“How often people say something like, ‘I think God is like this or that,’ without any consideration that they ought not to think anything about God unless He has first told them.  Wisdom reminds us, ‘A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion’ (Proverbs 18:2).”

I’m enjoying this book by Christopher Hutchinson called Rediscovering Humility.  It’s an engaging read that walks through the different dynamics of biblical humility in a gospel centered way.  I’ll write more about it later, but for now I wanted to share these helpful paragraphs:

I have often participated in religious or philosophical discussions with people who had made up their minds long before and without any real examination of the issues. They are sure they are right and cannot wait to tell anyone who will listen.  How often people say something like, ‘I think God is like this or that,’ without any consideration that they ought not to think anything about God unless He has first told them.  Wisdom reminds us, ‘A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion’ (Proverbs 18:2).  Fools would rather hear themselves talk than actually grow in knowledge and perhaps even change their minds.  In contrast, humility is ‘quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger’ (James 1:19)….

Americans have a strong tradition of rugged individualism that pushes against humility.  In ‘Self-Reliance,’ Ralph Waldo Emerson says, ‘to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men – that is genius.’  So what happens when my genius heart disagrees with yours?  That is exactly why Scripture warns against trusting one’s own heart, ‘The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it (Jeremiah 17:9).  Humility teaches people to distrust their own hearts and judgment until wisdom has grown and been proved by an abundance of counselors.

What then are believers to do?  They are to distrust their own first instincts and listen to facts – the facts of the world around them, the facts of other people’s thoughts and opinions, and most of all, the facts found in God’s Word (cf. James 1:19, 22).  They are to heed the advice found in Proverbs, ‘Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding…’ (3:5-7).

Rev. Shane Lems is a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and serves as pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Hammond, Wis. This article appeared on his blog and is used with permission.