"The Ladder of Humily"

Notes:

1. "The Ladder of Humility," as provided in this post, is an adaptation from The Rule of St. Benedict (circa AD 529).  The scriptures, which I have added, are drawn, principally, from the NIV translation of the Bible.  When Benedict first wrote of these concepts, it is my understanding that he envisioned a ladder, similar to that of Jacob's Ladder in Genesis 28:11-19, that would reach from Earth up toward Heaven and enable one to ascend to the very Throne Room of our God and King.  While I appreciate Benedict's perspective--especially given the influence he was (and still is!) as a follower of Jesus and as a saint who's gone on before, in my own heart, I see things a little differently.  For me, it is a ladder that provides a means for me to descend unto the lower and lower realms of submission, humility, and service, where God does, in deed, dwell...in those highest of all high places:  The Throne of Humility.  In many ways, I envision my path downward to be likened to the waters that cascade down the side of a mountain, ever searching for the lower places, until, eventually, finding rest in the lowland areas and bringing life to all who reside there.  O that I might become a conduit of God's very Life...His loving-kindness, joy, compassion, and equanimity.
2. There are many ways to descend the ladder.  Sometimes, I just read through it prayerfully.  At others, I take my time with it and savor each rung as I talk through it with God.  However you approach this model of prayer, may it make a huge difference in your life as it has for countless Christians over the last 1,500 years.

 Peace to you, my friends,

The Blingster

Rung 1:  Be Fearful of God and Mindful of His Presence

And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the

Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?  (Deuteronomy 10:12-13)

I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory.  (Psalm 63:2)

The LORD knows the thoughts of man; He knows that they are futile.  (Psalm 94:11)

O Lord, You have searched me, and You know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down; You are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue, You know it completely, O Lord.

You hem me in—behind and before; You have laid Your Hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?  Where can I flee from Your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your Hand will guide me, Your Right Hand will hold me fast.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your Eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were Written in Your Book before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are Your Thoughts, O God!  How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.”  (Psalm 139:1-18)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.  (Proverbs 1:7)

The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good. (Proverbs 15:3)

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.  Above him were seraphs, each with six wings:  With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.  And they were calling to one another:  “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”  At the sound of their voices, the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.  “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.”  (Isaiah 6:1-5)

“And lo I Am and will be with you always,” says He, “even unto the very ends of the earth.”  (Matthew 28:20)

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice He judges and makes war.  His Eyes are like blazing fire, and on His Head are many crowns. He has a Name written on Him that no one knows but He Himself.  He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His Name is the Word of God.  The armies of heaven were following Him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.  Out of His Mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.”  He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.  On His robe and on His Thigh He has this Name written:  KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.  (Revelation 19:11-16)

“Behold, I Am coming soon!  My reward is with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End…I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the Bright Morning Star.”  (Revelation 22:12-13 and 16b)

Rung 2:  Be Busy Doing God’s Will (Not Your Own or Other People’s)

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.  (Proverbs 14:12)

Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.  (Proverbs 29:25)

“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.”  (Matthew 6:10)

“[S]mall is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”  (Matthew 7:14)

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His throne in heavenly glory.   All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left.  Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited Me in, I needed clothes and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you came to visit Me.’  Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink?  When did we see You a stranger and invite You in, or needing clothes and clothe You?  When did we see You sick or in prison and go to visit You?’  The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’”  (Matthew 25:31-40)

“Not My will, but Thine…into Your Hands I commit my Spirit.”  (Matthew 26:38; Luke 23:46)

“For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him Who sent Me.”  (John 6:38)

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing, and perfect will.  (Romans 12:2)

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  (2 Corinthians 9:7)

For God is at work within you both to will and to do His good pleasure.  (Philippians 2:13)

Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living.  Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.  For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.  It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.  For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.  Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you His Holy Spirit.  Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.  And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.  Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.  (1 Thessalonians 4:1-12)

Rung 3:  Be Willing to Subject Yourself to the Direction of Others

You know that the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints.  I urge you, brothers, to submit to such as these and to everyone who joins in the work, and labors in it.  (1 Corinthians 16:15-16)

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.  (Ephesians 5:21)

Rung 4:  Be Patient to Accept the Difficulties of Others

Those who marry will face many troubles in this life.  (1 Corinthians 7:28)

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  (Ephesians 4:1-3)

Rung 5:  Be Radically Honest with Others about Your Weaknesses

Therefore confess your sins to each other, and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.  (James 5:16)

Rung 6:  Be Deeply Aware that You Are the Chief Among All Sinners

Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions.  Wash away all my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.  Against You, and You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge.

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.  Surely You desire truth in the inner parts; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.  

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.  Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice.

Hide Your Face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquity. 

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will turn back to You.

Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God Who Saves Me, and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.  O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare Your praise.

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

In Your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.  Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight You; then bulls will be offered on Your altar.”  (Psalm 51)

“But the tax collector stood at a distance.  He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’”  (Luke 18:13)

What a wretched man I am!  Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord.  (Romans 7:24-25)

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance:  Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.  But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on Him and receive eternal life.  (1 Timothy 1: 15-16)

Rung 7:  Be Purposeful to Speak Less (and with More Restraint)

I said, “I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin; I will put a muzzle on my mouth as long as the wicked are in my presence.”  (Psalm 39:1)

Be still and know that I Am God.  (Psalm 46:10)

When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.  (Proverbs 10:19)

Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.  (Proverbs 17:28)

The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.  (Proverbs 18:21)

For we all offend often. If anyone offends not in word, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body, too.  (James 3:2)

[T]he tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.  Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.  The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body.  It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.  All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no one can tame the tongue.  It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.  With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing.  My brothers, this should not be.  Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?  My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?  Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.  (James 3:5-12)

Rung 8:  Be Transformed into the Love of God

Then God said, “Let us make man in Our image, in Our likeness.”  (Genesis 1:26)

Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.  (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

But we all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled faces, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit.  (2 Corinthians 3:18)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  (Galatians 5:22-23)

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”  (Ephesians 5:1-2)

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith.  (Hebrews 12:2)

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.  Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love…Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.  In this way, love is made complete among us…If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar.  For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.  And He has given us this command:  Whoever loves God must also love his brother. (1 John 4:7-8, 16-17, and 20)