Play

In Romans 12:1-2 we are admonished not to be “conformed to this world.” Since we are living in a world foreign to God and his principles, it is terribly important that we do not allow the world to shove us into its mold. The church Pergamum lived right where Satan had his throne. Yet they remained true to the name of Jesus (Revelation 2).

Could that be said of you and me? Living in this alien world, are we still living lives true to Jesus and his gospel? Our society, for example, is addicted to self and everybody’s out for themselves. Self-glory and self-satisfaction are the chief aim of most of the people where you live.

I don’t know about you, but I’m at the point that if I hear “self-esteem” one more time, I’m going to explode. Aren’t you sick of hearing how everything wrong with anybody is because they have “low self-esteem”? We were singing the hymn May the Mind of Christ My Savior in church recently which has this verse:

May the love of Jesus fill me, as the waters fill the sea

Him exalting, self abasing; this is victory.

As I sang that verse, I thought, self abasing? Do we know what we’re singing? That means, putting self down in a world that says you have to feel good about yourself. In a world that insists you cannot be a healthy person if you don’t have very high self-esteem. Self abasing? That’s pretty radical stuff!

My friends, “Him exalting, self abasing; this is victory” is the truth of Scripture. When we exalt Jesus and die to our own selves, we are victorious. We’ll feel good, but not about ourselves. We’ll be fulfilled, but not self-fulfilled. When we fill up with self, we ask for depression, for discouragement, for defeat, because self is our problem, not our solution.

In the midst of a world gone crazy for self, will you live a life that says “Him exalting, self abasing; this is victory”? The more you think about yourself, the more miserable you’ll be. The more you exalt Jesus Christ, the more you are filled with his love, the more you’ll know what your mission in life is. You don’t need to work at having good self-esteem; you need to know Jesus in depth and from that comes a right and balanced view of who you are in Christ.

“I know where you live” Jesus says to us. And I want you to be true to my name right there in the midst of that self-centered society. This is victory.

(Click here to download the message for the entire week.)