In 1 Peter 5:5, the Apostle gives us insight into the practice of underestimating ourselves. Peter says, "Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
The term Peter uses for "clothe yourselves" is used once and only here in Scripture: ἐγκοβώσασθε. A rare and interesting Greek verb, ἐγκοβώσασθε means to knot, to tie humility around your neck—as one would tie on a cape. More so, the word speaks to a particular kind of garment—a kind of cape worn only by slaves. ἐγκοβώσασθε is a badge of servitude. Peter commands us to put on a slave's cape as an outward mark and sign of our devotion to Christ.
In other words, Peter is saying, underestimate yourself. And not just once, but daily. Tie on humility every day. Every day for the rest of your life.
The greatest man to ever walk the earth, next to King Jesus, was the Apostle Paul. Paul understood what it meant to underestimate himself. After his conversion, Paul wrote, "For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God" (1 Cor. 15:9). Paul, an apostle of King Jesus, saw himself as an intern, the bottom the apostle leadership ladder.
A few years later, after growing in maturity, holiness, and stature with God and man, Paul writes to the Ephesians, "...I am the very least of all the saints..." (Eph. 3:8).
A few years later, Paul an absolute stud and leader in the church, writes "I am the chief of all sinners" (1 Tim. 1:15).
And then, at the end of his life, the peak of his earthly holiness, favor, and stature, Paul is with Luke and he writes to Timothy, asking him to bring Mark because he is "being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of [his] departure has come" (2 Tim. 4:11).
If you know anything about a drink offering, you know it is the lowest form of temple offering, reserved for the poorest of the poor.
Think about Paul's journey of underestimation... Paul is not becoming more and more depraved as he gets closer and closer to God. Paul is not growing in his sinfulness. Rather, as Paul grows in godliness, as he grows in Christ-likeness, Paul discovers something that anyone who decides to walk with King Jesus learns—Paul learns that the closer you get to the Lord, the more you realize how unworthy you are.
You realize how far you are from His excellence, His holiness, His goodness, and His righteousness. The closer you get to the Lord, the more you should underestimate yourself. As Phillip Brooks said, "The true way to be humble, is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your real height against some higher nature."
I once read a story about a man who had been elected to the British Parliament. Proud of his accomplishment, he brought his family to London and gave them a tour of the city. When they entered Westminster Abbey, his eight-year-old daughter seemed awe-struck by the size and beauty of that magnificent structure. Her proud father, curious about what was going on in her mind, asked, "And what, my child, are you thinking about?" She replied, "Daddy, I was just thinking about how big you are in our house, but how small you look here!"
Friends, we are small in the light and grandeur of God. Our resumes', accomplishments, awards, and successes are laughable in light of Christ's work, death, and resurrection. Stand tall but never lose sight of your smallness.
How do we do that? How do we walk with head high and spirit low? We’ll talk more about that next week. But until then, remember how Ed Welched summed up the gospel... “The gospel is he story of God covering his naked enemies, bringing them to the wedding feast, and then marrying them rather than crushing them.”
Sheeshhh... I feel small just writing that. He is a good, holy, stupendously great God.
