I‘d say it’s pretty much a certainty that we will never fully understand or make much of our lives, unless we first realize our place in this life. If we compare ourselves to God, we would see how lowly we are, how high God is and the immeasurable love that bridges that gap. We are living in a time when there is too much emphasis put on having self-esteem and not much emphasis on having Christ-esteem.
The number of people that don’t feel they have any need for a savior is growing, and if they don’t need Him, the certainly can’t love Him. They’re too full of themselves to have much room for Jesus. There are lots of people that profess to be Christians, yet they always complain about life, put themselves above others, mock other people and are selfish in other ways. They have too high a regard for themselves; they have too low a view of God and hardly any appreciation for what God has given them.
In all the time since the Bible was written, nobody has ever found a single verse in the Bible that taught them self-love and self-esteem. In fact we find just the opposite in Philippians 2:3. Don’t be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself. Human psychology's emphasis upon loving ourselves has skewed our perception of how we are supposed to be. No longer is our failure to love God with our entire being (heart, soul, and might) considered the gravest of sins and the root of all personal problems.
Instead, we are told that our problem has been a poor self-image and lack of self-love, and we are being urged to focus upon loving and esteeming and valuing ourselves. I agree that we absolutely need to think good things about ourselves for sure, but in no way does that mean we should have such a high regard for ourselves that we no longer need or appreciate our Heavenly Father.
God loves each of us so much that He wants to give us the greatest possible blessing: Himself!
How amazing is it that the almighty Creator of the universe offers Himself to such self indulgent creatures as us. His love is not an impersonal cosmic force; it is intimate and very personal. Think about that! Such love should awaken an impassioned response within us. Still, how many of us take time to express our love to God even once a day, not to mention loving Him with our entire being? Sadly, there are even Christians that are caught up in the forbidden love of the world and the pursuit of its deceitful rewards. 1John 2:15 say’s Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love of the Father in you. If loving God with one's whole being is the greatest commandment then not doing so must be the greatest sin - in fact, the root of all sin.
As Christians, it is very important for us not to lose our humility, for there is no better thing in this life then to live in humility, loving one another and loving God with all our hearts. Quite often though, our pride gets in the way and once the heart becomes corrupted by pride we begin to lose our love for not only God, but also for our neighbor. It is absolutely imperative for our spiritual health that we defeat pride by humbling ourselves in love before our gracious God. Let that love touch everyone around us, friend and enemy alike.
How do we practice the virtue of humility in such a competitive, winner-take-all world? I’m sure that we can all agree that humility is an admirable quality in others, because we feel safe and comfortable around people who are meek and humble. But when it comes to ourselves, we may consider humility a hindrance to success and a by-product of failure. You might question how anyone can achieve success without ambition and a competitive spirit? Competitiveness and humility can co-exist. Look to our “Special Olympians” for demonstration of this. When you look at those wonderful people, you will see a boat load of competitiveness mixed with humility and a heart as big as their bodies.
Each of us knows that as we continue on our Christian walks, we must avoid pride at all cost, since pride consumes all that is good in this life. A great example is the humility shown to us by Jesus Christ, which brings great satisfaction to the mind, heart, and soul, like a wonderful spiritual fragrance that comes from the love of God. What is more important than anything in this life is the love of our God for us! If we desire this love of God, then we must consider humility as a great Christian virtue in our life.
Philippians 2:5-8 says to Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death--and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion.
In closing let’s remember what is told to us in 1 Peter 5:6. So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you.
I invite you to pray this with me.
Heavenly Father, forgive us for those times when we have put ourselves first and others second. We know that this is not the pattern that the Bible teaches us to follow. I pray Father that each new day would see a gradual change in all of our hearts, that we would become more humble and develop a servant’s heart. Because in having a heart to serve others we put ourselves last and in your eyes that put’s us first. Father I pray that you would instill in us the strength to persevere until we have become the humble people you want us to be. As Christians we need to be the role models for the world. God help us to do this at a level that is even beyond our own ability. You are the one that makes the impossible become possible. I ask that you do this work in us.
In Jesus Name I Pray.
Amen
God Bless You All
“The Sharpshooter”
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