Guest Post by Mindi Foster
This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
(1 Timothy 1:15)
One of the most beautiful things about the Gospel, and Jesus in general, is not just that it saves us from Hell. It’s not just beautiful because of eternal life with God. It’s beautiful because I’m constantly being saved from the issue of me.
If you take note of any of the Apostle Paul’s writing, he frequently spoke against selfish ambitions. Additionally, the book of James even notes that selfishness, along with envy, create chaos and every evil practice (James 3:16). Granted, it’s understandable that there are spiritual forces at work, but still, these are serious factors to consider.
The default of humanity is selfishness. Every child knows how to be selfish because it’s their natural disposition. It’s the same for us spiritually too. Growth and maturity mean that we learn to walk in the Spirit thinking less of ourselves and more of Christ and others.
This stance goes against the grain of the world and the very popular Christian-psychology movement that’s occurring in many churches today. And don’t get me wrong, I love psychology, but psychology is me-focused, or self-centered which is the opposite of Gospel-entered theology. There is need of proper balance.
It’s fine to understand why you behave or think a certain way, understanding is beneficial and is actually encouraged in Scripture. However, God must still be glorified first and foremost. Otherwise, we are a hopeless mess.
If everything is about me, then it all falls on me and is up to me. I’m not that powerful. Nor can I handle that much responsibility (or want to for that matter).
So let’s get back to the beauty of the Gospel. God didn’t have to save us, but He did. The message of the Cross isn’t about us, but it is for us. To put it in the words of Trevin Wax, “Our Salvation is the envy of angels.” And that is certainly a beautiful thing to behold.
Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all. (1 Chronicles 29:11)
Mindi is an encourager, brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, as well as an author and blogger. You can find her blog and books at www.buildingyourmomentum.com.
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