The Illusion of Self-Worth
Why it is important to know that I am a sinner
What do you think of your ego? How do you view yourself? Neil T. Anderson in his book Victory over the Darkness on page 45 tells how he thinks of himself: A saint who occasionally sins. His reasoning follows from the proceeding statement. “If you think of yourself as a sinner, guess what you will do: you’ll live like a sinner; you’ll sin.” My intention is to show from scripture that we are sinners saved by grace. I will do this in three parts.
We are sinners
Self-esteem and self-worth are worldly evil teachings
Christ came to call sinners, not the righteous
I. “I am a sinner!” Not a positive statement. I don’t like this statement. In fact, no one likes this statement. So why do WELS pastors teach this doctrine so strongly? Because it is true. Because the Bible so throughly reinforces this point in scripture.
The American Heritage Dictionary defines “sinner” as “one who sins.” Do I sin? I argue with my parents. I avoid work. I don’t like to spend money on people. All of those are sins, so yes, I am a sinner. If I blame anyone or anything else for those sins, I am acting like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden after they ate the forbidden fruit. How often do I sin? Do I occasionally sin? David writes in Psalm 51:3, 5 “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. . . . Surely I was sinful from birth; sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” When God says “You shall have no gods before me,” Exodus 20:3, do you really do this, that I sin against this commandment only occasionally? For Luther explains: “What does this mean? We should fear and love and trust God above all things!” A person who thinks he doesn’t sin against this commandment is self-deluded, like the rich young man in Mark 10:20. “‘Teacher,’ he declared, ‘all these I have kept since I was a boy.’” Jesus’ response “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” (Mark 10:21) and the man’s reaction showed that he had not even kept the first commandment. Not only did he not keep it, he was continually sinning against it.
Even the patriarchs sinned. Twice Abraham gave the impression that Sarah was not his wife. (Ref. Genesis 12:13,Genesis 20:2). Isaac gave the same impression in Genesis 26:7. Isaac continually played favorites with his sons, favoring Esau over Jacob. (Genesis 25:28). David committed adultery and murder. (2 Samuel 11).
In his sermon on the mount, Jesus when encouraging asking, seeking, and knocking spoke “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11). Again, when the rich young man spoke to Jesus: “‘Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?’”, Jesus answered “Why do you call me good? . . . No one is good–except God alone.” Paul wrote “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the worst.” (1 Timothy 1:15). John writes “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8). The father of a boy with an evil spirit admitted the dual nature inside of him when he exclaimed “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).
Let Romans be your mirror. Have you ever looked at anyone in this life and thought “I’d never do that!” Then look at Romans 2:1: “You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” Look at Romans 2:17-23
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If you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth – you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?
Paul’s conclusion is that such people dishonor God for he concludes “As it is written: ‘God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.’ ” (Romans 2:24).
To those who do not want to hear this message, Paul writes in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting.” John leaves us with the warning in Revelation 22:18-19. “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” We are to use all of scripture, and scripture identifies all people as sinners.
II. Much is made of self-esteem and self-worth today. The American Heritage Dictionary defines “self-esteem” as “pride in oneself.” It would likely follow that “self-worth” is “the worth or value of oneself.” Now I like to hear people say good things about me. And I like to think good things about me. Paul wrote to the Colossians, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” (Colossians 2:8).
Neil Anderson has gotten caught up into one of Satan’s traps that is more than 2000 years old. Listen to Matthew 16:21-25.
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This will never happen to you!”
Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.”
What was Peter’s mistake but that he saw the glory but not the cross? Here Jesus makes it clear. We are not to have a theology of glory, but a theology of the cross. Gene Edward Veith, Jr. explains the theology of glory in his book, The Spirituality of the Cross:
In the “spirituality” section of most bookstores, on will find shelves and shelves of titles offering a whole array of techniques and teachings that will solve all problems and bring us to the pinnacle of success. Meditation, the physical disciplines of yoga, pop psychology, principles of positive thinking–all promise empowerment. . . . What is true of the New Age racks can also be found in Christian bookstores. Today their shelves too are stocked with ways of using God for one’s own health, happiness, and prosperity. . . . Their covers make vast and excited claims, as if by following certain steps family problems will disappear, our bodies will do what we want, our financial problems will evaporate, we will solve our nation’s problems, grow the church, and live happily ever after. . . . Luther called this kind of self-aggrandizing, success-centered, power spirituality “the theology of glory.” . . . We will be attracted to any religion that can promise us such things. We want complete and understandable answers, evidence of tangible spiritual power, all conveyed by an impressive, well-run, and effective institution. Instead, God gives us the cross. (Pp. 57,58)
The explanation of the book on the back of Neil Andersons’s book shows he placed his emphasis in the wrong place. “The powers of darkness attack us daily. But as Dr. Neil Anderson shows in Victory over the Darkness, you can have the power to conquer them by knowing who you are in Christ.” (Emphasis editor’s). Notice the emphasis on “you” and “by knowing who you are.” That is if YOU know who YOU are in Christ, YOU can have the power to conquer the powers of darkness.
What does the Bible say? Again Jesus says “anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:38). And “No one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matthew 11:27). And “A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.” (Matthew 10:24-25). And when asked “Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Jesus responded, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:1, 3-4).
John the Baptist said to his disciples about Jesus, “He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30). Paul writes: “To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). He continues, “I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior to the ‘super-apostles,” even though I am nothing.” (2 Corinthians 12:11). Paul also writes, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus died to save sinners–of whom I am the worst.” (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul also writes to the Philippians, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. . . . Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death–even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:3,5-8).
Which people does God commend for their faith? The tax collector who says “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” (Luke 18:13). The sinful woman who wept at Jesus’s feet and wiped his feet with her hair. (Luke 7:38). The woman who admits that she is but a dog compared to the children of Israel. (Mark 7:28). What these passages show is that it is not those who believe in themselves who are commended by God, but those who trust in his mercy. For “it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.” (2 Corinthians 10:18).
III. Why are the first two points so important? They are important so that the third point may be realized. Jesus says, “For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:25). It is not those who think they are righteous Jesus calls, but those who think they are sinners. As Jesus speaks, “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:13-14). Isaiah speaks about the joy that the Savior gives to people weighed down with sin.
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion–
to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. (Isaiah 61:1-3).
Notice the people who hear the good news: the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the prisoners. The Savior proclaims the year of the Lord’s favor to those who mourn and grieve, those in ashes and despair over their sin. It is these people who respond to God’s message of Salvation. Who are those blessed by Jesus on the Sermon on the Mount?
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs in the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3-10).
It is the poor in spirit, the mourners, the meek, etc. that are blessed.
Look at the people God called. Moses tried to reject God’s calling and neglected to circumcise his son. (Exodus 4). Isaiah admitted his unworthiness at his calling, “‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.’” (Isaiah 6:5). Jonah headed the other direction. (Jonah 1:3). Jeremiah claimed he was too young. (Jeremiah 1:6). Jacob was a deceiver. (Genesis 27). Rahab was a Canaanite prostitute. (Joshua 2:1). Look at the people God called: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel. In reading their histories, we see that these people were sinners. Yet, God called them in despite their shortcomings and as Hebrews says, “who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised.” (Hebrews 11:33). God called Abram to go to the land of Canaan. Did he go because he “knew who he was Christ?” No, he went “by faith”– that is faith in God and his promises, “For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” (Hebrews 11:8).
To the tax collector who says “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”, Jesus says “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God.” (Luke 18:13-14). To the woman caught in adultery, Jesus responded to her accusers “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” (John 8:7). To the woman he said, “Then neither do I condemn you.” (John 8:11). Jesus said to the sinful woman at the Pharisee Simon’s house, “Your sins are forgiven.” (Luke 7:47). The Syrophoenician woman pleaded with Jesus “but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” (Mark 7:28). Jesus responded, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.” (Mark 7:29).
As the Bible makes clear, it is not who these people were that enabled them to do good works, but trust in Jesus as their Savior. The reason the statement, “If you think of yourself as a sinner, guess what you will do: you’ll live like a sinner; you’ll sin,” is so dangerous, is that it opens the door for pride. You will think of yourself as a saint who “sins occasionally.” It is those who see their total depravity that experience God’s total grace. Jesus warns, “her many sins have been forgiven–for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.” (Luke 7:47). And again, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14). And again, “But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 14:10-11). Humble yourself then, so that God may exalt you in due time, for “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners–of whom I am the worst.” (1 Timothy 1:15). The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.