Learning to Savor Humble Pie . . . .

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God
something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, 
taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  
And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself 
and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!  
Philippians 2:5-8

Do you like pie?  Me too!  The best piece of pie I ever experienced in my life was a strawberry-rhubarb pie made by my future mother-in-law. It was the first time I was invited to have dinner with family and I had never tasted rhubarb, so that alone was quite a treat.  But what I think brought my memory of that pie “over the top” for me, was the shortbread crust.  It was AMAZING and I have never managed to duplicate it.  As a matter of fact, as I think about it, what makes (or breaks) a good pie for me (be it fruit, meat or pizza pie) is the crust.   If the crust is like cardboard and tasteless, I may pick at the filling a little but then I will probably leave the rest.

So what brought back this memory?  I became curious about the origin of the phrase, “eating humble pie.”   The thought of having to  “eat humble pie” had never been appealing to me; it was something to avoid.    This week I learned that there is a lot more to humble pie than I ever knew.   Initially, I found a site online called Joe-ks.com (no kidding!) that confirmed my negative perception of humble pie: “to be proven wrong, especially after boasting.”   

However, I got interested when the article went on to say that the origin of humble pie actually goes back to Medieval times–when it was referred to as, “umble pie.”   

Containing the liver, heart, entrails and other “bits” leftover from a deer carcass, “umble pie”  was served to the servants and others at the “lower tables” in the lord’s hall.    What is interesting to me is that humble (sorry, ‘umble’) pie had to do with a person’s social status, not with being embarrassed or humiliated.

Thinking further, I wonder if my negative understanding of humble pie relates to how our culture confuses being humble with being humiliated.  

To be humble, is to not be full of pride.  
Shouldn’t that be a positive attribute that we want to cultivate?  

Yet in our culture, we tend to view humility as a sign of weakness.   Humiliation in the Cambridge Dictionary helped me to appreciate the difference between the two.  To humiliate is: to make someone feel ashamed or lose their respect for themselves.  Trying to mentally stand back and take all of this in, I was struck by the contrast between the two.  

To humble someone else
(humiliating them while supposedly elevating oneself)
is indeed a WEAK, wretched thing to do.   
However, there is an intrinsic STRENGTH
(dare I say it . . . an out-of-this world loveliness)
that is breathtaking when someone chooses
to humble themselves out of love for others.

Reflecting on Philippians 2:5-8, isn’t that exactly what Jesus did?    While we tend to focus on the events recorded about Jesus’s life when He walked on the earth and His teaching, we fail to appreciate the magnitude of what took place when GOD entered the “lower table” of life to walk among us:  

“Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped . . .” 

• • Made Himself nothing, 
  • Taking the very nature of a servant, 
  • Being made in human likeness. 

We dare not take this too lightly!  As a servant,
Jesus chose to live out a lifetime of “umble pie” in order to forge a way “up” for those who would trust in Him to share the King of kings table.
THAT, my friend, is the ultimate personification of
Amazing Grace!

We often talk in the Counseling Room about the beauty of humility before God.  Certainly there will be those who come along our path to humiliate us–and it is no small comfort to know that God condemns such behavior.  But here is something to think about:

 As we surrender that ill-given humiliation over to God as our Comforter–
rather than holding on to it–a healing balm of His love and mercy
overtakes the ugliness and grants us comfort and peace.   

This is how humility, worked out as a reflection of Christ in us, demonstrates a loveliness that is not lost on God.   We can actually begin to emulate Christ’s humility in our attitude toward others, in His strength, not our own:

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus . . . 
being found in appearance as a man,  He humbled Himself 
and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” 

As we ponder the beauty God sees in humility, let us cultivate a willingness to “eat humble pie” by loving our neighbor as Christ loved us.  And don’t forget the importance of the crust (your heart); may it exude the beautiful tenderness of  a loving faith dedicated to His Glory.

“He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them His way.  
All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful 
for those who keep the demands of His covenant.”  
Psalm 25:9

All to His Glory!