You can change you self-concept
1 Peter 1:18-19
How does our world place value on people? Physical beauty, Money, Accomplishment. By comparing yourself with others. That’s how many get the value of themself. However, If it don’t line up with the world of God, it needs changed. There is no biblical guarantee that you will automatically receive healthy feelings about yourself when you accept Jesus as Your Savior. Some people do, but many do not. If fact some Christians mistakenly label good feelings about themselves as pride or conceit -traits that God hates Pro. 21:4 These people resist any feelings of healthy self-worth and zealously defend their feelings of worthlessness under the guise of being spiritual and Biblical. In the holiness church I think we have mistakenly confused the human self with the carnal self when we talk about it being put to death. The carnal self is the diseased part that has wrapped itself around the human self to control it. The carnal self can be destroyed, but not the human self. I see it as a tension between two verses - “I can do all things through Christ” and “Apart from me you can do nothing”
Joe Namath
Few of us look in the mirror and come to the conclusion of Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath. During his heyday as a player, Namath wrote a book titled I Can’’t Wait Until Tomorrow...’’Cause I Get Better-Looking Every Day.
Our Daily Bread, March-May, 1996, p. for March 9
I Creation itself establishes your Value
Gen. 1:27 27So God created people in his own image;
God patterned them after himself;
male and female he created them.
You are the crown jewel of God’s creation.
“A healthy self-image is seeing yourself the way God sees you-no more no less.” Josh McDowell
Building Your self esteem
Valuable Necklace
An American tourist in Paris, who purchased an inexpensive amber necklace in a trinket shop, was shocked when he had to pay quite a high duty on it to clear customs in New York. This aroused his curiosity, so he had it appraised. After looking at the object under a magnifying glass, the jeweler said, ““I’’ll give you $25,000 for it.”” Greatly surprised, the man decided to have another expert examine it. When he did, he was offered $10,000 more. ““What do you see that’’s so valuable about this old necklace?”” asked the astonished man. ““Look through this glass,”” replied the jeweler. There before his eyes was an inscription: ““From Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine.”” The value of the necklace came from its identification with a famous person.
Source unknow
II The Price of Your Salvation Establishes your worth.
1 Cor. 6:19,20
19Or don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself,20for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.
1 Peter 1:18,19
18For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver.19He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
III You Need Stewardship of Your Feelings
Why ? They affect every relationship in your life.
IV How Does God Feel About You?
God has gone on the record about how he thinks and feels about you in his Word.
Dr. Richard Dobbins
1. See yourself as a person God loves very much.
Romans 5:6-8 But God commendeth his love toward us while we were yet sinners,...
Romans 5:9-10 The cross says he loves us “Much more” If God loved us while we were enemies, how much more does he love us as children.
2. Realize your are very valuable to God. John 3:16
3. Think of yourself as a forgivable person. 1 John 1:9
4. See Yourself as a changeable person. Regeneration makes recreation possible, but not inevitable.
A. God’s Feelings are on record
Duet 26:18 "The LORD has today declared you to be His people, a treasured possession, as He promised you, and that you should keep all His commandments;
Zech 2:8
For thus says the LORD of hosts, "After glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.
Isa. 62:5
For as a young man marries a virgin, So shall your sons marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So shall your God rejoice over you.
Luke 10:21
At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
John 16
26In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. 27No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. 28I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."
Matthew 10:29-31
29 Not even a sparrow, worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. 30 And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows.
V Problems between People generally come from problems within people
Adam and Eve
-how did he explain his disobedience to God? The Woman
-but Adams problems began in Adam and Eve...
VI You view Life through the lens of your self concept
Cartoon -Looking in the mirror “Are ye fer me or agin me today?”
In the early days of our history frontier travelers were dependent upon ferry boats to get them across our nation’s rivers. The story is told of a wise old ferry boat captain who made it a practice to talk to his passengers as he ferried them back and forth across the river.
On one side he struck up a conversation with a woman who seemed to be upset. She said, “You know I’ve never been so glad to get away from a place in all my life as I am to leave here. People here are downright mean. I’m leaving some of the most hateful people I’ve ever known.
“Yes ma’am,” agreed the old ferry boat captain. “You’ll find people like that wherever you go.”
When he picked up his load of passengers from the other side of the river, he began to talk to another lady. She was weeping. “You know sir, it breaks my heart to leave this place. I’ve never been around more loving people. I made so many wonderful friends. I feel like I’m leaving a piece of my heart in this place.
“Yes ma’am,” the wise old ferry boat captain responded. “You’ll find people like that wherever you go.”
Each woman looked at life through her own unique lens. Each made a very different impression on the ferry boat captain. However, the old captain knew that each woman would continue to see people-wherever she went- the way she had seen them in the place from which she had come. (From “Your Feelings Friend or Foe” Dr Richard Dobbins)
A/ Each of us leave a unique impression on others (What kind are we leaving?)
B. You were not born with the view of life you presently hold.
VII Your Self Image is
Your self esteem is a reflection of how you believe other people see you.
It consists of who you think other people think you are. And that can be a real downer. Lindy Chappoten, a pitcher of middling talents who played for the old Shawnee Hawks in the Class D Sooner League, was once traded to the Texarkana Bears for 20 uniforms. That must not have been a real great feeling. However, as Dr Richard Dobbins says, “IT would be nice if everyone liked me, but it’s not necessary” For not even Jesus was liked by everyone. He had twelve disciples, and one betrayed him and one denyed him.
The more positively you see yourself the more optimistic your view of life will tend to be.
Worlds false values - Physical Beauty - Money - Power or Popularity -Competence
Survey
13% of American women consider themselves pretty. 28% of American men think themselves handsome. 94% of American men would change something about their looks if they could. 99% of American women would change something about their looks if they could.
From the book, 100% American, by Daniel Evan Weiss, quoted in Parade Magazine, December 31, 1989, p. 5
VIII YOUR Self Image is your key to happiness
Pro 23:7 (As a man thinketh in his heart so is he
Matt. 6:26
26Look at the birds. They don’t need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are.
Luke 12:6
6"What is the price of five sparrows? A couple of pennies? Yet God does not forget a single one of them.7And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows.
VIII What does Your conversation tell others- Positive or Negative
“A Yes I can or NO I can’t attitude”
IX How do you talk to Yourself
Tattoo
Once walking through the twisted little streets of Kowloon in Hong Kong, I came upon a tattoo studio. In the window were displayed samples of the tattoos available. On the chest or arms you could have tattooed an anchor or flag or mermaid or whatever. But what struck me with force were three words that could be tattooed on one’’s flesh, Born to lose. I entered the shop in astonishment and pointing to those words, asked the Chinese tattoo artist, ““Does anyone really have that terrible phrase, Born to lose, tattooed on his body.”” He replied, ““Yes, sometimes.”” ““But,”” I said, ““I just can’’t believe that anyone in his right mind would do that.”” The Chinese man simply tapped his forehead and said in broken English, ““Before tattoo on body, tattoo on mind.””
The way you talk to yourself both grow out of and contributes to your self image.
Our way of interpreting life’s circumstances is what needs to change.
He can’t Swim
I heard a story of a duck hunter who bought a dog, and when he shot a duck he was shocked to see the dog walk on the water to get the duck. He shot three more just to be sure he wasn’t imagining it.
He couldn’t wait to take his buddy to impress him with his out of this world dog. So he took his buddy along, and they shot the first duck and the dog walked on the water and got the dog. His friend showed no surprise at all. He thought he must not have noticed. But after shooting several more and the dog continued to retrieve them in this strange way he has to ask his buddy. "Didn’t you notice anything unusual about my dog?" His buddy replied, "Yea, he can’t swim can he?"
Circumstances don’t determine your happiness. It is the way you view them and talk to yourself about them.
Circumstances don’t determine your happiness.
-IT is the way you choose to view them and talk to yourself about them that becomes critical to your happiness.
Eleanor Roosevelt is credited with saying, "Nobody can make me feel inferior without my permission." To paraphrase, "No one can make me feel anyway at all without my permission. Our feelings are our chosen reactions to life’s events. Dr Dobbins
The way you see it, is the way it is for you.
Everyones Sky has its dark clouds
No one can change your feelings, only you
Regeneration makes recreation possible but not inevitable .
Jn 1:12,12
12But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.13They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan--this rebirth comes from God.
How you can go about changing your self Image ?
1. See Yourself as a person God Loves very much.
2. Realize you are very valuable to God.
3. Think of yourself as a forgivable person.
4. See yourself as a changeable person.
Learn to accept praise from others -Give it
Avoid putting yourself down. -Mistakes are a part of being human
Think, speak and act positively (Replace “I can’t, I have to” with “I can and I will”
Avoid the envy trap (contentment)
Replace negative self talk with positive self talk.
Conclusion: So lets allow the Holy Spirit of God to change our self image through which we see life and judge others. God wants to give us his view of life. He wants to enable us to love ourselves as he does, in order that we can love others the same way.
