Humility and Love

It’s been a rough few months where I have had to come to terms with all the change going on in my life. The life of a student that I have known for… oh I don’t know… the last 21 years, has come to an end and I have been thrown into the workplace. The independence I’ve know living away from home has dwindled because I now live with my parents again. My spiritual life has been changing and maturing. I have been changing and maturing as an adult and on my spiritual journey. And it all has to do with love.

Lately, I have been drawn to the Philippians hymn. St Paul writes:

Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus,

Who, though he was in the form of God,

did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.

Rather, he emptied himself,

taking the form of a slave,

coming in human likeness;

and found human in appearance,

he humbled himself,

becoming obedient to death,

even death on a cross.

Because of this, God greatly exalted him

and bestowed on him the name

that is above every name,

that at the name of Jesus

every knee should bend,

of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue confess that

Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:5-11)

This hymn is all about the humility of God. He did not have to come from his place of power and kingship. He didn’t have to love us so much that he emptied himself to come to be with us and teach us.

Not only did he become human, take on flesh, experience our emotions, have friends, but he did so in such a way that he never regretted it. He never grasped for what he left, rather he continued to humble himself—even to the point of death on a cross. A death that he didn’t deserve. He did this out of love for us. He wanted us to be drawn back to him.

But he didn’t stop there. In his death not only do we find our salvation, but he opens the door for us to know him more fully. The separation that was in place is no longer there. The veil has been torn. He did this out of love.

He is exalted, Jesus’ name is the name above all names, yet he wants us to walk with him on the journey. He wants us to dine with him at the table… not as servants, but as friends. Although he holds the highest place of honor and glory, God continues to be humble and invite us into a relationship with him. And no matter what we do, he continues to love us to fullest extent of his love. His love is full throttle all the time because he is love. His love for us is always present in the fullest sense, a sense we often don’t understand, but he wants us to understand.

How do we understand God’s love? Well, the first step is to spend time with him. Allow him to work in us, allow our hearts to be opened to his love. His love never wavers. It is always there and available to us—when we pray, we discover the love God has for us and we continue to grow in our understanding of God’s love for us, but we also grow in our love for God. As we open ourselves to God’s love our love for God grows, but also our love for others and for ourselves. If we humble ourselves we can love like God—unhindered and with everything we have. In humility, we both learn to love and be loved.