The Falsehood of Self

 

Philippians 2:3-4 NKJV – “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

 

Almost eight billion people in the world and somehow, individualism has crept in and taken a seat in the most communal spaces.  Self-love and self-gratification have become very popular  in our various circles today and we are reminded daily to set out with a daily agenda to put ourselves first in any situation. The idea of taking care of one’s needs first and loving one’s self, though very essential in developing self-worth, if taken in isolation, removes an element of loving as it pertains to Christianity and how the Bible teaches us to love; service.

 

As Christians, we need to understand that the premise of self is a false one. God has called us not only to love Him, but to love our neighbours as ourselves. Looking out for others is an extension of what God does for us every day therefore we must seek to do for others the same things we would like for ourselves. 

We must be reminded  that as we take care of ourselves, we have also been called to a place of death to self. Just like Jesus did, we must be okay with the idea of putting other people’s needs above ours, going above and beyond for other people, and giving to someone you know cannot repay. Not without pain, not without disappointments. Self is constantly at war with the Spirit, and the direction that self leads to is contrary to where God leads. Let’s not be too quick to gratify self.

 

Self-love comes with so many rules and conditions that make you feel accepted. Maybe if you had a little more makeup on, a little more “flesh on your bones”, a little less of it maybe, then you could be confident in yourself. So you start new routines that will somehow shape you into this person that you may love sometime in the future. Until then, you will use the hashtag on everything so others can see that you are loving who you are, when you truly are more conscious of the things that you consider as flaws. It’s exhausting! 

God tells us we don’t have to go through all of that. Jesus paid the price so that our wholeness, confidence and satisfaction will all be in him. He says you are already complete in Him with nothing missing and nothing broken. All the love you need is in Him, and once you recognize that, you love and enjoy who you are without putting up a front and then you can extend that love to others. (We will expose the fallacy of self-love from a Biblical perspective next week).

 

As we grow and find out more about our own selves, we begin to realize the things that we can tolerate and those things that are non-negotiables in our lives. If your path is lighted by God’s word, then you would truly be in a place of moulding, where your likes, dislikes, personality traits and outward conduct are shaped by the Master Potter himself. 

On the contrary, if you are building on anything outside of the One who made you, you walk a dark path where your source of light, direction and purpose is concentrated in one being that is finite and limited in wisdom, understanding and knowledge of the future; yourself. (Let this sink in please!)

This causes us to give ourselves credit for the things we planned for that worked out, as well as the serendipitous ones we had no control over. God makes a man. God makes a woman. Nobody is ever self-made, and to give one’s self the credit over our own lives is akin to being Lord over our own selves. Have you ever seen or read about people in positions of power who rose from the bottom to the top and have zero tolerance for struggling people? Those are the self-made people; those who give themselves all of the credit for how far they’ve come, and whatever solitary path they took, surely, others must tread their lonely paths too. 

It is good to mind your own business, but asking God why you are so concerned about another person’s business might reveal an avenue for you to help that you did not know was there, and you can be a blessing to someone.

 

To us Christians, the most important reason why we have people all around us is that we need to edify (build up) one another. The church must be filled with people who understand the communal spirit, who can say “I’m here if you need me” and actually mean it, people who can call out a straying friend, and inconvenience themselves for the blessing and benefit of others. God expects this from us because He set the standard for us. Let us go back to God’s love and ditch the idea of self.

 

“The goal is not to be God; the goal is to need God”

-       Sarah Jakes Roberts

 

Be blessed.

 

Your friends,

 

Becky and Sharon