Human beings are flawed; nobody’s perfect. Humanity’s goal has been to rise above imperfection through self-effort to become “good human beings.”
“Humanism,” described by Thomas W.
Clark, “is often characterized as a secular alternative to religion in our
quest for a good, moral, and self-fulfilling life.” We all want success,
contentment and happiness, right? Many of us are striving to attain these
things without God.
Tim Keller, in his remarkable book,
The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of
Skepticism, wrote:
At some point in most lives, we are
confronted with the fact that we are not the persons we know we should be.
Almost always our response is to ‘turn over a new leaf’ and try harder to live
according to our principles. That ultimately will only lead us into a spiritual
dead end (pp. 168-169).
Worth by Degree
Humans are born into the world with an overwhelming need to find
a sense of self-worth and importance, to be acknowledged in society, and
ultimately to reach a state of happiness or satisfaction in life. Our tendency
is to compare our worth by degree, through assessing ourselves in contrast to
others, and defining our importance by what others see as valuable—not by God’s
criteria. We tend to describe ourselves by what we’ve done in the past, who
we know, the great things we are doing
today, how much money we have—not
by who or Who’s we are.
Paul, in a letter to the Galatians,
wrote, “For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to
please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of
Christ” (Gal. 1:10, ESV).
Misguided Means of Measuring Up
According to the Apostle Paul, we
must learn to define ourselves by God’s standards, not by the destructive means
of comparing ourselves to others. The following are four misguided ways we
often use to define ourselves:
Through Our
Accomplishments—the “good” we’ve done
The world often defines success by one’s talents, academic degrees, one’s chosen profession, and by how much money a person has
acquired. The classic barometer for significance in today’s world gauges a
person’s value based on their possessions, position and power. We even measure
our worth by how much we’ve done for others—thinking that, in the end, the
“good” we’ve accomplished will give us a pass when standing before a holy God
on the threshold of eternity. Paul said:
I consider everything a loss
because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake
I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be
found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but
that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on
the basis of faith (Phil. 3:8-9).
Through Our
Actions—the “bad” we’ve done
Many of us define our self-worth based on the mistakes and
poor decisions of days gone by—missteps long, long ago. Many a poor soul has
given up on their future based on actions in the past—maybe even for a blunder
one has made that day. The good news is: God loves us despite our waywardness.
Romans 3:10 says, “None is righteous, no, not one” (ESV). Isaiah 64:6 says, “We
have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a
polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind,
take us away” (ESV). Tim Keller recently tweeted: “The gospel says you are more
sinful and flawed than you ever dared believe, but more accepted and loved than
you ever dared hope.”
Through Our
Associations—who we know
Many times we define ourselves by friends and who we hangout
with. We may even find self-worth through political and denominational affiliations.
One of the most misleading measuring sticks of worth is appraising one’s social
standing, determining value based on which rung of the social ladder we find ourselves.
Tom Mulnix, in a Relevant Magazine
article wrote:
You are defined by your values,
beliefs, ideals and commitments. Those must become the non-negotiables of your
life if you want to be the one making the definition. If those things aren’t
solidly set, when the world asks you about them—and it will—prepare to be told
who you are (May 20, 2003).
If we find our significance in God, we know what the Bible
says about our most important association: “I have been crucified with Christ.
It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live
in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself
for me” (Gal. 2:20, ESV).
Through Our
Appearance—what we look like
Sadly in America today, we find our appearance to be one of
the greatest measurements of self-worth. One’s looks, stature, weight,
complexion, age, gender, and race all play into this deceptive
acceptance-by-appearance game. The Bible says, “For physical training is of
some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both
the present life and the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:8, NIV).
Be Free In Christ
The sad
truth is that many define themselves relative to something or someone else. When
one’s identity is rooted and validated in any of the four things listed
above—accomplishments, past actions, associations, or appearance—a person will
be severely limited in their life-potential. Again, Tom Mulnix observes, “Most
of us take our cues from this world, instead of the One who made it. The best
this world can offer us is circumstance and expectation, while the One who made
it offers purpose, direction, meaning and endless hope.”
The Bible
says: “You have been bought and paid for by Christ, so you belong to him—be
free now from all these earthly prides and fears” (1 Cor. 7:23, TLB).
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