Better To Be Invited Up Than To Be Asked Down

"Do not exalt yourself in the king's presence, and do not claim a place among great men; it is better for him to say to you, 'Come up here,' than for him to humiliate you before a nobleman."  Proverbs 25:6-7 (NIV)

The wise man, King Solomon, taught that it is good to be humble.  It is better to be invited up to a seat of honor, than it is to take a seat among honored guests and to be humiliated by being asked to move and step down and give the seat that you took to another.  

We should not assume that there is a seat of honor reserved for us.  We should not take a seat of honor without being told to sit there.  It does not matter whether that seat is on the podium, on the stage, at the head table, at the head of the table, or in the reserved seating section, we should not assume that we are being so honored.  We should humble ourselves and sit in an unassuming place until we are invited to sit in a seat of honor.  It can be a very humiliating and embarrassing experience to be asked to give up a seat which you chose that was reserved for some one else.  Being humble can spare us a lot of hurt feelings.  It is better to be invited up, than to be asked down.  Honor is better bestowed upon us than wrongly presumed by us.  Jesus, The Christ, taught a similar lesson in a parable about the narrow door. (Luke 13:22-30)  His point was "those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last."  He taught a similar lesson in the parable about a wedding. (Luke 14:7-11)  His point was "for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  This can also be applied to other situations.  Do not exalt yourself to The King of Kings, do not falsely include yourself among the righteous.  There will be those who will show up to the judgement seat at the entrance to heaven, and they will be asked to leave.