By Almon Bartholomew

This paper is intended to show the relationship of humility to one with a teachable spirit. There are many applications of humility which are worthy to consider. These diverse applications impact the person who would learn. For our purpose, we will define teachable as “one who has the capacity and the willingness to learn. “

A basic principle of education sheds light on our theme: “No teaching occurs until learning occurs. No learning occurs until the information received modifies the recipient’s thinking, priority or behavior”. This principle assumes that the person who receives the information has both that capacity and the willingness to learn. Humility aids in this search for a widening understanding.

In considering this principle we will follow a three level application; “teaching”, “learning”, and “changing”. There are obstacles raised on the path of this tri-level concept. These obstacles include apathy, tradition, rigidity, fear of the unknown and an overarching impediment, inflated egos, better known as pride. These must be dealt with if our goal is to be achievable.

Apathy suggests a “so what” attitude “these things don’t concern me”. Tradition says “We have never done it this way before”. Rigidity manifests a hard and fast determination not to change, saying, “God doesn’t change and I’m not going to change either. Well, if one is perfect he doesn’t have to change. Man is not perfect; God is! There is a lesson to be learned from the little boy who said “If God is having difficulty making me a better boy it’s all right. I like me just the way I am”. Fear of the unknown is a real detriment to accepting something new. Some new perspective may be scary. Personal pride will caboose on any of these and deter both learning and change.

Pride is the antithesis of humility. It will create a mental block and will diminish one’s receptivity to something new. One must examine the validity and options of a different view, answer or solution. If such validity is determined, it may be in one’s best interest to consider a new approach. The person who will not entertain options may be characterized by the spirit underlying the statement “my mind is made up; don’t confuse me with the facts”. Humility leaves the door open to that which may be helpful, and indeed better, for one who seeks the best.

There is a difference between pure science and applied science. Pure science takes place in the lab. One can perform the same experiment over and over again and continue to get the same results. This is possible because there are no variables. Applied science, on the other hand, takes place in the field. The same experiment performed there may produce different results. This can occur since there are variables in the field.

What ever profession we may be in, we may tend to insist because we have the educational and background training we have the superior approach to a task. It is commonly called a “know it all attitude”. This creates friction in the workplace. It also limits the understanding of the unique set of circumstances which accompanies appropriate application in the field. It could be, by practicing humility, and looking at the concerns through the eyes of another who might be more experienced, one could learn from their observations. We must not let the information on our resume’ deny us learning from other people and other resources. A teachable spirit allows us to gain something new from persons who have long served in their field.

Let us apply the tri-level approach of “Teaching”, “Learning”, and “Changing”.

Teachers may come in all shapes and sizes and ages. The teacher in this Biblical narrative was a captive slave girl working in the home of a prestigious general in the Syrian Army. The unwitting student was Naaman, commander of Syria’s legions. He was the victim of a dread disease called leprosy. The lesson was, “how to be freed from a debilitating affliction”. The story is told in the 5th chapter of 1 Kings.

Upon learning of her master’s terrible plight she volunteered a solution. She informed him, “There is a prophet in Israel (Elisha) who could heal him. Now if this happened to one of our ministers today, we might be just a bit apprehensive having to live up to this advance billing. This young lady exuded great confidence in Elisha.

Desperate for any hope of help, Naaman pursued the contact. He enlisted the help of the King of Syria who sent a letter to the King of Israel. Israel’s King, with less faith than the captive maiden, thought this was a ruse to create an occasion to attack his land upon assuming his failure to produce the miracle. Elisha got news of the King’s dismay and sent word to direct Naaman to his house. He knew his God and he knew the Lord would not fail him.

Then Naaman showed up at the prophet’s door. Horses, chariots and a cache of treasures accompanied him. Elisha never came out to greet him. He sent word to Naaman by another telling him to go to the Jordan River and bathe seven times, and he would be healed. Naaman’s ego was shattered. He was furious. Didn’t Elisha know who he was ordering around? And, after all, the rivers in Syria were, by comparison, cleaner than Jordan. Naaman was headed home!

While the Syrian generalissimo was ready to ride out of town wearing a public pout, an underling suggested, “If he had asked you something difficult you would have done it”. Naaman humbled himself and struck a learning pose. He went to the muddy Jordan River and ducked in it six times. Following the seventh dip he arose from the water cleansed completely from his sore affliction. It was a teaching moment for Naaman, and when he humbled himself, as a willing learner, he was rewarded with a dynamic change in his life.

In yet another Biblical record, a sweet, wise, generous and mature woman named Abigail was the teacher. She was the wife of a selfish, wealthy and arrogant bigot named Nabal. Read about it in 1 Samuel, the 25th chapter. Besides vast vineyards and grain stores, Nabal owned 3,000 sheep and 1,000 goats. David, with his watchful companions, protected the shepherds and the flocks of this insolent man. None of them suffered injury or loss through the extended period of time David and his men kept watch.

In this whole story David is the one who attended class in the “School of Humility”. At first he didn’t even know he had preregistered. He and his men went to Nabal requesting, in lieu of payment for services rendered, an ample supply of food to ease their hunger. He was met with a scurrilous rebuke and utter disdain. In raging anger, (far from a humble response) David threatened death to Nabal, his household and his servants.

It was then when Abigail prepared and sent abundant provisions to David and his men. She also came humbly to him, speaking, as with a prophetic word, appealing to him to not have blood on his hands by retributing Nabal’s insolence. David cooled down took the humble way and God took care of the rest. Ten days later Nabal was smitten of God and he died. Abigail became David’s wife and potential slaughter was averted. David blessed God for Abigail’s intervention. Long before it was penned in Romans 12:19, David learned “Avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord”. Here, again, you have a teacher, a learner, and a lesson well learned. It did indeed alter his planned behavior.

Unlike Naaman and David, Nebuchadnezzar learned the hard way. In the 4th chapter of Daniel, the God of heaven was the teacher. Daniel was His surrogate in the classroom. Nebuchadnezzar, supreme monarch in Babylon was the audacious student. In process, the king abandoned his self deification and was brought to acknowledge the King of the Universe.

In the scriptural account Nebuchadnezzar paraded his personal greatness; “The King spoke, saying, is this not great Babylon which I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power, and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was still in the King’s mouth, (as had been prophesied by Daniel), a voice fell from Heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom is departed from you”. He was deposed for a season. He ate grass like oxen, the dew of heaven soaked his body, his hair grew like feathers and his nails like bird claws. His pride cost him dearly.

At the end of the appointed time, the King was restored. His eyes and his understanding had been opened. In utter humility he acknowledged the God of Heaven, giving Him honor and glory. He praised and extolled the King Eternal. He exclaimed, “Those who walk in pride He is able to abase”. In that dramatic experience he became teachable. Before this he sang “How Great I Am”. When God got through with him he changed his tune, singing “How Great Thou Art”. In today’s jargon one might repeat “The reason people beat their head against the wall is because it feels so good when you quit”. God taught; Nebuchadnezzar learned; his thinking and priorities changed.

These lessons continued in the New Testament. They are seen in the conversion of Saul of Tarsus (The Apostle Paul) recorded in Acts chapter nine. They are reflected in Samaria in Acts chapter eight. Simon the Sorcerer attempted to commercialize the blessing of God. He ended up begging for mercy. In Acts chapter eighteen, Acquila and Priscilla took a brilliant, articulate preacher, Apollos, aside and “expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly”. With humility this gifted man received their word. His ministry grew from that experience and he “mightily convinced” the public that “Jesus was the Christ”.

Jesus taught His disciples how to pray. In the beatitudes He taught them how to live. It was He who said in Matthew 23:12, “Whoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that humbles himself shall be exalted”.

Speaking both to you and myself, I say, “Let Jesus be our Teacher; let us take a humble, learning posture; let us yield ourselves to a life changing experience”. In so doing we will be better servants to Him and to those he entrusts to our care.

Almon Bartholomew is a retired pastor. He is shown here with his wife, Joyce.

(Part One)

By Almon Bartholomew

“For I say, through the grace of God given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3, KJV.

“For it is by Grace you have been saved, through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9, NKJV

Also Read: Hebrews 11:1-6; 32-40 And Jude 20-21.

At what price would you sell out your faith? Of what value is it to you? These are the questions for which we seek answers. What price FAITH? Some have valued it lightly. Others have literally died for their faith, not willing to make a bad bargain.

Years ago I ran across what I believe is a profound statement. “Faith is the currency of Heaven”. It is the medium of exchange. Even though the dollar is shrinking, it is still the medium of exchange for goods and services here in America. Those goods and services may be found in the yellow pages, but they are purchased with the green stuff! Heaven has no shortage of the things we most need. In exchange for our faith they are made abundantly available to us. Jesus advised us in Matthew 6:33 to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” and then all of these things on our “needs list”, not our “wish list”, would be provided for. Faith is the currency, the medium of exchange, by which we obtain these heavenly and earthly commodities.

But, we say, “We don’t have any faith”. The Bible says we do. According one of the verses in our text God has given every person a measure of faith. When we say we have no faith it is probably because we have buried it somewhere. It has not risen to the surface above all the” stuff” under which it is hidden. You see, what we don’t use, we lose. For lack of usage and personal reliance upon faith which comes from God, as a gift, it becomes dormant in the depth of our being. Get it out today. Retrieve it. Brush off the dust and decay. Begin to put it to work. We must stop denying its reality.

I am sure there is a deep desire in each of us gathered here today to please God. I am positive that no one wishes to displease him. That would have some dreadful consequences. How, then shall we, can we, please him?

Hebrews chapter one gives a definition of faith and then makes a declarative statement as to the proven benefit of its exercise. Faith is herein described as the substance which provides hope and the evidence of the reality of the unseen. Hope from a worldly source becomes a Russian roulette approach to life. It is a flimsy hope which has no substance upon which to stand. Our faith is in the power and reality of the unseen God. Faith, as a gift from God, provides for us the evidence of his presence, his nearness, his power, his unfailing love and His care for each of us. It is all the evidence we need.

Without that faith, we can not and will not please God. We must affirm that he is, that he exists. When we pray and seek him he will reward us as we diligently and determinedly search him out. He is there and He is here, above, among, and around us. His presence has come to indwell us, to live in our hearts. The song written by Ray price says it so well, “How big is God, how great and wide his vast domain, to try to tell my lips can only start. He’s big enough to fill his mighty universe, yet small enough to live within my heart.”

The Apostle Jude admonishes believers to “build up ourselves in this most holy faith”. We are enabled to do this by praying in the power generated by the Holy Spirit. So, we rely upon the Holy Spirit to help us to pray according the will of God in each matter of need and concern which may confront us. We are further encouraged by Jude to “keep ourselves in the love of God”, move by that divine impulse. It opens the door of mercy which leads to eternal life.

Now, for those of us who think that life is tough. In this 11th chapter of Hebrews we are given examples, one after the other, of God enabled achievements by individuals whose faith set a high bench mark for we who follow. After the recital of these great feats of faith, there is a grouping of people whose victories have been recorded which were all made possible by faith. Faith has been the common denominator, and the prominent factor as they encountered a legion insurmountable odds. Walk with me as together we march through Hebrews 11:32-38:

1. Through their faith they subdued kingdoms

2. Through faith they performed righteous works.

3. Through faith they saw God’s promises fulfilled.

4. Through faith they shut the jaws of lions.

5. Through faith they quenched the flames of fire.

6. Through faith they escaped the edge of the sword.

7. Through faith, they shed weakness & found strength.

8. Through faith they became valiant heroes in battle.

9. By faith they turned back alien armies.

10. By faith, women received their dead back to life.

11. By faith they endured torture.

12. By faith they endured scourging, mocking, prison.

13. By faith they endured stoning.

14. By faith they suffered bodily dismemberment.

15. By faith they fought against temptation.

16. By faith they endured destitution, affliction and tormenting.

17. By faith they dwelt in mountains, dens, caves and deserts.

18. By faith they kept a good testimony.

And we think we have problems. The truth is, we by comparison, have it pretty easy. This is not so in many parts of the world. In many places our Christian brothers and sisters are horribly persecuted for their faith. They are ostracized, jobless, beaten, jailed, and even put to death. Asian, Arabic and African countries have dealt fierce punishment to Christian believers. Europe has becoming increasingly unfriendly to the faith. And we face more threats in our country than we may realize.

A secularized, liberal society is trying to eliminate God from every public arena. They have done it in our schools. They have commanded our military chaplains to not pray in the name of Jesus. The ACLU seeks to strip “In God We Trust” from our currency and the Ten Commandments from our courthouses. Christians are more and more the subject of public humiliation. Yet we are reminded in Scripture we “have not yet resisted unto blood” Hebrews 12:4. We are getting a wake up call. Our faith and testimony is, and it will be tested more and more. We must not be the star actor in a self destructive, personal pity party. Let us rise up to the occasion which is before us in the eternal conflict between good and evil. “This is the victory which overcomes the world, even your faith,” I John 5:4.

Back to the beginning of this message; “What price FAITH? If you had a rare, original Rembrandt painting worth $10,000,000.00 you would do everything to protect and preserve this rare art treasure. We need no less diligence in preserving and protecting what the scriptures define as “precious faith”. This faith is precious and must be kept, must be exercised, must be practiced. It is absolutely irreplaceable!

Let us take up the challenge of Revelation 2:10, “Be thou faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life.”

“YOUR FAITH; YOUR TREASURE”

PART TWO

By Almon Bartholomew

We begin today by reaching back to part one, and the question, “What price Faith”? Some have considered it to be of little or no value. Others have given their lives for it.

Our Bible has much to say about this faith. On, at least, 33 occasions the New Testament refers to faith as “the faith”. By repeated emphasis, it has specific qualities. It is personal as reflected in many references such as “thy” faith, “his” faith, “their” faith, “her” faith, “our” faith. It justifies, it sanctifies and it enlightens. It saves, obtains promises, stabilizes when the going gets tough and gains Heaven’s favor. “It is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen”. It is described scripturally as most holy, precious, unfeigned, bold, common, effectual (effective), and as a gift from God. It proudly stands among the righteous trio of virtues, “now abides faith, hope. love, these three”.

Let there be no doubt about it, faith has a high intrinsic value supported by a solid body of truth which can, and does, translate into real life circumstances. It is the faith to which the apostles confirmed the early church. It is the faith the reformers brought the church back to. It is the faith which fired the age of revivalism. It is the faith the circles the globe through the message of countless missionaries. It is the faith resident in the heart of God fearing people, which gives passion to our message of hope in Christ and burns in the hearts Christian believers around the world and right here in us, right now.

Having identified that faith, how do we establish its worth? What gives it value? If we consider it to be priceless, what is the standard of measurement by which we make such an evaluation? Let us take a practical (empirical) approach.

The worth of a product or service is determined by a fivefold standard of measurement:

1. It’s rarity. Is it obtained from a single source or is it something found among many inventories?

2. What is the cost attached to providing the product or service; the cost of acquisition?

3. Does its performance match its promise?

4. It’s durability, its longevity. Is it designed for early obsolescence, or is it long term in nature?

5. What affect would the removal of such product or service have upon their users? Is it indispensable or can a suitable substitute be provided?

Let us look at the first criterion. How rare, and from what source is the product or service available? Our faith, our salvation, the gospel we preach comes from one supplier. God himself is the sole provider of Salvation. Ephesians 2:8-9 declares “For by grace you are saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast”. Salvation comes from an exclusive source, God Almighty! Isaiah, the prophet, delivers God’s undiluted message:

“I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me”. (Isaiah 45:5)

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song: he also is become my salvation,” Isaiah 12:2.

The prophet Jonah adds “But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving: I will pay that which I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord,” Jonah 2:9.

Secondly, a product or service has worth because of the cost of acquisition. It cost heaven a dear price to provide for our salvation. God did not take the cheap way out. When the Lord made available a “Pearl of great price”, He picked up the tab. Philippians chapter two reveals the price Jesus paid for our faith. Starting out with equality with God the Father, our Lord left heaven, descended to earth, became a man, and humbled himself. He died at cruel hands. His final suffering came by hanging on a cross between two thieves, and He was buried in a borrowed tomb.

“Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow”. If value is determined by the price paid to obtain it, then our faith, our salvation, is BEYOND priceless!

Not all products and services perform as promised. That is proven by the numbers of scam artists at work today. This brings us to our third test of worth. Can we bank on the promises made by this faith? ABSOLUTELY!

Since Jesus Christ died on the cross, and rose again in resurrection power, literally hundreds of millions of people have testified that he keeps his word! He has rewarded the faith these persons have placed in him with undeniable confidence. He gives salvation from sin, and the start of a new life. He has done what he said he would do. His performance matches his promise! The gospel of Jesus Christ is true, if for no other reason, it works. It makes a drastic difference in the lives of those who place their trust in him. Let me underscore this truth once more; the gospel is of great worth because it performs exactly according to its promise!

Fourth on this list is value linked to durability. This faith has withstood the ravages of time. Uncounted efforts have been made to stamp out the Christian faith. Hot persecution, including martyrdom, beatings, reprisal, and banishment could not kill this faith. Political pressure, governmental edicts, severe discrimination, destruction of Bibles and the outlawing of free assembly for religious services could not destroy it. This thing is built for rough usage and it was made to last. There is no planned obsolescence here. Evil will never triumph over Almighty God. He, and the faith He gives us, has enduring power.

This is the faith that believers have carried into every experience in life. It is good in the good times and it is good in the bad. The undeniable sense of God’s sustaining grace abides through all of life, through death itself, and frees us to enter into His glorious, unrestricted presence in heaven. We sing with ever increasing faith, “The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows. The more that I love Him, the more love He bestows. Each day is like heaven, His love overflows. The longer I serve

Him, the sweeter He grows“.

Number five in this standard of measurement considers what affect would it have upon the users if such product or service should be removed from them. It focuses on the indispensable quality of the Christian faith.

Had it not been for this faith this world would be an ugly place in which to live. Unregenerate hearts would still be unregenerate. Christian influence upon morals, the quality of life, civil law, music, the arts, the sciences, and the sense of community would leave an unfillable void. And, should all the years of its impact upon mankind be removed, society would be devastated. This faith, this gospel; this vital, essential Christianity, has absolutely no substitute. Its worth to the world of mankind and each individual believer is incalculable.

When cannibals first received the gospel in the South Sea Islands, a French trader visited one of their islands. As an unbeliever, he chided them for accepting Christianity. He asked them what the gospel had ever done for them. They replied, “We don’t know what it has done for us, but it sure has helped you. Without it, you would have already been boiling in our pot”! A world absent this gospel is unthinkable.

For some, the faith has come and gone cheaply. Esau exchanged his birthright for a pot of chili. Judas traded an apostleship for thirty pieces of silver. A rich young ruler preferred worldly wealth to eternal life. Demas forsook the world to come for the world that now is.

While this may be fact, many have been willing to die for their faith. Those who have died for their faith in the past hundred years are more than those martyred since early church history. The book titled “By Their Blood” written by James and Marti Hefley recounts the record of those who have given their lives in behalf of the gospel in the 20th century. There were more who made the supreme sacrifice for Christ in the 20th century than in all of those who laid down their lives in the previous centuries combined.

People among our own great fellowship and throughout the immense missionary movements of the world have paid an awesome price to share the gospel. I have been moved to tears while reading the book written by the Hefleys. I want to refer to one of the accounts, that of a woman missionary who gave her life while sharing this worthy, workable faith.

During the Boxer rebellion in China 1900-1905 there were 153 missionaries and 13 of their children who were slain. Beyond this tens of thousand of Chinese national believers were slaughtered. One of the noblest testimonies I’ve heard is recorded in this book:

“Anti-foreign mobs continued to lengthen the trail of blood of the Christian missionaries. Dr. Eleanor Chestnut an orphan girl from Waterloo, Iowa was among them. Raised by a poor aunt in the backwoods of Missouri, she skimped and starved to get through Park College.

“After studies at Moody Bible Institute, Dr. Chestnut was appointed by the then American Presbyterian Board to China in 1893.She started a hospital in Lien-Chow, Kwangsi, the Province adjoining Hong Kong. She lived on $1.50 per month so that the rest of her salary could buy bricks to build a clinic. Her board learned what she was spending on bricks, and insisted on paying her. She refused the sum offered, saying, “It will spoil all my fun”.

“While the building was under construction, she performed surgery in her bathroom. One operation involved the amputation of a coolie’s leg. The surgery was successful, except that the flaps did not grow together. Eventually the problem was solved, and he was able to walk with the aid of crutches. Someone noticed that Dr. Chestnut was limping. When asked why, she responded, “Oh, it is nothing”. One of the nurses revealed the truth. Using only a local anesthetic, the doctor had taken skin from her own leg for immediate transplant to the one whom nurses had called “a good for nothing coolie”.

“On October 23:1905, Dr. Chestnut and other missionaries were busy in a hospital when an anti-foreign mob attacked. She slipped out of the hospital to ask for protection from Chinese authorities, and might have escaped had she not returned to help her fellow workers. Her last act was to tear strips from her dress to bandage a wound in the forehead of a boy in the crowd. She was slain along with four other missionaries.”

Friends, now is the time to determine what this faith is worth to us. Let us declare, “Our faith; our treasure”! This is our eternal heritage. Don’t sell your birthright for a bowl of chili as did Esau, Jacob’s twin brother. Check out the difference between the temporal and the eternal. Your faith, your treasure is priceless. We must make it the number one, non-tradable possession of our lives.

Rev. Al Bartholomew was, for many years, a pastor in western New York.