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NASB | Ezekiel 16:44 ¶ "Behold, everyone who quotes proverbs will quote this proverb concerning you, saying, 'Like mother, like daughter.' |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Ezekiel 16:44 ¶ "Behold, everyone who uses proverbs will use this proverb against you: 'Like mother, like daughter.' |
Subject: How important is self esteem? |
Bible Note: Greetings Pastor Glenn - There is so much I have learned from McGee's text and I am still processing it! Being aware of the 4 "lies" we choose to believe: 1. I must meet certain standards to feel good about myself;(performance) 2. I must have the approval of certain others to feel good about myself;(fear of rejection) 3. Those who fail, including myself, are deserving of punishment;(fear of failure) 4. I can never change, I am who I am (hopelessness vs we are a new creation in Christ!) Being armed with this information is like having the enemy's game plan against me! When presented this way, we can certainly see that it is contrary to what God's Word has to say about us, yet how often do we succumb to them! Examine how you respond to others - the guy who cuts you off in traffic, for example - you will see the same response that Israel had for her "more guilty sisters!" Do you see how focusing on the failures of others and comparing ourselves to them is a means (we are other ignorant of) to satisfy our need for value and worth. This is a no less than a form of idolatry! We are to seek our value and worth from GOD - He alone is the only source of "self worth!" Any time we focus more on ourself than God is rebellion; it is idolatry - this goes BOTH ways! (The person who is proud and the person who is "pitiful" are both idolaters - for the focus is SELF!) Anyone who seeks to have their needs met apart from God is in rebellion. The people of Ezekiel rejected God's provision for them (Ezekiel 16:6-14 "I gave you My glory, declares the Almighty Lord." !!) The theme of Ezekiel is "they will know that I am the Lord." Eze 16:63 has a key for us to reflect upon: we are to recognize our rebellion and repent! (Just as David does in Psalm 51. The Lord says: "A broken and contrite heart I will not despise!" AND, "For this is what the high and lofty One says- he who lives forever, whose name is holy: "I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite" Is. 57:15) God is in the business of restoration; He is our source of "esteem!" David recognizess this. How? The "secret" is found in Ezekiel 14:6 "Change the way you THINK and act" (emphasis mine). As a man thinks in his heart , so is he.(Proverbs 23:7) What we believe about ourself is the basis of our signinficance or "self worth." The way we think will determine how we act; how we respond to God and others. It is our THINKING that must be conformed to the MIND OF CHRIST! Don't be conformed to the pattern of the world, but be TRANSFORMED, by the renewing of your mind!(Romans 12:2) The problem we face, as did Israel in this passage, is that we reject what God declares about us and choose to believe the "lies" that our adversary very cleverly and subtly sets us before us. Anytime we seek the approval of another, we reject what God already declares about us: we are fully approved, accepted IN CHRIST, because of what Christ has done for me, I am WORTHY, righteous, fully accepted in God's eyes. Yet, when I allow my worth to be determined by how OTHERS SEE ME, I fall into rebellion and set up the thinking of others as a "idol" in place of what God has already declared. (I hope you are following me on this!) So, what do I do? I recognize my rebellion and repent in Godly sorrow (not to be confused with "low self esteem"!)and reflect upon who God says I am! This changes the way I think, and frees me from "performance" oriented living. It also gives me an understanding and compassion for others who are still in the grip of rebellion and "idolatry"! Psalm 51 is an exercise in this "change of thinking" ! Blessings! mommapbs |