Brenda Joy

Q13. (Luke 18:9-14) How does the Pharisee in this parable exalt himself? How do comparison and looking down on others reflect pride? How does the tax collector humble himself? Jesus says that the tax collector is "justified before God." Is deep repentance or humbling oneself before God necessary for salvation? Does repentance have anything to do with faith or "believing in Jesus"? The Pharisee exalts himself by seeing himself as righteous over others. He treats others with guilt. The tax collector can't even raise his head to heaven to pray. He recognizes his own sin and owns his error. That is the beginning of repentance. Deep repentance is necessary because there must be a change in heart and behavior. When we repent (turn 180 degrees in the opposite way) we turn to the God and the Holy Spirit is then given the ability to work with, in and through us. We are then yielded to the will of the Father.

Q10. Does being in a place of authority, such as a rabbi, police officer, or parent prevent you from correcting with humility? How does Jesus use rebukes to form disciples? No, if anything we should rise to the moment and be what God is calling us to be. We look and weigh everything according to the Word. I am blessed to be a correctional facility chaplain and the way you break through the hardest of hearts is with love and humility... They are broken reeds and need to be handled with care. There were times Jesus was stern but in many cases it was gently asking them questions and showing them truth.

Jesus' humility is that which moved him with compassion. The very seat of Christs emotions his lungs, heart, the core of him etc. everything he felt physically and emotionally caused him to be moved in such a way that he could not nor wanted to ignore the needs. His sympathy, compassion,empathy are what caused him to respond in such a loving, kind way.

Q6. (Matthew 11:28-30) In what sense is Jesus "gentle and lowly in heart"? What does this tell us about him? How does this make him comfortable for struggling people to be around? Jesus is gentle and lowly, he reveals this because he acknowledges those who are weary and heavy laden and invites them to come to him where he will rescue them by freeing them from the burdens of life...He reassures those who are struggling by revealing to them he has a yoke for them. Jesus provides for them in their time of difficulty. What a Savior we have, he lacks nothing.

Q8. (John 5:41, 44) How is Jesus' refusal to seek men's praise an example of humility? How does this free him to do God's will? How can seeking approval from others cripple our discipleship? Jesus heart is focused only on God's approval... Jesus wants to be pleasing to God. This frees him to do the will of God because he remains in connection to God at all times. He remains a servant. If we seek other peoples approval we separate ourselves from God and our focus is on ourselves than others.

Q7. (John 5:19, 30) In what sense is Jesus powerless on his own? What is the key to Jesus' power and effectiveness? How does this demonstrate his basic humility? How can we emulate Jesus in this? How does that demonstrate our humility? Jesus makes it very clear that even though he is equal to God, "he can do nothing" without the Father and "he can only do" when he is connected. This demonstrates humility because he shows that he has a low focus on himself. We emulate this because we too must do nothing on our own without the Father. We are powerless. We will be effective as a witness when we are connected to God and His power can flow through us.

Q5. (Philippians 2:2-5) How can we rationally consider others' concerns more important than our own? Does agapē love for others make good sense? What does adopting this viewpoint do for humility in us? What aspects of Christ's example of humbling himself (verses 5-11) should be instructive for us? We have to have proper discernment and if that is working properly we can prioritize needs correctly. God's love is agape love and yes we love! Christ was God but he was a servant and took on the position of a slave. Christ's life was in obedience to God. Because He was in obedience God elevated him. If we are obedient and have servant hearts God can use us.

An accurate self-assessment of our spiritual state is important because it helps us to define our calling and be used to build up the body of Christ and minister to those outside the church. Discovering our spiritual gifts enable us to live out what God has in store for us. Gift enable us to do the will of God for our lives. Every gift is important and vital for the function of the church. If we step into a role we are not meant to be in we don't have the authority or anointing to do what is needed. Pride says I want to do this and because we are not called to the task it will not work. There will be struggle, disappointment and frustration which leads to anger, wasted time and energy.

What happens in our heart when we attribute success to our own strength and abilities? How does a realization that everything we have is a gift affect our ability to humble ourselves? When our heart becomes self-focused, it becomes hard and cut off from God. My successes and abilities make me blind to the One who blessed me with them, and I end up forgetting about God. Thus my heart is not surrendered to God. Realizing everything is a gift, points me to the fact that I am nothing without Him. If I'm yielded to the Lord I know, that I know, that He is the one who has blessed me and I can't help but praise Him.

Virtues flow from Humility because love is connected to humility as is kindness, gentleness, compassion... These virtues are Jesus' character, and they reveal his perfect moral character, that he is imparting to us as we humble ourselves before him. Vices are from the enemy and nothing good comes from a prideful heart. Humility and pride are central to character because, our identity is revealed through character. Therefore, I'm either prideful revealing my identity is aligned with the evil one or I'm humble revealing my identity is in Christ Jesus.

Low-self focus is me loving God with my all of my heart, soul and mind. I am completely in love with my Savior above my self, husband, children, church and family and friends.. Low-self focus reveals I am in a posture of surrender and fully trusting Him with every area of my life. High- other focus is me loving my neighbor as my self meaning I love them and nurture them, and serve them as best as I can as Christ would have. Combining a low-self focus with a high-self focus is a key to bring a disciple of Jesus. It connects them becasue if I love God and my neighbor it motivates me to respond. In a disciple, low-focus looks like me taking this course to be more like God, praying and worshipping God. It is making sure I am staying close to Jesus. High-self focus ooks like, me praying with people, helping them with their expenses, clothing those in need, taking a meal to someone, shouldering them in difficult times.