Humility is a gift from God. We are unable to humble ourselves without the Lord’s work in our lives. If we could, we would quickly boast about it. If we recognize our dependence upon him, it is because the Holy Spirit has humbled us by bringing us to salvation. What a precious gift this is.
Pride is a form of insanity because it is not based in reality. When we grow haughty of our accomplishments, we forget who gave us the gifts we used to achieve them. We also forget who gave us our lungs and the clean air we inhaled as we succeeded. The absurdity of boasting in our might is astounding. The fact that God can humble us without any effort proves how little strength we actually possess.
King Nebuchadnezzar was a man of great power who ruled over Babylon. He even took Israel captive. However, on two occasions, all it took to make him tremble were God-given dreams. The second dream showed him as a mighty tree that was then cut down.
Shortly after this dream, he was walking on his palace roof, looking at his kingdom, and said, “Is this not great Babylon, which I have built by my own power?” At that moment, a voice fell from heaven and said, “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you, it is spoken: the kingdom has departed you, and you shall be driven away from man, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field” (Daniel 4:31-32).
