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PROGRAM D-8188

I believe there are five “one anothers” which are crucial for us to implement if we desire good relationships with others and desire to reflect Jesus well. The first was to love one another, and the second was to accept one another.

Here’s number three: Clothe yourself with humility toward one another.

This “one another” comes from 1 Peter 5:5, which says this:

In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

We are to clothe ourselves with humility toward the people in our lives. It’s interesting that the Apostle Peter used a familiar illustration—something we do every day: We are to clothe ourselves with humility, and to put it on intentionally.

In order to clothe yourself, you must choose what to put on, and then you have to do it. Likewise, clothing yourself in humility is a choice you make. Just as you choose the clothes you wear each day, you can choose to put on humility each day.

I find that I have to be intentional about this, because being humble is not my natural state. It’s not where my old nature takes me. It’s only through Christ that I can even want to do this, and certainly it is his empowerment that makes it possible.

What does it look like to put on humility? It doesn’t mean you run yourself down or try to act humble. It means you consider others as important as you are, and you listen to them and give them respect. It means you don’t talk about yourself so much, but rather you let others talk about themselves—and you genuinely listen because you value them.

The Bible says that if we will humble ourselves, God won’t have to humble us. James wrote, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10). Pray this verse into your life. Ask God to show you each day what you can do to humble yourself—how you can clothe yourself in humility. Believe me, he will answer that prayer. When I first started praying that, God made it clear to me that I was too eager to tell people all about me, and I needed to humble myself and ask others about themselves with genuine interest.

Remember number three of our “one anothers”—clothe yourself with humility toward one another.