SELF LOW, BUT CHRIST HIGH – Charles Spurgeon
SELF LOW, BUT CHRIST HIGH
“The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.” Matthew 8:8.
Introduction to the Centurion’s Humility
This centurion was a worthy man from the human point of view, but he called himself unworthy when he turned towards our Lord. He was so excellent a man that the elders of the Jews, who were by no means partial to Roman soldiers, pleaded with Jesus that he was worthy. Had he been personally there, he would have repudiated their plea, and he did so by the second party of friends whom he sent to our Lord. As one set of friends had said, “He is worthy,” another set of friends was bid to say, in his name, “Lord, I am not worthy.” The worthiest men in the world do not think themselves worthy—while the most unworthy people are generally those who boast of their own worthiness and, possibly, of their own perfection.
The Centurion’s Humility and His Status
We should not have wondered had this man been proud, for he was one of the conquering race and the representative of a tyrannical power. If he were not a very great officer, but only the captain of a hundred men, yet it is not unusual for petty officers to be more haughty than their superiors. If a man is placed in a very high and responsible position, he is frequently sobered by his responsibilities—but a mere jack-in-office is usually greater than the emperor himself! However, this centurion was a man of gentle mold and said of himself, “I am not worthy.” He might have been proud of his popularity among the Jews. Few can bear to be surrounded with an atmosphere of esteem without beginning to esteem themselves much too highly. He had built a synagogue for the Jews. That is a good thing to do, but it is very possible to build a synagogue and to become a great man in one’s own opinion—and stand several courses of bricks higher in pride. Not so, however, this good man who had built a synagogue, but did not presume upon the greatness of his own generosity. He never mentioned it, but said, “I am not worthy that You should come under my roof.”
The Centurion’s Faith and Humility
He was a man used to command. He says to this man, “Go, and he goes. And to another, come, and he comes.” They that are known to be obeyed are apt to hold themselves at a high valuation—but this centurion had not fallen into the very common fault. He watched carefully over the sickness of his young servant and was earnest that he might be healed. He was a tender master as well as a liberal neighbor. If we wished to pick out a truly worthy man, we need not go further than this Roman soldier, or we might fare worse and yet he said, “Lord, I am not worthy.”
Unworthiness and the Power of Christ’s Word
Further, note that he did not say, “Lord, the room in which my servant sleeps is not worthy of You—and it is not right that You should climb to the attic where the boy lies sick.” He said, “I am not worthy that You should come under my roof”—not even into the best parlor, or the drawing room. It is my house and being such, it is the abode of one who has not dared to seek a personal interview with You and I judge it to be altogether unfit for Your entertainment. He was fearful of troubling the Lord and felt that to bring Him through the streets to his door was more than he could think of for a moment, when a word would suffice to work the miracle he sought.
The Blending of Humility and Faith
Beloved Friends, my point this morning is this—I would call your attention to the happy blending of this beautiful humbleness with an extraordinary degree of faith. In his confession of sin he is unsparing—“Lord I am not worthy that You should come under my roof.” But in his confession of faith, he is equally clear. “Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.” It is a kind of vulgar error that a lowly esteem of ourselves must be connected with a very great diffidence towards Christ. I call it a vulgar error, for it is an error both common and baseless. The fact is that high thoughts of self go with low thoughts of Christ—and well they may, for they are birds of a feather. But low thoughts of self should always be associated with high thoughts of Christ—for they are both products of the Spirit of God and they help each other.
The Connection Between Humility and Assurance
Our unworthiness is a foil to the brightness of our Lord’s infinite grace. We sink deep in humility, but soar high in assurance. As we decrease, Christ increases. To make this point clear, I shall say, first of all, that a sense of unworthiness is very desirable and commendable. But secondly, that a sense of unworthiness can be very wrongly used and can even be made the occasion of grave sin. Then, thirdly, I shall add that a sense of unworthiness finds a fit companion in a strong faith in Christ. Of this, the text supplies us with an instance. May the Holy Spirit help our meditations and make them truly profitable!
A Sense of Unworthiness is Desirable and Commendable
Some of you are destitute of it. I dare say you think it a mean and miserable thing. You suppose it would injure your manliness, lower your self-respect, and dampen your courage. Dear Friends, the manliness which feeds on sin is a poisonous fungus which grows out of the rottenness of a corrupt heart. May it be taken away from us! Any condition of mind which is founded on a falsehood must be an evil one—it is a bubble blown by ignorant conceit. Let us not desire more self-respect, manliness, or courage than will be consistent with the truth of things. I commend a sense of our unworthiness because it is a sense of what is true. When a man thinks himself unworthy before the Lord, his thoughts are right. When he feels that he could not be saved by the merit of his own works, for his works are faulty and defiled, then he judges according to fact.
The Truth of Unworthiness
Whatever result a thought may have upon us, whether it makes us happy or makes us sad, this is a secondary matter—the main point with an honest mind must always be—Is it true? If it is a truthful thought, I ought at once to entertain it, cost me what it may. Should the truth create devastation within my soul and destroy all my fair hopes and promising fancies, it must be so, for the most painful effect of truth is better for me than the most flattering results of falsehood. Better the suffering of truth than the kisses of deceit. The arrow which pierces the heart of self-conceit is a blessing! If you take a very lowly view of yourself, some may call you morbid but they know not of what spirit you are. Humility is healthy—lowliness is no disease. When we think worse and worse of ourselves, we are getting nearer and nearer to the truth. We are by nature depraved, degraded, guilty, and worthy of the wrath of God. If any hard thing can be imagined against fallen man, it is assuredly true of him. What worse character can be given to human nature than that which is drawn by the pen of Inspiration in the third chapter of the Epistle to the Romans?
Unworthiness and Compassion for Others
Oh, that God would make us lowly in spirit and fill us with a deep feeling of our own unworthiness—for this will only be revealing to us the truth and delivering us from the way of falsehood. In the next place, note that a deep sense of unworthiness is no proof that a man has grossly sinned. It may be viewed in quite the opposite light—if the man had been heinously wicked his conscience would have lost its sensitiveness—and he would not, in all probability, have felt his unworthiness so keenly. He that has high thoughts of himself is not necessarily a man of clean life and, on the other hand, he that has very depreciatory thoughts of himself is not thereby proven to be worse than others. He that feels himself unworthy has something about him that God esteems. We are sure of this, for when the Lord seeks a lodging among men, though He might have His choice of palaces, He nevertheless deigns to say, “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”
Unworthiness and Tenderness to Others
Do not judge men by their estimates of themselves, or if you do, take this as your guide, that he that humbles himself is to be exalted and he that exalts himself is to be abased. He that is great, is little—let him that is little to himself be all the greater with you. God loves not those who boast—He has filled the hungry with good things, but the rich He has sent away empty. I commend this sense of unworthiness because it has a tendency to make a man kind to others. He who thinks highly of himself, another man may think a nobody. Pride has no heart and will rather turn a sick servant out of doors than seek a physician for him. If a man is proud he will say, “I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. I am not to be worried by having sick boys to look after.” Sympathy, tenderness, and the valuation of others are strangers in the house of the proud—but they take up their abode with those who think themselves unworthy.
Humility Leads to Tenderness Toward Others
Beloved, it is well to think little of yourselves, for then you will have more thought to spare for the sorrows of others. If you know yourself to be unworthy, you will cheerfully recognize the claims of others and will feel that it is not beneath you to care for the poorest and most obscure. There is some trace of a work of divine grace in your heart when you have a love to your neighbor because you feel that you are no better than he. This is infinitely better than to be so great that you can trample down the crowd in your imperial and imperious dignity and look down with contempt upon the many who have not attained to that eminent degree of honor which you suppose yourself to be enjoying. The great man, the very great man, the highly-deserving man, the person who is a right honorable and worshipful personage rides roughshod over his fellows and crushes them without compunction if they lie in his way and may hinder his design. But the consciously unworthy man, the man who feels that he owes everything to the mercy of God and must still depend upon that mercy and that mercy only, will be tender and gentle towards his fellow sinners and speak comfortably unto them.
Humility and Submission to Christ
We commend, again, this sense of unworthiness because it makes man lowly towards the Savior. Of all things that are contemptible, a proud bearing towards the Lord Jesus is the most hateful—yet it is by no means unusual. Some seem to fancy that Jesus is a servant at their beck and call. They talk about His salvation as though He ought to give it and they could claim it for themselves and all mankind. If we speak about the sovereign choice of some unto eternal life, they begin chattering about injustice and partiality—as if any guilty man had a right to anything from the Lord of Glory—except the dreadful right to be punished for his sins! I think I hear the Master say, “May I not do as I will with My own?”
The Right Approach to Christ
Many of those who pretend to be the advocates of divine grace are the betrayers of it and snatch from its hand the silver scepter of its sovereignty. Beloved, it is well in prayer to come to our Lord, not as creditors seeking a debt but as condemned criminals, begging for a free pardon. We have no claim on God. If He chooses to save us, it must be of His own free grace. Let us come humbly, saying, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. That You should die for me remains the greatest of all miracles in my esteem. That You should choose me and call me—and pardon me and save me—is a world of wonders at which my soul stands gratefully amazed! Why me? How could You look on such a dead dog as I am?”
Confession of Unworthiness and Salvation
Our right state of heart, when dealing with our Lord Jesus, is that of the penitent washing His feet with tears, or of the leper who fell at His feet and worshipped Him. If we would come to the Savior of sinners, we must come as sinners. We must come as humble petitioners and not as those who proudly fancy that they have a claim upon the grace of God. A sense of unworthiness is exceedingly useful because it puts a man where God can bless him. “Oh,” you ask, “where is that?” The Lord will only act in conformity with His own attributes. God will always be God and as He will be God alone in Creation, so He will certainly be God alone in the new Creation. Our only right position before God is to know that we are undeserving and unworthy while He is holy and glorious. We must hear Him say, “I am God and beside Me there is none else,” or we shall never look unto Him to be saved.
The Necessity of Humility Before God
If I am somebody and I stand up with my rights and my claims, God cannot bless me without conceding to me that which He never will concede! How dare I claim that which He calls a free gift! How often have I made this place ring with that voice of the Lord, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion”! Depend upon it, God will be God! And if you will not be saved without His leaving the throne of His sovereignty, then you will perish without hope! He will be King and Lord in the work of salvation—you must take it as His free gift or die without it! If it is of divine grace it cannot be of right—the things are contradictory!
God’s Mercy and Our Response
Unutterably great is His pity! Immeasurable is His mercy—but He will have no pity for those whose proud self-will stands out against His sovereign grace! O sinner, if you would be pardoned, you must confess that the Lord is King! Your touch of Jesus Himself must be like that of Thomas when he put his finger in the wound, and cried, “My Lord, and my God”! You must have Jesus to be Lord and God to you or He will be nothing to you.
Conclusion: Humility and Faith in Christ
Beloved, no man will yield to this till he has a thorough conviction of his own unworthiness. We are not worthy to be saved—if we were, it would be of debt and not of grace. We are not worthy to receive any good from the hand of an offended God—if we were, we should make our appeal to justice, and mercy would not be needed! Come, dear Hearers, let us bow before the Lord and admit that He alone is King! Let us confess that we deserve nothing but His wrath—“If sudden vengeance seize my breath, I must pronounce You just in death. And if my soul were sent to Hell, Your righteous law approves it well.”
A Call to Humble Faith in Christ
It is assuredly so and therefore we put in no claim, but simply cry, “O God, be merciful to me.” This state of mind, once more, makes a man in love with the simple Word of God. This man, because he was not worthy, did not ask of Christ any mystic words or imposing ceremonies, nor even so much as a visit to his house. No, he was content that the Lord should speak the word! It is our proud human nature that so much sighs for finery and pomp—we would gladly go to Heaven by some royal road or glittering way—we want to be saved to music and perfected by paraphernalia! We would like to be forgiven, but we must have a visible priest in full canonicals—and we must have a decorated altar and a show of candles in the daylight! Gewgaws are needed to conceal the humiliation of being saved by pure grace! But a soul that feels its own unworthiness cries, “Lord, save me in Your own way. Your word is enough for me. Speak the word of command and it suffices me.”
Faith in Christ’s Word Alone
We read, “He sent His word, and healed them” (Psa. 107:20), and a sense of unworthiness will make us content to be saved in that most simple manner. Humble souls love a plain Gospel. I know what some are—they read a book which contains the Gospel and because it is very simple, they say, “This will do for my servant girl, or for the laborer in my field.” But for themselves, they seek something more difficult to understand and consequently more flattering to their pride. Many people like a preacher who can confuse the Gospel for them—plain speech offends them. We are overdone with such folk in this generation.
The Simplicity of the Gospel
Certain people, when they hear what they cannot comprehend, say fervently, “What a wonderful discourse! I delight in a man of culture who raises the tone of preaching above what the lower classes can understand.” They are fools that talk so! The more plain the word, the more likely it is to be the Word of God. Did not Paul say, “Seeing we have received this ministry, we use great plainness of speech”? The Gospel is not sent into the world for the elite, for the few choice souls that read the reviews. The Gospel is sent into the world for “every creature” and if it is meant for “every creature,” it must be made so plain that even non-readers may be able to comprehend it and persons with the least education, or none at all, may be able to grasp it.
The Call to Faith and Humility
You, learned Sir, may like a highly-finished Gospel which only a half-dozen gentlemen like yourself can comprehend, but I like the common salvation, the good news for the crowd, the writing which he that runs can read. Does not your candor and humanity admit that it is well that the Gospel should be simple enough for the poor and the illiterate, since they need salvation as well as the educated? I would to God that a sense of unworthiness brought us all down from those pinnacles of the temple of vanity where we stand in mutual admiration, but in awful danger of a fall. Oh, that the heavenly wisdom would make us willing to be saved like commonplace sinners—willing for Christ not to come to our house, but to give the word of command by which the miracle of grace would be worked!
Final Challenge
Now, Beloved Friends, I leave that point, only putting it thus—Do you know your own unworthiness? I do not ask you whether you have been racked with terrors, nor whether you have been tormented with doubts, nor whether you have been drowned in despair—that may be, or may not be. But are you willing to subscribe to this—that you are not worthy? That a sentence of condemnation may fitly be passed upon you and if you are saved it must be of free grace alone?