The battle between pride and humility continues to rage

illustration by Emma Scrivner

“Emma’s so humble” might be one of the oddest compliments I have received. It feels like a paradox in itself—to be “noticeably” humble. Isn’t humility making yourself blend in? If someone notices your humility, does that mean you’re not truly humble? Is my humility just an act? What is humility anyway?

In the Bible, the truest example of humility is Jesus. He deserves all honor and glory, yet He humbled Himself by taking on a human body, living among us and dying the most humiliating death imaginable as beautifully explained in Philippians 2:3-8.

Christ’s example reveals that humility is shown through service to others. As my youth pastor once quoted from Rick Warren, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.” Jesus knew He was worthy of worship, and that He had the power to stop the pain He went through, but He chose to submit to God’s will as the ultimate service to us.

This is the true calling to humility: to be like Jesus. However, similarly to the impossibility of us being sinless, it’s impossible for us to be completely without pride. We cannot complete the sanctification process on our own, but it also requires 100% of our effort. It’s difficult, and it’s not prideful to admit it—it’s honest. 

This calling has an immense effect on nonbelievers. Admitting that we don’t have all the answers demonstrates humility and dispels the preconceived notion that Christians consider themselves superior to others.

“We don’t realize it necessarily, but nonbelievers watch us, and they base their opinion about Jesus and Christians in general just off of one or two people as they’re watching,” TKA parent and former teacher Mrs. Kristie Jones said. “Our humility, when people see us surrendering or serving others, can make an impact.”

Pride isn’t a new sin; in fact, it was the first sin. With the rise of social media, “self love” and “self image” have become hot topics in today’s society. This may cause people to fuel their pride more than in previous generations.

“I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that we are taught to justify ourselves,” world history teacher Mrs. Emily Wood said. “We are taught that nobody else is going to advocate for you. There’s kind of a pendulum swing: 20 years ago, maybe, the idea of humility was to let people take whatever, and I don’t think that’s right either…but in today’s society, I think we’ve flown too far the other way and said, ‘Well, humility is not really important because it means letting other people take advantage of you.’”

While the lines of pride and humility are often blurred, God knows our hearts. People may believe a quiet person to be humble simply because they don’t speak up, but in reality, in that person’s heart, they may be constantly comparing themselves to others and believing themselves superior. This is why humans’ perceptions of themselves and others are often inaccurate. 

“Every other human being on the planet has the exact same dignity and value given to us by God in His image,” Mrs. Wood said. “Knowing where our worth comes from should fuel our humility, [allowing] us to see all believers on an equal playing field in Christ.”