In reading the book Humility by Andrew Murray, I came upon a
word, I thought I knew. The word is “Condescension”. In the current online
dictionary, I found this to mean:
“showing or implying a usually patronizing descent from dignity or superiority”. As I read in
the book, Humility, I was struck at how different the explanation is from 1828.
In the book it states: “As the love and condescension of God makes Him the benefactor
and helper and servant of all, so Jesus of necessity was Incarnate Humility.”
I take this as
God is the servant of us all. Jesus came, as man, to be His (God’s) human form
to emulate this servant-hood towards us. In the 1828 Webster’s Dictionary, I
read condescension as: “to recede from one’s rights, yield, submit, and submit
to (an) inferior.” In this I wonder if it means that the Lord allowed Jesus to
be humble to the cross, in our place, for our sins. Almighty God is loving and
serving in humility to allow Jesus, as man, to lay on the cross for my transgressions.
To receive what the Lord wants me to receive, I need to lay down, in humility,
as Jesus did, any and all preconceived notions of who I think the Lord is, and
who He wants me to be. Jesus was humble both to God as well as man, the book
states. I then need to lay down all rights to my will and way to my fellow man
(my family) in humility to begin to love them completely.
How twisted this
one word has become over the centuries. This makes me think I need to do even
more word studies to get to know the Lord and how to love Him and my family
even more. I am amazed and thankful the Lord brought this to me. I am praying
for a heavenly humility to embed itself on my soul, so I can love much and love
well.
