“Self Esteem” is all about ‘self’ not the Savior!

The Focus of self esteem is Self! The Focus of Christ Esteem is Christ!

 The false concept is “God doesn’t want me to hate myself, He wants me to love myself and until I love myself I can’t love others!”  That whole  thought is a taken up with whom? “SELF!” That is right God doesn’t want you to hate yourself for He has fearfully and wonderfully made you, creating you in your mother’s womb, making you in His image. But sin has marred that image and instead of loving God and others we place ourselves in God’s rightful place and we bow to self, and serve self first and foremost! We are sinners by nature.

Self has many masks but all are leading back to  the chief occupation of “self!”… But in reality it is bondage to self, self love, self occupation and you end up with selfishness the manifestation and when you have selfish people together they are all out for…self first! And then comes the conflict between people because selfishness wants to be number one and sees and treats others as objects to be used! They exist for you, basically is the attitude, though it may not be verbally expressed. James put it this way, What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.  When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”-{James 4:1-4}. Note what self first produces, fights and quarrels…desires battling within… covetousness… fighting… ignoring God… wanting God to give to you, but asking God with wrong motives…  asking not for His glory or to benefit others but  that you may spend  what you get on your pleasures.” Selfishness is a manifestation of what is in all of us! Selfishness, covetousness is the reason Judas sold Jesus for!

And at the heart of selfishness is spiritual idolatry; The placing of something or someone else before God, your Maker, and James puts it this way,- “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”-{James 4;4}. Spiritual adultery, friendship with the world, speaking of the system that rejects the One true and Living God, replacing it with the exalting of self, arrogance, believing they are wiser than God and have no need of God and oppose the Gospel of the LORD Jesus.  It is not that they has no testimony of God to them, Paul in Romans wrote, For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools.”-{Romans 1:20-22}. Look at this again, God made Himself known to them, but they made a choice to reject His Truth, refused to Glorify God, were un-thankful, and the problem was their “THINKING” which became “Futile,” and the condition of their hearts from God’s perspective was “Foolish,” and “darkened!” SELF is DECEPTIVE, DISHONORING GOD, and DECEIVES OTHERS…DESTRUCTIVE  and lives end up DAMNED… Jesus came to save us from our selves which is like a factory that makes sin, produces it in all its form. Look at what Paul wrote to Timothy of what would happen in the last days, note the manifestations of sin;But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,  holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these  For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses,  always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.  Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.”-{James 3:1-9}. This is what self is capable and does produce and much much more, Did you notice the pursuit of self,  “Lovers of self…Lovers of Pleasure… rather than…Lovers of God!” That’s the heart of the problem- Misplaced Love! Love for Self over Love for God! 

“Self- esteem” esteems  Self above God! That is sin, perverse, spiritual depravity! Someone  has said “EGO” is”EASING GOD OUT!”

And followers of Christ have had all their sin forgiven and are in a new relationship with GOD having been justified and having peace with Him and standing in Divine favor, the smile of God upon our lives, no longer enemies but His children through the exclusive work of the LORD Jesus, yet that does not mean we do not have selfish tendencies, for we do! But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.-{Romans 6:17-18}.  We have been gifted His  Grace to train, empower us to say no to sin and yes to Him,For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,”-{Titus 2:11-13}. He has given us New Power and Promises to enable, encourage us…His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. “-{2 Peter 1;3-4}.  And look where God is working? “IN YOU!” “ For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.”- {Phil 2:13 nlt}. These verses should encourage you to know you do not have to believe the lie that you are a slave to sin, have to sin when No. Jesus came to save us from our sin!{Matthew 1:21} Before Christ we were under the power of sin, now in Christ we have the power to say “No” to sin, and “yes,” to Him! We sin by choice now where s before we were controlled by sin!

And we need to be in submission to the Holy Spirit in order to have the fruit of the Spirit to produce Godly characteristics and also for the power to deny ourselves and prefer others. We need to renew our thinking and align with God allowing Him to shape our world view through His Word, shape our thinking so that we become conformed to the image of Christ, and what will we look like? One word that can describe the LORD Jesus is…OTHERS! On the Cross He asked His Father to not hold the sin of OTHERS who had mocked Him. He told one of the disciples to take care of Mary… He was on that cross for OTHERS eternal well-being!

Self Esteem is Occupied and lives for Self, and oozes selfishness

Christ esteem is focused on Christ and Loving Others, for Jesus sake.-{Read 2 Cor 4:5}

“In Christ,” – Christ esteeming the believer and if you read the phrases, “In Christ…In Whom…In Him,” in Ephesians 1:3-14 and make a list  of the blessings listed and the right response is verse 3 to “Bless,…Praise… Speak Well of…” Him! Christ Esteem  is seeing yourself “In Christ” as he sees you. It is seeing and saying about yourself what and only what He says about you!  He imparts liberty to be free to Love God and others taken up not with self occupation but Christ exaltation and serving others for their good, their spiritual well being , for Jesus sake!-{2 Cor 4:5}!

True ESTEEM IS GOD’S ESTEEMING YOU BECAUSE OF THE  PERSON AND WORK  OF  CHRIST, AND WHO YOU ARE “IN CHRIST!”

Your Significance and Identify;
Is All because of the perfect work and love of The Lord Jesus Christ for you. Your significance and identify is based on Him and who GOD says you are “In Christ.” Never allow yourself to look outside what He declares about you. It cost the Father His Son’s life so you can have a new identify and know your true Significance is found not in “self-esteem,” but in JESUS CHRIST.

The response is to Praise the Father and Worship The Son-{Eph 1;3; Rev1:6}…and live enjoying His estimation of you-His “Beloved.”

True Esteem is to see Who He has made you to be “In Christ!”

I am who He says I am.

Only who He says I am,

All who He says I am!