Self-Condemnation Comes Before the Fall…

Amidst the various struggles that Christians deal with, pride is one of the most severe results of the fall. It can manifest itself in so many ways and it has the power to completely consume anyone at any time. It is one of satan’s most effective tools against us because it is so difficult to combat. Part of sanctification is realizing the areas of your life that have been corrupted specifically by pride. By God’s grace we are able to have victory in many of these areas but it still proves to be a constant battle.

Just as some sins are less obvious than others, many forms of pride are rather subtle. Self condemnation is one of these forms. We condemn ourselves all the time, often to the point of extreme anxiety and depression. Sometimes not fulfilling the expectations of others or fear of not measuring up leads to this kind of pride. Some of you might be questioning my reasons for placing this type of condemnation in the same boat with pride, but let me explain further. The extreme form of this leads to the point of questioning your own salvation. That is a bit too extreme for this discussion. I’m speaking more along the lines of daily struggles that might be work or school related. We might say to ourselves, ‘I didn’t type that report correctly…I bet my boss thinks I’m an idiot…How did I ever get this job?’ Or again, ‘Why would this girl ever like me? I have nothing to offer her…’

Let’s take this thought a little deeper. What about your thoughts about your life before you came to know Christ? Some of you don’t remember those days but I know some of you relive some of that horror more frequently than you would like. I think that is the root of most of our self-condemning tendencies. Satan uses those memories against us and says, ‘you’ll never be good enough! Don’t you remember what you did!? You’re nobody, and you’ll never amount to anything!’ It’s extremely difficult to come out of these times. Too often people simply go through the motions of life thinking they’ll never be good enough and that’s when Satan’s stronghold of pride takes root.

This is a type of pride because it discounts the work of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we lapse into the filth that Satan feeds us we are throwing the power of the gospel out the window. Let this not be so! Yes, we are sinners and we aren’t good enough to save ourselves, but let us not grow idle in prideful self-pity. We must embrace the power that comes from the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and live with freedom. When you sin, repent and cling to the gospel that has saved you. Don’t wallow in your guilt. You’ve been redeemed!

How prideful are we when we don’t practice and preach the gospel to ourselves? My pastor and C.J. Mahaney have helped me tremendously with this. There is absolutely nothing you can do to make God love you any more, and there is absolutely nothing you can do to make God love you any less. One thing that might help is to wake up every morning and say that in your prayer. ‘Today Lord, there is nothing I can do to make you pleased with me more than you already are. Christ died for my sins and I embrace that truth with complete humility today.’ Pray that prayer frequently and see what transformation will happen. Of course we don’t deserve the sacrifice that God made on the cross, but what gift does anyone deserve? That’s the point of grace. I hope that we may all ask God to forgive us for this type of pride and live in assurance that he is pleased with us through Christ.