No less than the
Apostle Paul confessed that he could not understand
himself.
“For that which I do I
allow (know or understand) not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I
hate, that do I” (Romans 7:15).
“Know
thyself” encouraged the philosopher.
The Bible, conversely, declares that adequate self-awareness cannot be
attained by our own efforts. Who
are we, really? Why do we do the
things we do, for both good and ill?
How can we maintain the former, and overcome the latter? These are questions for which we find
only the most partial of answers by our own attempts at self-discovery.
Of all the reasons to
trust God, the knowledge of ourselves is one of the most important. “O Lord, Thou hast searched me and known
me” declared the Psalmist (Psalm 139:1).
Fewer more comforting statements exist in the pages of Scripture. There is someone who fathoms the mystery
of me! Someone finds me worthy of
knowing, and even more amazingly, of loving regardless of His findings! The God of Scripture possesses such
insight and inclination, and He calls us to fling ourselves into His heart of
grace with complete abandon.
As we trust Him, our
Heavenly Father will reveal to us that which we need to know about
ourselves. Doubtless, some things
will disturb us, and require that we humble ourselves in honest acknowledgement
and repentance. For the born again
believer, however, many of God’s findings will thrill us as we discover that we
are not merely ourselves. “Ye are
the temple of God” (I Corinthians 3:16).
Indeed, boil a Christian down to his or her essence, and that which
remains is the Spirit of the Lord Jesus united to our innermost being. This our Heavenly Father sees most
vividly, even as the New Testament so often affirms despite so much evidence to
the contrary. He would have us join
Him in such a perspective of grace whereby the light of God enables us to more
consistently walk by the life of God.
Rather than
introspection, we seek primarily God’s inspection. We examine ourselves by seeking the
insight of the One who knows us perfectly.
Thereby we think rightly about ourselves, as “In Thy light shall we see
light” (Psalm 36:9). And thereby
the most important thing about us, the indwelling presence of the Spirit of
Christ, more and more shines forth both within and
without.
“Thou, God,
seest me.”
(Genesis
16:13)
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