TRYING TO PROVE OUR WORTHINESS

 

I gladly recognize that I am unworthy of anything good that comes from God, and I find this realization to be liberating. It relieves me of the burden of maintaining a façade and of trying to impress and prove myself to others. It allows me to accept myself and to honestly confront my failures, selfishness, and self-centeredness. I can now be me and shed my mask I had used to impress others.

Here’s out it works – those who humble themselves to admit the painful truth about themselves will be nurtured and exalted by God. Those who maintain the lie and exalt themselves will be allowed to reap its consequences. Jesus had taught:

·       “…For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14)

 

Jesus illustrated this principle in the parable of the Prodigal Son who had made a mess of his life. He returned home to his father and humbled himself admitting his total unworthiness. However, when he did this, his father embraced him and honored him with a great celebration:

 

·       And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.” (Luke 15:20-24)

 

The father did not tell his son how worthy he was of all his father’s blessings. Instead, he poured out his love for his son simply because he had returned to his father. However, the father had another son who considered himself worthy. Ostensibly, he had done all the right things. However, his belief in his own worthiness made him contemptuous of his brother, and he refused to attend the celebration, thereby alienating himself from the rest of his family.

 

I have found joy by embracing the truth of my unworthiness before God and by entrusting everything to my Savior. It has made me grateful for the many good things I have, knowing that I do not deserve them. It has also built for me bridges into the lives of others.

 

Therefore, it is not surprising that Jesus taught us that we should regard ourselves as unworthy servants:

 

·       “So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’” (Luke 17:10)

 

What liberty we have if we can accept our unworthiness and neediness. Self-trust is a trap:

·       Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the LORD. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:5–8)

 

We are His beloved and blessed servants who trust in our Master’s care and esteem. This is truly freedom and self-acceptance. We no longer have anything to prove. If the Savior accepts me, it no longer matters what others think of me.

HEIRS OF HIS GLORY

 

 

A dog is satisfied with a juicy bone and a soft couch, a cow with a fresh green pasture and a dry bed of straw. However, it seems that we need more than a good cup of coffee, a full stomach, and a roof over our head. The late rabbi and philosopher, Abraham Heschel, had claimed:

 

·       It’s not enough for me to be able to say ‘I am’; I want to know who I am and in relation to whom I live. It is not enough for me to ask questions; I want to know how to answer the one question that seems to encompass everything I face…

 

The way we answer this question is the roadmap for our lives. However, we will not be able to answer this question by merely looking within or into a mirror:

 

·       Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)

 

Since we are destined for glory, we need keep our eyes on this promised prize lest be get lost in the woods, the distractions of life:

 

·       Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:2-4)

 

Because we are hidden in Christ, we do not see this glory by looking within ourselves or without at our brethren. Instead, our future glory is hidden from us. When we do not focus on the things above, we debase ourselves and, to compensate, try to attain our glory here. instead to sustain us, we must look towards the glory above, which serves as a portrait of the glory into which we have been invited to partake. There, we will partake of a love, peace, and a joy that we can only now glimpse from afar:

 

·       And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:28-30)

 

So let us not try to obtain this promised glory here, whether it consists of wealth, fame, honor, respect, or adoration. Instead, regard it as a gift to be bestowed upon us by our bridegroom in heaven.

 

Therefore, let us treat one another as fellow heirs of this glory, as more than even royalty. Why? For this is what we truly are:

 

·       …we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:16–17)

 

Above all, let us seek His glory, the very glory into which we are to enter.

THE DANGERS OF SUCCESS

 

 

As success increases, along with self-esteem, we face the growing risk of pride and self-trust at the expense of God-trust. This threat is especially present with Christians in leadership.

 

In God’s eyes, there was no one as righteous as Job, but this didn’t exempt him from great trials. Perhaps, he needed these trials more than others to humble him. The prophetic Elihu revealed to Job the reason for his great suffering:

 

·       “So why are you bringing a charge against him? Why say he does not respond to people’s complaints? He whispers in their ears and terrifies them with warnings. He makes them turn from doing wrong; he keeps them from pride. He protects them from the grave, from crossing over the river of death.” (Job 33:13, 16-18 NLT)

 

I like to think that I’m in control and to trust that my efforts will enable me to surf above the waves, but last night taught me again that it cannot trust in my righteousness or the wisdom God had given me to keep me safe. It was a perfect storm. I was unable to deliver myself from waves of terror, which convinced that I could never again teach or comfort others with the Word of God. Nothing was able to penetrate my fears - not my knowledge of the Scriptures, prayer, or even Anita’s loving head rubs. It felt as if God had forsaken me. Although, mentally I still believed that He loved me, I felt as if there was absolutely no way that He could ever relieve me of the terrors that had taken hold. I was in absolute meltdown, quickly submerging, and I saw no way out.

 

Nevertheless, the Lord had warned us:

 

·       Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:12–13 ESV)

 

Suddenly, the Lord did provide a way of escape. I had been so absolutely tormented that for two hours I feared having a stroke. But in a flash He delivered me into the certainty that He is in control and that what I had just endured was needful. It reminded me of Paul’s own cry:

·       For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. (2 Corinthians 1:8–10; 12:7-10)

 

Why did Paul share his personal meltdown? Because we all must learn to transition beyond self-mastery to the brokenness of trusting in God alone. This can only be learned as we continue to despair of ourselves – a horribly painful but necessary element of our growth. Consequently, Jesus had taught that blessedness belongs to those who have accepted their poverty of spirit and neediness:

·       “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (Matthew 5:3–6)

 

Paul also had another reason for sharing his poverty of spirit:

 

·       You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many. (2 Corinthians 1:11)

 

We need one another!