"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he"
(Prov. 23: 7, KJV)
"The THOUGHTS
we sow today, will be the ACTIONS we reap tomorrow!" -JDS
(Based on Gal. 6:7)
I have written on this text Proverbs 23 : 7
"It will be generally granted, I
believe, that what someone thinks of himself has much to do with the kind of
life he will live. A person who sees himself as inferior to others will
probably do inferior work, whereas a person who believes himself to be more
capable than others will probably do better work. A man tends to live up to his
self-image."[1]
The above words of Mr. Hoekema among God's people have been
proven to be true time and again. Coming from a Old Paths Assembly background I
know this all too well. How often I heard from such fellow brethren that we are
nothing more than wretched, worthless, hell deserving sinners saved by God's
grace. I also have parroted such words about myself as well. Here I am, a born
again Christian, a saint, a child of God, a believer in Christ--and I was still
calling myself a rotten sinner? I thought it was the proper humble view that I
should have about myself as a Christian. What I failed to realize then, was the
negative impact it was having on my self-image. Again, quoting Hoekema:
"All this having been said, it
would seem that people who accept the Christian view of man as a creature made
in God's image and redeemed from sin by the sacrifice of God's own Son would
have, for the most part, a very positive self-image. Unfortunately, however,
this is by no means the case. Conservative evangelical Christians often have a
rather negative self-image... In some of the official formularies used by
evangelical Christian churches one finds sentences in which believers are urged
to "loathe" or to "abhor" themselves. Again the terminology
is unfortunate. Whereas all Christians would agree that we must abhor our sins
and loathe our continuing sinfulness, I do not believe that the Scriptures
require us to abhor and loathe ourselves."[2]
How very true are the above words by Hoekema. For modern day
Christians often suffer from a poor view of themselves. After God has redeemed
us by the precious blood of Christ are we to continue calling ourselves
"sinners?" Is such a view of ourselves going to help us become better
saints? "For as he thinketh in his
heart, so is he" (Prov. 23:7). If we are still calling ourselves
"rotten sinners," how can we make progress in our walk with Christ?
Just think for a moment, if we are still viewing ourselves as poor sinners,
when we are precious saints in God's eyes, washed in the blood of Christ and
are forgiven. How then can we still identify ourselves as sinners? Was the
Apostle Paul mistaken when he said, "Therefore
if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor. 5:17). No! Of course Paul
was not mistaken! He rightly identified the Corinthian believers as "new
creatures" in Christ Jesus. He identified them as Christians, or saints if
you will, because they were in Christ. You see, how we identify our self will
affect how we behave. If we still believe or view ourselves as wretched
sinners, then we are going to continue behaving as such. However, if we grasp
the truth of our redemption in Christ, and the new life and identity we have in
Christ, then our behavior will conform to what a Christian should be.
The reason that many believers today live defeated lives is
due to the fact in how they view themselves. As long as they continue thinking
of themselves as "worthless sinners," instead of identifying
themselves as the saints they were meant to be, they will continue living frustrated,
defeated lives. Oh may God's people open their eyes to their true God given
identity in the Lord Jesus Christ!
Where once we were sinners,
Now we are saints;
Where once we were identified with Satan,
Now we are identified with the Saviour.
-Jerry Sheppard
"You act the way you act because you believe the way
you believe. You behave the way you behave because you think the way you think.
Right belief results in right action. Right thinking results in right
behaviour. How you believe determines what you do. Correct belief and correct
thinking will always result in correct action."[3]
Sow a thought, Reap an act;
Sow an act, Reap a habit;
Sow a habit, Reap a character;
Sow a character, Reap a destiny.
-Warren Wiersbe
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