Jesus: The Great Intruder... of our Self-Importance

Do you ever feel that you are just flat out better than others?
Do you ever feel that you are worthless?

Why? What makes you feel either superior or inferior? What are the standards you are using to come to this conclusion?

The truth of the matter is that feeling inferior or superior has its problem at the same source – taking God’s view out of mix. Without God’s perspective we will chase approval and diminish others to lift ourselves up. We will be on a continual treadmill of fear and pride that never gives us what we think we need.

In the past two weeks I have met with two of the most disillusioned people I have ever encountered in my life. The first one owns two companies, lives in a very nice house and seems to have everything going his way. That is everything except one thing; he lives in continual disappointment of everyone else. After asking him a number of pointed questions he literally told me, “I am better than virtually everyone I encounter and it gets old.” He was miserable as he believed a lie.

The second person was a woman that had recently retired as CFO from a midsize company. She had more money than she needed and appeared to have the world by the tail. She graduated 3rd in her class from business school and was told by her parents that she really disappointed them. She told me she was the least attractive and least successful of the five kids in the family. Tears rolled from her eyes as she described that for her 40 adult years there was not one day that she felt adequate. She was miserable as she believed a lie.

Both of these individuals believed the same lie. One landed on one side of the lie and the second one lived out the lie from the other side. The lie is that life is a competition where we create our own importance and value. From this perspective we will either be a “winner” or a “loser.” The winners notice how others are inferior and the losers notice how others are superior. The winners look down on others and the losers look down on themselves.

This dichotomy is interesting in that it is possible to actually live this lie out from both sides at the same time. We feel important one moment and even superior to the others in the room; then the next moment something happens; we are pathetic and don’t measure up. There is only one answer to this lie and it is the truth that comes in trusting God’s perspective on our lives.

It is simply this, we have our immense value because we are created in the Image of God and so is every-one else around you. As we live out that Image of God in us we are free to lift up others, knowing that in no way does that diminish our value. In fact, it will do the exact opposite as our souls rejoice in their connection to the heart of God.

Live in the freedom that your value has been set by God. You are worth dying for so you clearly matter. Help others to also know their immense value. This is the truth that defeats the lie!

Pastor Nick