1. There is a difference between my being humble before God and being humbled before God. I am humbled before God, because I have not been humble. I am humbled, because of my sin; if I had been humble, I should have had grace given me to prevent it. For “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” James 4:66But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. (James 4:6)
2. The only humble place is the presence of God. It is when I get out of His presence that I am in danger of being lifted up. People say it is dangerous to be too often on the mount. Now I do not think that it is when we are on the mount that we are in danger, but when we come off it. It is when we come off the mount that we begin to think that we have been there. Then pride comes in. I do not think that Paul needed a thorn when he was in the third heavens. It was after he came down that he was in danger of being exalted above measure—from thinking that he had been where no one else had been.
3. I do not believe that to think badly of ourselves is true humility. True humility is never to think of ourselves at all—and that is so hard to come to. It is constantly I, I, I. If you only begin a sentence with I, there is nothing that a person will not put after it.
4. What hearts have we! “I the Lord search the heart.” Who but God can know them? Persons who think they search their hearts, and are quick in their evil, do not really know their hearts, nor are they truly humble. The fact is, they must be talking of themselves, and their pride is nourished even by talking of how evil they are.