Humility, according to the Bible, is not something we can just up and do. Both the negative and positive examples of Scripture--from Pharaoh to Rehoboam, from Josiah to Ahab, from Hezekiah to Manasseh, and even to Christ himself--teach us that humility first comes from the hand of God. He initiates the humbling of his creatures. And once he has, the question confronts us: Will you receive it? Will you humble yourself in response to his humbling hand, or will you kick against him?

This concise, accessible study of Scripture's humble-self language uncovers two surprising lessons about the pursuit of humility in the Christian--both what we cannot do and also what steps we can take.