Luke — and the believer’s proper position.
by R. Herbert
Not surprisingly, humility is displayed in all the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life. For example, although we tend to think of Matthew as the Gospel of kingship — the Gospel that frequently alludes to the messianic kingly role of Christ — Matthew also records many examples of humility in the lives of Jesus and others.
But none of the four Gospels focuses as clearly on the humbleness of God’s Son and His teachings on the subject as does Luke.
Life of humility
Luke alone describes the humble nature of Jesus’ physical birth. He begins with Mary’s affirmation of her humble state (1:48, 52) and continues with the details of Jesus’ birth that underscore the relative poverty of His parents (2:24, et al.). Like Matthew, Luke tells us that Jesus had no fixed home (9:58). But alone among the Gospels, Luke tells us that Jesus’ ministry was possible only because of the support of others who were better off (8:1-3).
Only Luke records how Jesus was humbly subject to His earthly parents throughout His early years (2:51), and he gives us dozens of details illustrating Jesus’ lowly way of life. One is that, except on one occasion, Jesus is pictured as traveling either by foot or by boat in an age when many — and certainly anyone due respect — traveled by horse or donkey.
Luke also stresses how Jesus lived a life of spiritual humility. This is frequently seen in what the evangelist tells us regarding Jesus’ words about Himself (22:27, et al.). It is also seen in the fact that although He was worthy of many titles and was called the Son of God by others, in Luke’s Gospel Jesus refers to Himself as simply the Son of Man.
Humble interactions
Luke carefully records details of Jesus’ interactions with others who expressed humility. Perhaps the greatest example of this kind of reciprocal humility in the Gospels is the story of the centurion, who implored Jesus to heal his servant. Only Matthew and Luke record this story (Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10), but Luke’s additional details are informative.
The Roman officer declared, “I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you” (7:6, 7). This story shows his great humility and that of Jesus. Our Lord was willing to go to the sick, rather than have them brought to Him. Luke tells us the sick man was not an important servant but simply a lowly slave (doulos).
In similar ways, Luke provides us with many other examples of humility in action — some of them unexpected. For example, although we know Jesus came to serve (Matthew 20:28), Luke repeatedly shows us that His humility allowed Him to be served by others. The evangelist tells us that Jesus attended meals in the homes of others where He was served by the hosts (10:40-42, et al.). He also gives us the story of the woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair in an extreme act of service (7:36-50).
In these illustrations, Luke teaches us an important lesson: In our relationships with other people, there is a balance between the humility of serving and the humility of being willing to be served — supporting the needs of others and not being too proud to be supported in our own needs (4:38, 39).
Teachings on humility
Luke shows us that Jesus emphasized the defining character of His disciples as being humility. While Matthew records Jesus’ words “those who humble themselves will be exalted” (23:12), Luke gives this same teaching not once but twice (14:11; 18:14), showing its additional importance for his presentation of Jesus’ teaching.
Some of Jesus’ most memorable teachings on humility are also recorded in Luke. Early in his Gospel, the disciples argued as to which of them would be the greatest. Jesus said, “It is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest” (9:46-50). Luke shows that late in Jesus’ ministry the disciples were still arguing in this way, and Jesus retaught them in even more detail: “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; . . . But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. . . . I am among you as one who serves” (22:24-27).
Luke also includes Jesus’ instruction to those who picked the places of honor at a banquet: “All those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (14:7-11). “And to those who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else,” Jesus told the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector to teach the same lesson: “All those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (18:9-14).
Handbook of humility
In both the teachings of Jesus that it records and in examples drawn from His ministry, the Gospel of Luke focuses on humility more frequently than any other Gospel — or any other book in the New Testament. Many additional teachings on humility in Luke do not mention humility directly, but they show how this quality affects every aspect of our Christian lives.
So it is worth remembering: We should turn to Luke if we want a handbook of practical and applied humility. We will also see much more of the message of his Gospel if we remember that even when it is not obviously focusing on this quality, Luke is the Gospel of humility.
Adapted from the author’s book,
Lessons from Luke: Understanding More of the Message of the Third Gospel, available from FreeChristianEBooks.org. Used by permission. Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version.
