Taking A Bullet

Humility involves taking a step away from self and toward another. When one is humble that can happen. Pride is self-centered and unable to detach from one’s own self-interests. The size of the step away from self will involve increasingly greater amounts of self-sacrifice. Throwing one’s self on a grenade or taking a bullet for someone reveals a courageous and heroic spirit but also requires humility. Let me qualify that statement. If the acts just mentioned are nothing more than trained or programmed reflexes, then they may not involve humility or courage or heroism. I would like to believe even hardened professional soldiers do not react from a purely programmed impulse. There must also be courage and humility present for the bravest decision to be made, even if those are also learned.

Smaller steps away from self are also commendable. Self-sacrifice, and thus humility, are required in order to bite your tongue when there is temptation to attack, allow someone else to be the center of attention, absorb unjust criticism, listen a little longer than you would like, allow someone else’s idea to eclipse your own, take the blame for someone else’s mistake, applaud something you might rather criticize, bend instead of stiffen, smile instead of scowl, agree when you have every right to disagree, and choose peace when anyone else in your shoes would start a war. None of these are easy. In fact they all demand the strength of true humility. They are all a little bit like taking a bullet or falling on a grenade. You might even say some of these situations feel like being nailed to a cross. Following Christ, as we take up our cross daily, involves learning a lot about the humility of Christ. He stepped away from himself to bear our burden. He sacrificed his life, so that we could live. “He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:8)