I ♥ ME
"If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell." Matthew 5:29-30
The Bible tells us to wage war against our sin and sinful nature whether it's our own sin or the sin of someone else thrust upon us. Beating our bodies daily...
"No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."1 Corinthians 9:27.
We're supposed to be denying ourselves, taking up our crosses and following Him...
"Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: 'Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.'" Mark 8:24-25
We're supposed to be renewing our minds...letting our ways of thinking, thus our behavior, be changed by God alone...
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2
Not using pop psychology or the latest fads. Following worldly philosophies is, in fact, being conformed to the pattern of the world. By trying to understand sin outside of what God has already told us about sin, is trying to be accepting of it. That's what the world does. By trying to esteem ourselves is feeling good about sin. It's making the sin in our lives ok. It's turning us into whiny brats. Instead of taking our sin to God, repenting of it and asking Him to remove it from our lives, we use past griefs and wrongs done to us as excuses to continue to sin. "I do this because so and so did this to me when I was 10." We blame shift, but do nothing about the sin in our lives. Eventually we accept it, coddle it, even love it and it sears our conscience doing us even more harm.
God hates self esteem. Self esteem is fortifying pride already in us and God can do nothing with pride except crush it. Self esteem is the opposite of humility. Self esteem is self deceit...
"Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a "fool" so that he may become wise." 1 Corinthians 3:18
Yet we're hearing this kind of destructive teachings coming from so many well known teachers. This poisonous propaganda is targeted at us females because we are the most vulnerable to it. It keeps us in a vicious cycle and keeps us focused on ourselves.
"For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live" Romans 8:13
Self esteem makes us conceited, self sufficient, totally kicking God out of the picture. We no longer depend on Him for every need or care, we depend on ourselves. Self esteem puts confidence in sinful flesh when it's not deserving of confidence. Self Esteem makes us selfish and self centered. Self Esteem exalts us over God. Self esteem makes us turn ourselves into idols. We trust in ourselves, but the heart is deceitfully wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).
If you're truly saved can you honestly look at your past and things you've done, decisions you've made and think it's all different now? I know I can't. I don't want to trust a heart that's deceitfully wicked. It ruined my life before and it'll do it again. Lastly self esteem is not the image of Christ God is molding us into. Christ didn't have a lot of self esteem or a lot of self confidence. He was humble and He put all of His trust, confidence, life and dependence in God alone. He esteemed the Father in all things, not Himself. We are to be imitators of Christ (God). Ephesians 5:1
"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:1-3
When we focus on ourselves and buiding self esteem, our hearts are not on things above let alone our minds. They're on us and that is sin. Our behaviors are not to be examined, held up, twisted and turned like we're inspecting a diamond. Our lifestyles, pasts and griefs aren't to be picked apart and dwelt on for years. They're to be put to death. If what we do, think, say or feel runs contrary to God's Word it's sin. Self esteem in evil and it's death.
For how the Bible views "Self Esteem" watch the video below then follow the link of the snippet of article underneath.
"For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith." Romans 12:3
From Critical Issues
How one ought to feel about himself has become a significant issue for Christians. This topic did not receive much debate in previous generations since most Christians agreed that we are prone to pride and ought to have more humility. They recognized that the universal human tendency was to esteem oneself highly and look down at others. The ever present, Biblical admonitions to humble oneself were seen has a necessary mitigating influence to restrain the tendency to self-exaltation that is at the heart of the sin nature....To read more go here
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