want to experience the source of true wealth?  I choose God’s Word and His ways, because anyone with good sense and the Spirit of God in their life will see the end result of that choice.  Are you in that wilderness now?  Is the devil offering you power and position in exchange for not following God’s Word (His plan) for your life’s purpose?  Time to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit, deny the devil, and leave that wilderness for the next step in your journey.  You can be sure that humility will be a part of that journey, but in that humility you will find the riches that only God can offer through a peace that passes all understanding.

Wakefield tells the story of the famous inventor Samuel Morse who was once asked if he ever encountered situations where he didn’t know what to do.  Morse responded, “More than once, and whenever I could not see my way clearly, I knelt down and prayed to God for light and understanding.”  Morse received many honors from his invention of the telegraph but felt undeserving.  “I have made a valuable application of electricity not because I was superior to other men but solely because God, who meant it for mankind, must reveal it to someone and He was pleased to reveal it to me.”

The gospel has been revealed to us and it is now our humble position that causes us to be glad to give it to the world.  We don’t reveal that gospel because we are superior to other men, but because God decided to use us to share it with the world.    May the light be seen through our humble attitudes and may Jesus be glorified through our humble lives.  God’s blessing is found in that kind of life.

The Pilgrimage continues….

David Warren