No to Me
The hardest thing about being a follower of Christ is that there must be a recognition and willingness to see that this whole thing (life) is not about us. It was never designed to be that way. So much of the trouble we seen in our world today boil down to pride and selfishness. Both of these narcissist characteristics are incompatible with God’s call to Christ Followers.
Rest assured though that this is not a new problem. From the beginning of time we have struggled with this desire to put ourselves above others. Adam & Eve did this when they listened to the serpent; Moses did it when he killed the Egyptian; David did it when he slept with Bathsheba; Peter did it when he denied Christ; Paul did it when he persecuted believers…and these are supposed to be Biblical heroes!
So, if mankind has dealt with this forever then how do we change it now? The key is in letting Christ show us the path to turning our hearts and minds away from ourselves and moving towards the things that matter.
In 1 Corinthians 10 we see Paul addressing an issue which may seem trivial to us but was a huge issue for this early church. The Christ followers had grabbed a hold of their freedom in Christ but to the detriment of others. Paul makes this plea to the believer’s hoping they will see that our ultimate goal is not enjoying our freedom but doing all we can to introduce others to it.
Specifically, the believers understood that no food was unclean to eat. They no longer had to hold to the law which kept them from partaking of any food placed before them. However, there were those who struggled letting go of this practice. The ones who embraced their freedom chose to do what they wanted even if it offended their brothers. Paul begins showing them the right way to interact with one another.
You see, our ultimate purpose is to guide the lost to Christ. Once we choose to follow Christ our life becomes about doing all we can to point others to Him. That is the meaning and purpose of life: knowing Christ and making Him known.
Then how do we get away from this natural tendency we have to focus on ourselves and what we want? If I truly am a “new creation” then how do I get rid of the patterns of the old person? As difficult as it may sound, we must begin questioning everything we do to evaluate whether I am doing it for myself or for the glory of God. We must begin asking ourselves questions like:
- Will this enslave or help me?
- Will this help or hinder other believers?
- Will this glorify God?
- Will this help or hinder my witness?
Here is the tough news; we must learn to say no to ourselves. Not because we are hoping to earn our God’s favor or love. Not because it is a requirement for salvation. Instead because we want to honor our Savior with our lives and point as many people as possible to Him.
Created over 2 years ago
