MIND NOT HIGH THINGS

There is no place in the Christian life for seeking the vain honours of this world. It is a contradiction, on the one hand, to claim to follow the One who was ‘meek and lowly’, and, on the other, to strive for recognition or association with worldly offices and honours. We are not to be preoccupied and impressed by the pomp of this world. Sometimes it seems we as believers have forgotten John’s words, ‘Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever’, 1 John 2. 15-17.

Further, we are warned in the book of Proverbs that ‘Only by pride cometh contention’, 13. 10. Contention among the believers can always be traced back to some form of pride and being occupied with self honour. This was the devil’s sin. It should not be ours.

The verse gives us a positive course of action as well. We are to ‘condescend to men of low estate’. The idea of condescending here is not to be patronizing. The word really means to be led by or to yield to. The believer is to go for those things of humble character and not the vanity of that which is contrary to God.

This was the way of the Lord Himself. As He was among men, He humbled Himself. And it is the Lord who says, ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (or from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light’, Matt. 11. 29-30. We learn from Him how to live this out practically in our lives and we should not be surprised by experiences that test us in this vital lesson.

The pathway of lowliness is one that will serve to ‘keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace’, Eph. 4. 3, among fellow believers. This requires spiritual maturity and proves ultimately to be the high road.