There is no power in the human soul that can cast out self unless it is the power of the living Christ and the fruit of the Spirit. If we think we can humble ourselves past the point of giving up trying to humble ourselves and bowing to Him alone who can humble us, we have yet to see the power of pride and self in our own hearts. When Scripture says that we are to humble ourselves, it does not mean that we have the power to humble ourselves to the depths that is needed. But to humble ourselves is when we give up our own efforts to drive out self and cast ourselves (so to speak) into the arms of Christ to do this work Himself.
In opposition to the above paragraph, however, we find many modern people telling us that humility is nothing but a choice. We simply make a choice to choose others over self or to think lowly of self. But it should be self-evident that a person that chooses others over self could be proud of that if s/he has not been emptied of self. It can be a very selfish and proud choice to choose others over self. It can also be a sign of a very proud person that is proud of how s/he thinks somewhat lowly of self. Even the Pharisees could not have missed all the teaching in the Bible about humility. But in some way they defined it so they could accomplish it and even think they were humble. A soul that is proud enough to feign humility when fasting is a soul that is very proud and wants others to see its humility. The spirit of the Pharisee is alive today and it is alive in every son and daughter of Adam. It is only by the work of Christ in the soul in emptying the soul of self that true humility can be in the soul. But the Pharisee lives today in the professing Church and seeks greatness for self by trying to be the most humble. When self seeks greatness for self, it can know that it is not truly humble.
One of the great errors of the modern day is the thought that human beings can serve God by doing something for God. That is totally bogus. The issue is whether the human being has power within self to do something for God or whether it is only the soul that is empty of self that God fills with Himself to manifest Himself through. “Listen” to these profound words of Andrew Murray:
“God wished to reveal Himself in and through created beings by communicating to them as much of His own goodness and glory as they were capable of receiving. But this communication was not a giving to the creature something which it could possess in itself, a certain life or goodness, of which it had the charge and disposal. By no means. But as God is the ever-living, ever-present, ever-acting One, who upholdeth all things by the word of His power, and in whom all things exist, the relation of the creature to God could only be one of unceasing, absolute, universal dependence. As truly as God by His power once created, so truly by that same power must God every moment maintain. The creature has not only to look back to the origin and first beginning of existence , and acknowledge that it there owes everything to God; its chief care, its highest virtue, its only happiness, now and through all eternity, is to present itself an empty vessel, in which God can dwell and manifest His power and goodness.”
This statement is full of theology and is dripping with experiential Christianity. It also shows the beauty and the wonder of humility. Jesus told us more than once that the greatest is the most humble. Murray answers the question of why that is true here. The reason that the most humble is the greatest in the kingdom is because the purpose of a human being is to be empty of self so that God can manifest His glory through that soul. The humble soul has more of God and the glory of God shines through the humble soul far more than proud souls who despite their great gifts think highly of themselves and their giftedness. God did not and does not give human beings gifts in order to exalt themselves, but He gives them gifts so that they may exalt Him. After all, they are to love Him with all their being.
Notice the reason for creation in the first sentence. God created human beings in order to reveal Himself. To do that He communicates Himself to them in accordance to what they are capable of receiving. Souls that are full of themselves have no capacity for the glory of God because they are full of their own glory. Souls that are full of themselves have no room (so to speak) to receive the goodness of God. Souls that are full of their own spiritual works and abilities have no room to receive true grace. We can understand Micah 6:8 which teaches us what God requires: “He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” When the soul walks humbly with God it is emptied of self and God fills that soul with Himself. It is the humble soul alone that can walk with the God who will not give His glory to another to be used for man’s self-centered purposes in man’s self-love. True humility leads to true glory.
God Loves... Himself 
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