[Great Verses] Love the Lord FullySample

Humble yourself

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Just as there are physical laws of the universe, such as the law of gravity, there are spiritual laws of the universe, such as the law of humility. The law of humility is crystal clear: If we exalt ourselves, God will humble us. If we humble ourselves, then God will exalt us.

Either way, every single person in history will be humbled. Either we humble ourselves now, in this life, or God will humble us forever, in the next life. Our choice.

John Ruskin, the renowned English poet and philosopher, described humility thus: “I believe that the first test of a truly great man is his humility. I don’t mean by humility, doubt of his power. But really great men have a curious feeling that the greatness is not of them, but through them. And they see something divine in every other man and are endlessly, foolishly, incredibly merciful.” Ruskin brings two of the essential characteristics of humility to light. Humble people understand that any good thing within them is a gift; “the greatness is not of them, but through them.” Also, they are not overly critical and judgmental of other people, “and they see something divine in every other man and are endlessly, foolishly, incredibly merciful.”

How do you do on Ruskin’s simple test for humility? One of the most remarkable examples of humility is Michael Faraday, the British physicist and chemist who discovered electromagnetic induction in the nineteenth century. He was also a devout follower of Jesus Christ.

In his book Five Equations That Changed the World, Michael Guillen describes Faraday: He had labored for forty-plus years, filling up seven large volumes of detailed laboratory notes; he had turned down the presidency of the Royal Society not once but twice; and he had declined the queen’s offer of knighthood. “I must remain plain Michael Faraday to the end,” he had explained politely.

Queen Victoria had offered Faraday his final honor – to be buried with Isaac Newton and other British luminaries in Westminster Abbey. But predictably, the famous scientist had demurred, opting instead to be given “a plain, simple funeral, attended by none but my own relatives, followed by a gravestone of the most ordinary kind, in the simplest earthly place.”

In three-quarters of a century, Faraday had gone from being a poor, hard-working errand boy to being a poor, hard-working scientist. No one before had changed science and society in such profound and permanent ways, or has since. For that reason, Michael Faraday—the son of paupers and the confidant of princes—always would be remembered for being in a class by himself. “Whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”