"Self or God?"

To gain insight to yourself, what makes you tick and act can be a dangerous course to take. I once was visiting in a hospital that the individual was in there to "find themselves and their purpose." They claimed they had lost their way, they had lost their passion for life and needed to find themselves. I thought it was rather strange but over the last 30 plus years, I have ran into this kind of therapy on several instances. What is more shocking, they all claim Christ Jesus their Lord!

I was sent an invite in the mail to come to a series of lessons titled "Finding Our Way." It was a series presented by some psychologist to help ministers (they called 'pastors' not understanding what the term means) understand the heart of man to help those searching for answers in life about themselves. I came up with one thought, it's called self-seeking!

Listen to Jeremiah: "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the Lord." (Jer. 9:23-24)

Paul quotes part of this verse in I Cor. 1:31. Our boasting and insight should be of the Lord and not of ourselves. We live and see what sin does in our lives. Sin makes us unloving, uncaring and self-absorbed and consumed. Sin takes us into wisdom that is selfishly ambitious (Jam. 3:14) and natural in thinking. We need to know God! We need to understand God so our lives and mind can expand moving away from us. It was Jesus' prayer in John 17 that Jesus spoke, "This is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou has sent." (John 17:3) The Hebrew writer pulled from OT Scriptures to show that we should be listening to the voice of the Lord and nothing else because Israel went astray in their heart and "they did not know My ways." (Heb. 3:10/Psa. 95:10). God destroyed them for such and it is written for us to learn from.

If you want your life to grow and change into the image of Jesus, being conformed to His life, come to know God and His Son Jesus. If you want a life of pain and misery, paralyzed in areas and unable to move forward, just learn about you! One is wisdom from below. The other is the wisdom from God. One is eternal death while the other is eternal life. Intellectual ability is not what the Lord is after. He is after a heart that seeks Him to know His ways. Therein is found life and freedom!