Topic: Humility

Jesus’ Transfiguration reveals God’s liberating glory, calling us to justice, humility, and fearless love amid oppression.

To name Christ as King is to identify ourselves as dissenters to the claims of any other authority and to critique all power-mongering.

When we respond to others with judgement and contempt instead of empathy and compassion, we fail to understand God and live God’s love for others.

In difficult times, the simple virtues of love, humility, and non-judgement are the starting point of faithful living.

God is most likely and able to work through those who accept their own weakness and don’t try to forcefully assert their own power and influence.

Living the beatitudes is tough and dangerous, and we will need the inspiration and company of the saints, before us and beside us, if we are going to make it.

In the face of the cultural call for an all-tolerating lack of conviction, we are called to be a particular people who follow and champion a distinctive way – the way found in Jesus.

Jesus calls all who are worn out from maintaining appearances as hosts to relax into the humility of being guests.

Being missioners needs to be patterned on Jesus if it is to have any integrity at all, and so it will be characterised by intentional engagement, genuine curiosity, deep listening, allowing others to be a blessing to us, and trusting ourselves to God.

We come to be followers of Jesus, not when we believe certain facts about him, but when we hear his voice and follow what it says (even if we don’t know where the voice comes from).

Instead of leaving unsaid the things that could cause conflict and division, we are called to listen intensely, slowly, intentionally, allowing all to speak their truth, so that we can find a way to move forward together in love and humility.

If you’re looking for wisdom, healing, practical solutions, look to Jesus, because church leaders constantly fail when they do any more than point to Jesus.