As he drew his first letter to a close, the apostle Peter focused in on the reality of suffering that his recipients would endure and the need for leaders to shepherd their flocks well. Like every caring pastor, Peter realized that the people to whom he was writing needed to know God and live in the light of His truth. In his message “Anchored by Grace,” Alistair Begg examines Peter’s instructions, which include an admonition to embrace true, godly humility:
The principle, I think, is very important. You’ll notice that we’re not asked to pray about being humble. We’re not asked to feel like we’re humble. The notion of humility is not just a kind of general winsomeness, a kind of deferential approach to life. Some of us have tried that, and our friends are going, “That’s not you. That’s not you.” Peter wasn’t like that. The reason we like Peter is because he shot it off. You know, it was all net, and then he was just banking it off the thing all the time, hitting the rim again and again and again. And we go, “We love this guy! He’s terrific!” He takes one foot out of his mouth so he can put his other foot in his mouth. So he’s not a naturally winsome fellow. He’s a passionate guy. He gets it right; he gets it wrong. And in the midst of all of that, he recognizes that it is the grace of God that is at work within his personality—who he is, established, his own DNA, given to him by Almighty God, that has chosen to use him despite all these things. So when he says, “Humble yourself,” it cost him something.
… I mean, you think about 1 Corinthians, when Paul says, “You know, when I came to you, you know, I didn’t look like much.” and then he says, “And frankly, you didn’t look like that much either.” You remember? ’Cause around 1:26, he says, “And consider your calling, brethren, when you were called. Not many of you were pretty smart. Not many of you were from a mighty background. Not many of you at all!” …
No, humility is an attitude of mind generated by the work of the Spirit of God, allowing us to recognize that God’s grace is the key to understanding who and what we are and understanding who and what we’re not.
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