Uh Does it really matter if Christians indulge in a little self-pity once in a while? After all, though saved, we're still human. Isn't self-pity perfectly normal, in hard times, unavoidable, an understandable emotional letdown? Or is there something dark, dangerous, even deadly about self-pity?
Well, my friend, stay with us, listen, and learn. You're listening to Until He Comes, a blend of prophetic and practical biblical studies with Dr. Greg Hinnant. Author of The Second Coming of Christ, His Appearing, His Return, Our Preparation. And now, author and teacher Greg Hinnant.
Welcome to the broadcast. Today I'm going to talk to you about self-pity. And our message is taken from a devotional book, Sweeter Than Honey. Overwhelmed and undone by the terrible adversities God had poured upon him to test and purify his faith, poor old Job cried out in despair in Job nineteen twenty one. have pity upon me, O ye my friends At the moment, Job's problems were twofold.
First, his awful troubles, and they were terrible. And second, his awful self pity. Self pity is an unhealthy sorrow for oneself arising from a purely selfish viewpoint of one's troubles. It gives excessive attention to one's stresses and sorrows And insufficient attention, or none at all, to one's blessings and joys. It is an obsessive concentration on one's troubles that imagines they are worse than anyone else's.
If prolonged, self-pity becomes habitual. When this happens, It consumes all our positive energy, halts all our forward progress and blinds us to all hopeful and advantageous opportunities that are right in front of us. It also leaves us bitter Moody. Hard to get along with, and as a result, our friends abandon us and strangers avoid us. Summarizing Self-pity leaves us socially crippled.
mentally blind, spiritually inept, and our own worst enemy. bound to past adversities and unable to enjoy future blessings. By leaving us small hearted and carnally minded instead of large hearted and Christ minded, The habit of self-pity makes sanctification fashion. Full separation from sin unto full union with God impossible. It also makes fruitful Christian service impossible.
Since self-pity fosters an attitude of intense self- Self-absorption. We want everyone to serve us. Whereas true Christian service is just the opposite. It is a passion to freely serve others for the sake of Christ. who said in Matthew 20, 28, The Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Self-pity is universal. Affecting non-Christians and Christians alike of every nation, race, tongue. Yeah. It resides in the sin nature we inherited from Adam. Which the Bible refers to as our old man in Romans 6:6, or our flesh.
in Romans eight twelve It is one of the attitudes or fixed patterns of thinking and feeling that make up our unrenewed, unspiritual, unchrist-like. Carnal manned. which in Romans eight six Paul says brings not life, but spiritual death. Whenever self-pity arises, Anger. Unthankfulness and unmercifulness are also present.
Though not always evident. When pitying ourselves, we are subconsciously angry because of unfair treatment, real or imagined, from people. And from God. who in our view isn't helping us sufficiently. When pitying ourselves, we are also unthankful.
because we are failing to appreciate our past and our present blessings. And when pitying ourselves, we are also unmerciful. Because we're callously ignoring or minimizing other people's sufferings all around us. though they are almost always as bad or worse than our own. Truly, when under the influence of self pity, For the moment?
We see no one but ourselves. nothing but our troubles. That's it. That's all. And that's sad, my friend.
It's very disappointing that Jesus Who by God's grace has given us all we need to live forever free from self-pity, not only in this life, but the next. As Christians, we must further realize that God's Word reveals there is nothing innocent or good or even pitiable about self pity. It is not A normal reaction to adversity. an unavoidable let down, or a harmless passing mood to be simply ignored. To the contrary, the Scripture identifies it as satanic.
and shows that, therefore, we must face it and address it with a determined mind. When Jesus announced he was going to Jerusalem to die on the cross for the redemption of the whole world, Peter responded in Matthew sixteen twenty two, Be it far from the Lord. By suggesting that Jesus reject his divinely chosen hardship, Peter was urging him to pity himself. Be kind to thyself, sir, states Young's literal translation. or Spare thyself, reads Gill's exposition.
Or pity thyself, states the King James Version Translators notes. Jesus' surprising response exposed the real spirit behind Peter's seemingly harmless suggestion. He said, Get thee behind me, Satan. God's ancient nemesis, Satan, was attempting to move Jesus to respond to the Father's call to the cross. with excessive self-consideration.
To put his self-consideration before consideration of the Father's good will. And the human race's desperate need of salvation from sin's terribly harmful effects and Satan's tragically cruel control. Let's learn some more. Self pity arises as a faulty reaction to adversity. offenses, injustices, indignacies, injuries or crosses, which often come because we're doing God's will or we're obeying or ministering his saving, liberating word.
It may also be triggered by other adversities, for instance, Disappointment over unrealized hopes. when suddenly let down, especially very hard, we tend to feel sorry for ourselves But we don't have to. since we have a sure eternal hope in salvation. and a near blessed hope in our Lord's soon coming. Or self-pity may be brought on by sinful attitudes, such as envy.
which is unjustified anger at someone else having something we keenly want ourselves. When King Saul was relentlessly persecuting David because he envied David's success in war and popularity with the people, Even though Saul was the aggressor and David the pursued, Saul commented to his men in 1 Samuel 22:8. None of you is sorry for me that my son has stirred up my servant against me. But Saul didn't have to yield to self-pity. He had so many blessings if he had been counting them and praising Yahweh for them, including David.
David himself was was a huge blessing to the king. He was his son in law. He was the leader of the army. He won many victories for Saul against the Philistines. But that meant nothing to him, while Seth Pity controlled him.
Or self-pity may be stirred by severe or prolonged sicknesses. as was the case with Job's physical affliction. Painful balls covered his body from head to foot. I'm sure I've never had even one of those balls. A similar self-pity Gripped the cripple by the pool of Bethesda.
To whom Jesus said, Do you want to be healed? That is, do you desire to be healed, sir? Jesus' words were psychoanalytical, They reveal the man's long physical condition and had given rise to self-pity. And that was his real root problem at the moment when Jesus met him. He had been sick in body so long He had become sick in his mind and his will, and and had apparently given up hope that he would ever be healed and walk freely and enjoy life again.
And if you, my friend, as you listen to me, Right now. or one of your loved ones. have been sick for a long time. You don't have to give up hope. You can cultivate a close, rich, healthy fellowship with Christ in spite of your physical limitations and lack of physical health.
And you can ask the elders of your church to pray for your physical healing, which Jesus provided for us by the brutal scourging he endured. You know, the scripture says in Isaiah, Matthew, and Peter, By his stripes. We are healed. And if healing is for any reason delayed, You may comfort yourself in knowing that you have a new immortal body awaiting you in the heavens. In Second Corinthians five verse one, the Apostle Paul wrote, For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down, the world That is, when we die and leave this earthly body, We will have a house in heaven, An eternal body made for us by God Himself.
and not by human hands. Or God's correction may also trigger self-pity. We feel so sorry. that we are being subjected to the disciplinary moral training of the Lord. and seem to not be making any progress.
So we just give up. and wish God would leave us alone and just let us sulk in self pity. But, my friend, We don't have to do that. We don't have to give way to self-pity. We may focus on the wonderful purpose behind God's moral training.
It comes to perfect our Christian character so that we may know Christ more. And be like him. conform to his image and be more fruitful in his kingdom work. Or poverty may give rise to self pity, We must scrap and labor and cut corners just to have food to eat or a roof over our heads. and Gaunt seems not to care about it all.
But we don't have to succumb to self-pity. We can remember the church at Smyrna. Described in Revelation 2, verses 8 through 11: the materially poor was spiritually rich in faith. And knowledge of God, and closeness and intimacy with Jesus, and worship, and all the deep spiritual things that make life worthwhile. and they had the personal approval in favor of Jesus Christ.
You too can prosper spiritually even when you are suffering the adversity of material need. You can set your heart on not this earth's fleeting, soon-to-be-destroyed wealth. But on new Jerusalem's incorruptible spiritual and material wealth in the stunningly beautiful new earth that is yet to be created. Where you will live with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and the prophets, and the apostles, and the saints. Forever.
This month, for a gift of any amount, we're offering Philippian Notes, Dr. Hinnant's commentary on Philippians, easy to understand, insightful, biblically precise, and spiritually rich, and will prove very helpful to ministers, teachers, and any hungry believer. It could change your life. Bereavement also may easily cause self-pity. Oh, our life was so full and sweet When our loved one was with us.
And now they're gone. and we're left to face life All alone. But we don't have to cave to self-pity, even in bereavement. We can rejoice in the One, the Only, the greatest loved one. Jesus.
and the most awesome personal relationship known to man, our sweet fellowship. with Jesus And many other hardships or losses. May cause Self-pity to arise. If we focus on our situation too long and don't remember God's counterbalancing blessings, The Apostle Paul taught Christians that we are in a very real but invisible spiritual war against Satan's demonic agents, who in Ephesians six twelve, Paul called the rulers of the darkness of this world. Their diabolical assignment is to shut out the light of Christ.
and of God's word. Therefore, they relentlessly oppose Christians who are seeking the light of God's Word, obeying it in their daily lives and sharing it in any form of ministry, or helping those who are in ministry. This spiritual warfare goes on all the time. It is nonstop. And to win this war we must learn to fight, not our way, my friend, but God's way.
The battle is for the primary entry point through which Satan can influence us. Are man's.
So we win this war by filling our minds with God's thoughts. His precious word, the Bible. and taking wrong thoughts captive to God's thoughts. In 2 Corinthians 10, 3 through 5, Paul wrote, We are human, but we don't wage war as humans do. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of this world.
On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ. A strong call, my friend, is any attitude Any thoughts? Any concept Which you have held a long time, but it is wrong, it's contrary to God, so it gains a stronger hold on you the longer it remains in your mind. This text tells us: no matter how long.
Self-pity has been in your heart. You can destroy it in an instant today. as you listen to this broadcast.
Now hear this, my friend. Either we take self pity captive or it takes us captive. there is no middle ground in this issue. Self-pity captivates us spiritually when we fail to. Recognize it and cast down our self-sympathizing thoughts or quickly and firmly reject them.
just as Jesus immediately and decisively rejected Peter's self-sympathizing suggestion that he not go to the cross. and gave it no further place in his mind. choosing rather to dwell on God's thoughts. That the Father had sent him to die on that cross so the whole world might be saved. For as John 3.16 tells us, God so loved the world.
that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting. Life. He kept that before him, and he had no self-pity all the way until the moment he yielded up his spirit and said, It is finished. Self-pity may begin to take us captive spiritually when friends, family, neighbors or fellow Christians. speak to us with excessive sympathy.
They mean well, of course. but they may lack a spiritual or biblical viewpoint toward our problems. Paul's experience gives us an example of this. NX twenty one, twelve and thirteen, After Paul's friends in Philip's house charge, Heard the well-known prophet Agabas predict Paul would be arrested and jailed in Jerusalem. Paul's friends wept and begged him to change his mind and not go to Jerusalem.
Luke writes, And when we heard these things, both we and they of that place besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. But Paul, who was already convinced God wanted him to go to Jerusalem, and who for years had been focused on God's will for his life, and blind to his own self consideration. he would have none of it. What are you doing weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus, he responded.
Wisely As he had done many times before, Paul took Selpity captive, B. before I'd had a chance to take him captive. and he did not turn back to its ensnaring suggestions again. Why? He knew very well that once self-pity gains the upper hand, its effects are powerful and potentially deadly.
It traps us in a revolving door of spiritual stagnation that keeps us from finishing the race set before us. It renders us weak and unfaithful in duty. And encourages excessive self-indulgence and self-comfort. You know, not all, but many suffering from obesity, particularly in America, are often moved by self-pity to indulge in low nutrition, high fat, Comfort foods. If you're caught in this cycle, my friend, ask God to help you break out of it today.
You deal with the self-pity and God will help you deal with the wrong eating habits. Self pity moves us to slander our adversaries, whom we blame for our own faulty reaction to the adversities they have brought upon us. With our Father's full permission. It also distorts our view of others, events and ourselves. And ultimately, self-pity destroys us.
and our destiny in Christ. It also stumbles our companions by causing them to misjudge and condemn those we complain about all the time. And to question God. for seeming to neglect us. Highly contagious self-pity will eventually infect undiscerning companions and friends with whom we constantly share our excessively mournful complaints.
After talking with us, they will lose their positive outlook and start feeling sorry for themselves. and the sad and destructive cycle of self pity, The good news is many overcome self pity and finish their life race well. The Apostle John, for instance, rose above his lonely exile on the Isle of Patmos and received the richest spiritual rewards possible. a vision of Jesus in glory. An open door in heaven, and the greatest prophetic revelation in human history, the book of Revelation.
And when in Luke 7, 23 Jesus graciously but bluntly rebuked John the Baptist for being offended at him for allowing John to remain in prison. When he so strongly desired to continue his ministry, John forsook self-pity during his last days in prison, and when he went home to God without his head, he He did so in a joyful, thankful, positive, God-honoring attitude and without even a hint. Yeah. This is why Jesus could praise John so highly in the verses following his corrective rebuke of the great prophet. I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist.
Also, when in bitter, childless widowhood, Ruth threw off self pity and focused on helping her even worse off mother in law, Naomi, God was so pleased, He filled Ruth's life with rich blessings. a husband, a home, a child, and membership in the most honorable family line in Israel and arguably human history, the family of David. Why did he do this? To show us, my friend, this wonderful lesson. Listen carefully as I tell you what it is.
God has great pity. answering prayers, rescuing and blessing richly. On those who refuse to Yeah. themselves. But in faithfulness, I must tell you this also.
Many others have succumbed to self pity. For example, King Saul. He indulged his self pity until his soul was barren and open to demonic influence his anointing was lost, He no longer heard God's voice. and his destiny was cut short. Yeah.
It is imperative then that we eliminate, not indulge, self pity. Here are some practical bits of advice. that will help you remove self-pity from your life. Confess your self-pity to God. 1 John 1:9 promises forgiveness and cleansings if you tell God the truth.
and confess your self pity to others if they've witnessed it in your conversations and actions, so they too will understand you were wrong. In Jesus' name or delegated authority, command Satan to be gone. Just as Jesus did when the diabolical author of self-pity spoke to him through Peter. Believe that you can do all things through Christ. Who imparts divine strength and ability to you, including mastering self-pity.
Develop your spiritual mind by seeing your troubles through the wide viewfinder of Scripture, not that narrow spyglass of self-sympathy. And then fully accept that all the difficulties you will ever face Come from your Father's loving hand for some good purpose. Just as Romans eight twenty-eight says, For we know that God causes all things to work together for good. to those who love him and are called according. Then thank and praise the Lord in your adversities and for them.
since only by mastering them can you become like Jesus and free of all self-pity. Then rise and minister to other people's needs all around you, and you will break the chains of selfishness. And free yourself to live and serve others joyfully every day for Christ's sake, the rest of your life. and finally look around and see How many other people are suffering Just as badly as you are, or far worse. and be free from the illusion that you have it worse than anyone else.
So friend These are Simple biblical instructions. If you follow them, they will eliminate self-pity. and make you one of the world's rarest wonders An overcomer. A fully developed, spiritually minded, Christ-like, spiritually adult, mature. Christian, who no matter what happens to them, They will obey God and walk closely with Christ, worship Him every day, faithfully serve others for His sake, and give thanks for what they have without the slightest trace.
of self-pity about them.
So take these matters to heart, Receive them. practice them. and may your life be changed into the image of the sun. We are so glad to be able to spend this time with you. In our next episode, we will discover a very surprising fact.
Jesus walks among us now, every day, in this church age. What do I mean?
Well, I'll give you a hint. We learned this lesson from the churches of Asia.
So be sure to listen in and invite several friends to join you. If this message has blessed you, tell your friends and please consider helping us stay on the air by sending your tax-deductible donation to Greg Hennett Ministries. Also, remember, you may download the Until He Comes podcast from your preferred podcast app. May you walk closely with Christ and trust and obey Him in your daily tests of faith and patience until He Comes. This is the Truth Network.
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