Having too little self-esteem is not possible.
For too long has the old saw been repeated; "today's kids just have too little self-esteem." Well that's just tripe! The problem with all of us (not just any particular generation's children) is that we have too much self-esteem!
Self-esteem is setting our "value" by our own standards. If you set your "value" higher than even the worst criminal, the lowest person you can think of, then you esteem yourself too highly.
The true "worth" of an item is the amount that someone is willing to pay for it. Likewise we should set our own sense of worth on our value; our value to God. The Lord Jesus Christ laid down His perfect life for you and me. Our true worth is based in the value of His sacrifice. We have worth only because of His ultimate worthiness. This is far more than any sense of self-worth that I can imagine. God, from before time began, planned to sacrifice Himself, His only "natural" Son, so that we might be redeemed.
I can esteem myself no higher that I esteem anyone else, if I base my worth on His worthiness. We shouldn't esteem ourselves, but rather we should remember the value of everyone else to God. When asked what is the great commandment of the Law,the Lord Jesus replied that it is to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength; but He didn't stop there He continued saying the second is like the first and it is, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. You cannot love your neighbor as yourself if you esteem yourself more highly than him. You cannot love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength if you believe that you are better than any other person on the planet.
If we base our sense of worth on our selves, then we become overly concerned with what other people think of us. It becomes very easy to fall into the trap of man-pleasing. But, if our sense of worth is based on what God thinks of us...! How freeing, even when I was at my lowest, God loved me more than I can even imagine. "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." I don't have to earn God's love, it's not even possible to earn God's love, it is given to us as a free gift! Out of a deep sense of gratitude I should try to thank God by trying to be a God-pleaser, doing what He says is right, no matter what my fellow man may think.
Tag(s): self-esteem
Self-esteem is setting our "value" by our own standards. If you set your "value" higher than even the worst criminal, the lowest person you can think of, then you esteem yourself too highly.
The true "worth" of an item is the amount that someone is willing to pay for it. Likewise we should set our own sense of worth on our value; our value to God. The Lord Jesus Christ laid down His perfect life for you and me. Our true worth is based in the value of His sacrifice. We have worth only because of His ultimate worthiness. This is far more than any sense of self-worth that I can imagine. God, from before time began, planned to sacrifice Himself, His only "natural" Son, so that we might be redeemed.
I can esteem myself no higher that I esteem anyone else, if I base my worth on His worthiness. We shouldn't esteem ourselves, but rather we should remember the value of everyone else to God. When asked what is the great commandment of the Law,the Lord Jesus replied that it is to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength; but He didn't stop there He continued saying the second is like the first and it is, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. You cannot love your neighbor as yourself if you esteem yourself more highly than him. You cannot love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength if you believe that you are better than any other person on the planet.
If we base our sense of worth on our selves, then we become overly concerned with what other people think of us. It becomes very easy to fall into the trap of man-pleasing. But, if our sense of worth is based on what God thinks of us...! How freeing, even when I was at my lowest, God loved me more than I can even imagine. "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." I don't have to earn God's love, it's not even possible to earn God's love, it is given to us as a free gift! Out of a deep sense of gratitude I should try to thank God by trying to be a God-pleaser, doing what He says is right, no matter what my fellow man may think.
Tag(s): self-esteem
posted by Bryan at 2:44 PM
2 Comments:
You make a good point and contradict yourself at the same time.
You correctly say that our true worth is based on how God, the One who created us, values us. This is how we all need to see ourselves. God has chosen to love men. Because of this, He has chosen to offer a means of Salvation that we might have relationship with Him - for an eternity. He thinks we have great worth.
But you also say that self-esteem is how we view ourselves compared to some standard.
If a person compares themselves to other people and decides that they are NOT smart enough or fast enough or pretty enough or . . . Now their wrong thinking has set their self-esteem too low. They can even fall into the trap of suicide because they come to believe that they are not worthy to live.
Their esteem is based on the wrong thing and they do not value themselves as creatures of a Most Holy God. Their self-esteem is, in fact, too low.
There is no contradiction, that is my point. If at anytime our focus is on ourselves instead of on God and what He has done for us then our "self-esteem" is too high. We are not in and of ourselves worthy to live, but He is worthy of our lives.
" For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. " (Mark 8:35)
Jesus isn't just talking about those who die physically, but also those who live sacrifically.
I have too much self-esteem, I need more God-esteem in my life!
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