Paul the Apostle knew how to humble
himself before God. After his conversion, he was willing to be brought low for
the sake of the Gospel, no longer wanting to be proud and selfish as he was
when he persecuted Christians. Consequently, Paul frequently writes about
humility as a foundational virtue of the Christian life. In his letter to the
Philippians, he encourages followers of Christ to do everything in humility and
to count others as more significant than themselves (cf. Phil 2:3).
For Paul, human weakness is the
canvas for God’s power. Understanding that God’s grace is sufficient for him,
he does not fear his own imperfections. On the contrary, he is content with his
weaknesses and difficulties, knowing that when he is weak, then he is strong
with the power of God. As a humble person, Paul strives to put on a
"compassionate heart, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience"
(cf. Col 3:12), always remembering that the Lord forgave his many mistakes. He
was given the grace not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think
(cf. Rom 12:3). Thanks to the virtue of humility, he saw himself exactly as God
saw him. As Pope Benedict XVI beautifully noted: “Humility is not a virtue of
the weak but of the strong, of those who do not need to mistreat others to feel
important. Humility is the truth of life, the awareness of our smallness before
the grandeur of God, which opens us up to love” (General Audience, 2005).
Reflection on 2 Corinthians 12:21 by Jozef.
(Listen to podcast here)
