
The Greatness of Humility
Introduction: Humility is Foundational
If you’re visiting this morning, I’d just like to take a moment again to welcome you to Fellowship Reformed Church, here in Mount Pleasant. I’m thankful that you can be here to give thanks to God with us, and I look forward to getting some time to chat with you more after the service.
As I look back over the past couple of years, the Lord has been incredibly kind in helping this new church to get started. A few of you here can probably remember how this all began, with a couple Bible studies back at the end of 2022. And a few others of you can probably remember when my family and I moved here to the city of Mount Pleasant in January of last year, and we started holding regular Bible studies in our home. Then in June of last year, as we continued to grow, we began meeting weekly on Sunday nights in the Art Reach gallery here downtown. And now, here, in August 2024 we get to start a new chapter together, in a new space. I’m excited to see what God continues to do in the years ahead.
One of the exciting things about a new church is that there’s an opportunity, here, toward the beginning, to set the tone of what this new church is going to prioritize – what we’re going to do – who we’re going to be. And this morning, I want to open the Bible with you, and point out one of those great things that God is calling us into. We’ll look at something which is absolutely foundational to the Christian life and to the future of this Church, and any true Church. We’ll consider what Jesus taught about humility.
So if you have your Bibles with you, please turn with me to Matthew, Chapter 18. Matthew, Chapter 18. I’ll be reading the first four verses for us this morning. But before I do, please pray with me:
[Pray and Read Text]
The Inquiry about Greatness
This morning there are two main ideas I want to explain from our text. First, in verse 1, I want to briefly explain this Inquiry about Greatness. And then, second, looking at verses 2 through 4, I want to unpack several Instructions about Humility that Jesus gives us in this passage.
So first, we’ll consider the Inquiry about Greatness. Verse 1 tells us, “At that time, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’”
The disciples mentioned here are probably referring to the twelve disciples that Jesus hand-picked to be a part of his inner circle. And one of these disciples, as it turns out, was Matthew – the Matthew who recorded this account of Jesus’s life that we’re looking at.
And so Matthew, and the other eleven disciples – they bring this question to Jesus, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
It’s worth clarifying here what type of greatness the disciples are concerned about. Because when we think about greatness, we may have a lot of different ideas flash through our minds. This past summer, men and women from around the world competed in the Olympics to see who was the fastest, the strongest – who had the best technique. But that’s not the greatness that the disciples are concerned about. They aren’t asking here who’s the smartest or the prettiest, or who has the most followers on social media. Instead, when the disciples ask who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, they want to know who’s going to have the highest rank in the kingdom of heaven? Who’s going to have the most authority?
The disciples have become interested in the kingdom of heaven, because Jesus has been talking about it since the start of his ministry. Matthew mentions back in Chapter 4, verse 17, “From that time Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” A little later, in Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, he repeatedly speaks about the kingdom of heaven and even teaches his disciples to pray for God’s kingdom to be established. In Matthew 13, Jesus tells several parables about the kingdom. And it’s woven into Jesus’s teaching in many other ways.
So the disciples are beginning to realize the kingdom is a big deal, and they’re trying to plan for it. Because up until this point, they haven’t really had any sort of open door of opportunity to gain power or influence. They haven’t had the brains, or the military power, or the social connections – they’ve just been ordinary guys. Fishermen, farmers perhaps, and a tax collector – that’s all they’ve ever been. But now, in their minds, this is their chance to be someone great! In this kingdom of their good friend, Jesus, they have a chance to climb to the top!
And the disciples seem to have understood here that this kingdom of heaven wasn’t a wispy, kind of kingdom on a cloud far away in the sky somewhere. Jesus wasn’t just teaching about a kingdom in heaven. Instead, He was announcing the kingdom of heaven – a kingdom that belongs to heaven and that’s ruled by the God of heaven, but that also very much affects the peoples of the earth.
And the disciples imagined that the kingdom of heaven would simply be a new-and-improved repeat of the old nation-state, Israel. They imagined that this new “kingdom of heaven” Jesus was talking about would take power away from the Roman Empire, and put their own people, the Jews, back into political power. And so the disciples are stepping all over each other, trying to get to the front of the line. They all wanted to be selected as Jesus’s Vice-Presidential running mate. They all wanted power and privilege and glory.
But in asking this question in verse 1 “Who is the greatest?” they make it pretty clear they don’t know what the kingdom of heaven is about. A kingdom revolves around its king – not the king’s servants. Not the royal adviser, or the executioner, or the court jester. In a kingdom, there are just two types of people. There’s the king. And then there are the people who exist to serve the king. The greatness of any one of the king’s servants is irrelevant. Greatness and glory belongs to the king.
It might be hard to understand the whole king-kingdom thing. Because, after all, we don’t have kings in America. Our perception of authority is different. But another analogy could be helpful to think about. Consider a wedding. On the day of a wedding, the event centers around the bride and groom – especially the bride. And it’s unthinkable that you would have an argument break out between the bridesmaids, the mother of the bride, the host of the reception, and the photographer, about who’s the greatest – who gets to stand front and center. Because everyone recognizes the wedding day isn’t about you or me getting attention. The wedding day is for the married couple. There are two types of people at a wedding: the people getting married, and the people who are there to enjoy and honor the bride and groom. And for the guests to compete for glory or status on the wedding day is irrelevant and nonsensical.
So the disciples are asking the wrong sort of question here. They’re asking, “Who’s the greatest?” thinking that the kingdom of heaven is about them – that it’s an opportunity to put themselves into power, or to make themselves great. But the kingdom is about the greatness of the king.
Now, I recognize, many of us probably aren’t consciously asking: “Who’s the greatest?” like the disciples were. But for many of us, the reason why we don’t specifically ask this question is because we already assume that we know the answer. We already think of ourselves as the greatest. We already assume that our life decisions should be focused on us. As Americans, we don’t have to answer to a king or a master – but we tend to see ourselves as masters of our own schedules, and bank accounts, and personal life. Through all this, we show that we desire greatness and autonomy and control just as much as the disciples did.
The Instructions about Humility
And Jesus makes it clear that the disciples should set aside their pride, and their preoccupation with self-advancement and self-governance. Because this isn’t how the kingdom of heaven works. Instead, in the next three verses, Jesus gives four instructions about humility. Number 1: He describes a picture of childlike humility. Number 2: he describes the practice of real humility. Number 3, he describes the penalty for neglecting humility. And Number 4, Jesus describes a promise for the humble.
So I’ll explain each of these, starting with instruction number 1: the picture of childlike humility.
The Picture of Childlike Humility
In verse 2, we see how Jesus responds to the disciples’ question. He calls a child to him, and puts this young boy in the midst of his disciples. And while all this is happening, the disciples probably had really confused expressions on their faces. What does this little kid have to do with our question? How could this child teach us anything about what it means to be great?
Now we aren’t told exactly how old this child is. The exact age doesn’t matter. But based on the Greek word and the context, this was probably a young boy, no older than seven, and probably younger.
When you think of the word greatness, a young boy isn’t the first image that pops into my mind. I might imagine a huge hulk of a man, like Andre the Giant. Or I might think of Albert Einstein. His name immediately calls to mind someone who’s in the highest tier of brilliance. Or I might think of fearless leaders, like Winston Churchill. You get the idea – we don’t associate tend to associate little children with greatness. Because they obviously aren’t the most powerful or most accomplished people in society. They don’t have the same sort of social status or influence as adults. Even here in America – children aren’t given a vote in national elections. Children need to have certain legal forms and permissions signed by parents or guardians. We recognize – and the children themselves recognize – that they’re in a humble position.
And this is why Jesus sets this young child before his disciples as an example of humility. Jesus isn’t claiming that the humility of this child is absolutely perfect. He’s not saying that this child is a supreme example of purity or innocence, as though children aren’t affected by sin. (Because children are affected – we all are). But Jesus is simply underscoring here that this child exhibits marks of humility that his disciples are lacking. And this posture – the posture of humility – is of the utmost importance and necessity for those who wish to be close to God.
So what does it look like to be humble before God? What does this type of childlike humility look like?
Well, for one thing, children humbly understand that they’re needy for nurture. Young children realize that they need someone stronger and wiser to protect them, and to provide for their needs – to pay bills, to give them food, water and shelter. My three-year-old isn’t ashamed to admit that he needs help scooping up the oatmeal from the edges of his breakfast bowl to help him finish his last bite, or that he needs help in the bathroom. He’s humble.
And children recognize that they need people who are older and wiser to teach them. They aren’t ashamed to admit that they don’t know what certain words mean. My kids don’t challenge every statement that comes out of my mouth, thinking they know better than me. But they’re willing to receive. They’re willing to listen. Because they’re humble.
Children also exhibit humility because they recognize that they’re under the oversight and responsibility of their parents or guardians. My kids know that they’re accountable to me and Taylor. So when my kids are in a really important argument – trying to figure out who gets to eat the last scoop of mayonnaise from the jar, or something like that – they come to me to settle the dispute. They recognize that they fall under my jurisdiction. So come to me to administer justice. And they know that whatever Daddy says – whatever Daddy decides to do – that’s the way things are going to be. And when my children are able to accept my authority, they’re exhibiting this posture of humility that Jesus wants his disciples to take notice of.
But there’s one more feature of a child’s humility which is worth commenting on. A young child is genuinely humble. And what I mean by this is that when children ask for help, and submit to authority, it’s not just a show. They aren’t secretly on a quest to push their parents out of power, and to gain control of the household. The child isn’t thinking, “I really want everyone to see how great of a person I am, so I’m going to pretend to be really modest.” Children don’t play those little mind games like we do.
Instead, young children are driven to humility because they understand their littleness. They’re humble because they’re aware of who they are as children. They openly accept that they need the direction of someone who’s greater in authority and strength and knowledge. And this is the type of humble heart Jesus wants his disciples to have toward God and in their dealings with one another.
And this is what Jesus wants for us, too. He wants us to see our neediness for nurture. He wants us to see that we’re under the authority of someone greater. And he wants our humility to be genuine – flowing from an accurate understanding of who we are as lowly creatures, and of who God is, as our Creator.
The Practice of Real Humility
And Jesus gives specific instructions on how he wants us to practice real humility in verse 3. He tells his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
So notice, here, the practice of humility involves two parts. First, Jesus says that the disciples need to turn. And by this he means that they need to turn away from their arrogance and pride. And then Jesus says the disciples are to become like children. They need to accept God’s Fatherly authority – which is to say that they need to rely on him – or to have faith in Him. So to summarize, Jesus teaches us to repent and believe. This is what humility looks like. This is what humility does.
And I’ve been able to see – so many of you have lives that are marked by this type of repentance and faith. I’ve been encouraged to see – you have a high view of God’s greatness. You’re honest about your shortcomings and your need for God’s mercy. You’re eager to serve other people. Even many of you kids – I’ve been encouraged to see you admit when you’ve done what’s wrong, and to see your humble eagerness to be helpful, to clean up messes and to help watch younger children. I hope that this attitude of humility – of leaving behind every type of ungodly passion and having childlike wonder before the authority of God – I hope this type of humility becomes more and more evident here in our church in the years to come.
But it’s important to point out that this type of humility before God – it isn’t what naturally flows out of our hearts. If the disciples were already wired to be good, humble people, Jesus wouldn’t have to tell them to turn – to change. They would just need a cheerleader to tell them to keep going. But the reality of the matter is that there’s a constant pull on our hearts to fall back into self-reliance, self-promotion and pride. Kind of like when the wheels on your car aren’t aligned right, and it feels like the steering wheel is always pulling you to the ditch. You and I need to be aware of this tendency – and we need to know what pride looks like, so we can watch for it, and turn from it.
So I want to give a couple key examples of how pride operates, and how it’ll disrupt our relationship with God, and with one another.
For one thing, our pride makes it hard for us to believe and receive the Word of God. You have to understand, you won’t naturally love everything you read in the Bible. You may not instinctively understand or agree with it. And this is because, when God gave us the Bible, his goal wasn’t just to tell us what we wanted to hear, or to tell us things to make us feel good when we’re feeling upset. God’s goal, in this book, is to tell us the truth!
And for many of us, there’s a temptation for us to ignore or resist what the Bible says. A lot of people eagerly repeat over and over again, “God is love,” or “Judge not that you be not judged,” as though those are the only parts of the Bible that matter. But they aren’t willing to accept other parts of the Bible with the same eagerness, even though they’re all just as true, and just as good. Thomas Jefferson – you’ve maybe heard about what he did – he took a pair of scissors to the Bible and cut out all the parts he didn’t agree with.
And because of our pride, it’s tempting for us to do the same thing – to pretend that we’re greater than God and the Bible, and that we have the authority to pick and choose what parts apply to us. But we can’t just Amend the Bible by popular vote, like we can amend the American Constitution. God’s Word isn’t something that bends for us – that bows to our wishes. But we are the ones who must learn to submit to it. Our perceptions about who we want God to be must be put aside so that we can receive who God has revealed himself to be!
Otherwise, this church won’t be a place where God is truly known, and loved, and worshiped. If this church is going to be a beacon of light in a dark and confused world, then it’s important for each one of us – we must learn to practice humility before God’s Word. As children before our heavenly Father, when our ideas and desires don’t line up with the Bible, we need to have the humility to admit that we’re in the wrong and to affirm that God is right.
Let me explain one more way pride can show up and make a mess of everything. In our pride, we can be tempted to see the church as a place where we can advance ourselves – either by showing off our Bible knowledge, or the behavior or intelligence of our kids, or our skills, our prayers – it could be any number of things. This is exactly what the disciples were tempted with here – to see the kingdom of heaven as an opportunity to gain influence and attention for themselves. And we’re susceptible to the same temptation.
But serving in the church in any capacity, whether it’s as a church officer, or as a greeter, or a nursery worker, or as a cleaner of bathrooms – the goal isn’t to be publicly recognized, or to attain to a special elite position or office. The goal isn’t to serve ourselves. The goal is simply to help others worship Christ. That’s the great goal! To be able to reach the end of the day, knowing that I have honored the Lord, and have served his people! This is the attitude our church needs to have! This is the way of humility! This is the way of the kingdom of heaven!
Pride, on the other hand, will destroy a church. People won’t be honest about their shortcomings and sins, but will let their sins fester and ferment in the darkness. Pride will be give rise to distrust, jealousy, controversy, and judgmentalism. Pride causes people to complain when the church doesn’t do the things they want. Pride causes people to speak critically of those who are seeking to serve them. Pride doesn’t seek the peace and purity of the church, but is always on the hunt for gratifying self. And Jesus tells his disciples they need to turn from pride, and to become like children.
And that means that we must turn. You and I need to be clear on who we’re serving. Are we serving the kingdom of heaven? Or are we serving the kingdom of self?
The Penalty for Neglecting Humility
We can’t just let our pride run unchecked. Because in verse 3, Jesus has confirmed for us, Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” And this brings us to the third part of Jesus’s instructions on humility. He teaches us about the penalty for neglecting humility.
Up until this point, the disciples have been making a dangerous assumption. They’ve been assuming that they’ve already got a free ticket into the kingdom of heaven. Maybe they thought that they had a spot in the kingdom simply because they were Jews. Or perhaps they assumed they had a guaranteed place because they were one of Jesus’s 12 disciples. (We know, of course, this isn’t the case. Judas Iscariot ended up on the outside, even though he was one of the twelve). Or maybe there were some of them who weren’t trusting in their ethnicity or position, but they were instead relying on their intelligence, or their morality, or their sincerity. But in whatever case, the disciples assumed that they were already good enough to get into the kingdom.
But Jesus makes it very clear – without turning and becoming like children – not only will you not be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven – you won’t have a place in the kingdom at all! Because the person who’s seeking the kingdom’s glory and honor for self is an enemy to the true king. There won’t be two, or five, or twelve kings in the kingdom of heaven. There will only be one.
And if you aren’t willing to accept this – if you’re still insisting that you must have control and authority and respect, then you won’t be allowed through the gates. Just as Adam and Eve were barred from paradise because of their pride, the kingdom of heaven will be barred against you.
The only people who can enter the kingdom of heaven are those who humble themselves before God like children. Just as a very little boy can’t cause himself to be born, we can’t give ourselves new birth. Just as he can’t make milk for himself, or manage a spoon for himself, we can’t feed ourselves for eternal life. Just as a little one can’t change his diaper, or put on new clothes, we can’t clothe ourselves with true righteousness. We can’t learn any true knowledge unless God speaks to us. We can’t be clean unless God washes us. We have no hope, unless God saves us. Without God’s Fatherly provision – without accepting your place as a humble child, knowing God as your provider – you can’t enter the kingdom of heaven.
The Promise for the Humble
But along with this serious warning against neglecting humility, Jesus also extends one more instruction = a promise to the humble. In verse 4, Jesus confirms, “Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
Jesus gives a very certain and confident affirmation here – that those who humble themselves as children will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And this is because the greatest servant in the kingdom isn’t the servant who’s constantly trying to beat out all the other servants – who’s constantly on the lookout for how to get the next pay-increase or promotion. Instead, the greatest servant in the kingdom is the servant who’s least concerned with serving self, and who’s most thankful for the king, and most supportive of the King’s Word, and most committed to serving the King’s mission.
The great ones in the kingdom of heaven aren’t the ones who draw the biggest crowds, or the ones who are most widely published on the internet, or who have the biggest net worth. But the great ones of the kingdom of heaven are those who know what real greatness looks like – who know the greatness of their King.
Philippians 2 reminds us about the greatness of the Lord Jesus – “who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he HUMBLED HIMSELF, by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross.” This is what Jesus did on earth, to serve us, to substitute himself for us because of our sins. But the passage goes on, to tell us where Jesus is now, in the kingdom: “Therefore, God has highly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, 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.”
The one who lived out his humanity on earth in perfect humility before His Father is now enthroned in the kingdom of heaven as the greatest. And He’s the one who should occupy the throne of our hearts, as well! No one cares for souls more than He does. No one is more committed to serving our deepest needs than this King, Jesus.
And it really is my hope and desire for this church, that this is what we’d be about. My desire is to get on my knees with you, before the kingship of Jesus, week after week – and learn to more deeply know him, love him, and serve him. So let’s pray together, that our Father would teach us childlike humility, together, as we seek to be the church that Christ is calling us to be.