THE BENEFITS OF KNOWING OURSELVES

 “…then shall I know even as also I am known.” 1 Cor 13:12

What then, are the spiritual benefits of actually cursing God or renouncing God? First, as Job, we began to see ourselves as God sees us. Job, in the beginning of his trial, accounts to his friends the many good things about his life—how he helped the poor and fatherless, how his wisdom and morality were esteemed by all, how he stood for the right of all men and was against evil. Because of his exemplar character he could find no reason why God would allow him to go through these sufferings, even under the intense examination by his friends. He confessed that he was human and certainly not perfect, but he nevertheless felt that these trials were unjust. It was only at the end, when the Lord began to reveal Himself to Job—His majesty, power, wisdom, and holiness—and then by divine insight allow Job to see himself, that Job proclaimed, “I am vile.” Before we encounter God we think of ourselves as a pretty good person. We may have done some bad things, but those things are easily justified and most likely are the fault of other people’s actions in our lives. We blame our parents or our acquaintances. We blame our upbringing and our environment. ‘If things would only have been different,’ we say, ‘I would have been a better person.’ Like the mother whose son has been convicted of murder, and yet she still proclaims, ‘But he is a good boy.’ We want to see ourselves as being good in spite of the evidence to the contrary. We also refuse to accept any criticism by others that would suggest that we have made some bad mistakes. Even God has a difficult time in breaking through our self-righteous shell; as the Apostle Peter would later write, that the righteous are “scarcely… saved”. True repentance can only be brought about by God; and it begins with us seeing ourselves as sinners that are condemned and on our way to hell. Even after we are saved, we must still battle the return of the self-righteous view we have of ourselves, and must constantly be brought again to repentance from our “dead works.” Before God is finished with us we will be made to see that we are sinful through and through; and we will declare, as the Apostle Paul did, “that in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing,” and “O wretched man that I am!” David wrote in the Psalms that he was born a sinner, that his whole being had been shaped by sin, and that at his very best state, he was altogether taken by vanity—a false view of himself.

1 Pet 4:18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Heb 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,

Rom 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

Rom 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

Psa 51:5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Psa 39:5 Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.

In order for God to bring us to the light, we must first know we are in darkness. A person who is lost in the woods must first admit that they are lost before appropriate steps can be taken. Otherwise, they will continue to wander around in circles in their lost state thinking all is well. One cannot be healed unless they first acknowledge that they are sick, and then seek a remedy. A blind man cannot seek to receive his sight unless he first knows that he is blind. In the Garden, when Adam fell from innocence, he hid himself from God, not wanting to face his Creator and the consequences of what he had done. It was God who came seeking him, calling out, “where art thou.” Now again, God was not frustrated in finding Adam, as in a game of hide and seek; for He knew all along where Adam was and what he had done. God was not asking for His own sake, but for Adam’s. He wanted Adam to face what he had done and where he was now—not the physical place where he was hiding, but where he was spiritually, after his disobedience. He wanted Adam to quit running and hiding from the only one who could help him in his fallen condition.

Matt 9:10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?
12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

John 9:39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
40 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
41 Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Gen 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

John 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

After we see the condition we are in, things are in the open now; and we no longer have to hide from God amongst the trees as Adam did. However, even after our salvation, we continue to try and cover ourselves with the fig leaves of human worthiness and good works; but God strips us again and again until we see our complete nakedness before Him. In time we will come to see our absolute sinfulness— that we are not as bad as we could be, we can be another devil; but that everything we are and do is tainted with sin. If God brings us to that light, we will see that “in our flesh” we hate Him with our whole being; and if we had the chance we would drive the nails that crucified Christ. When we get to that point, we will begin to see how great is the love, mercy, and grace of God toward sinners such as us.

Gen 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Luke 19:14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.

John 7:7 The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.

I do not believe, that as members of Adam’s fallen race, we fully comprehend what it means to be a sinner. We tend to believe that because we have made a few mistakes, we must acknowledge that we are not perfect. That, however, is not the depth of what the term implies. To be a sinner is to be part of an alien race whose leader is Satan; a race who are the enemies of God, and who are at war against God. As sinners we want God to have no part in our lives, but rather want Him to leave us alone—unless of course we are in dire trouble and need His help. Therefore we spend our lives at enmity with God. We hate God so much that we crucified Him when He visited this earth. Just like our spiritual father, the Devil, we are all murderers; and the Lake of Fire will be our eternal home apart from the love and mercy of God.

Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

Eph 2:12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

The second benefit of our being enlightened is that we are given a glimpse of real faith, and that faith continues to grow and be strengthened. To understand how faith is given and then strengthened, we must first have a concept of what Biblical faith is. The Bible teaches that we are saved through faith, we are kept through faith, we walk by faith, and we have victory through faith; but what exactly is faith? Many view faith as a steadfast belief that is somehow conjured up and maintained by some inner power; this comes about either by God’s help and/or by our own will and determination. This faith gets us through difficult times and causes things to happen for us by moving God to work on our behalf. It often expresses itself by those who pray for something, and then doggedly believe that God will answer them, regardless of what His will and purpose may be. While that may be a certain offspring of faith, and indeed may have some Biblical basis, it is not its core element, and is certainly abused by those who neither understand faith or prayer.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

1 Pet 1:5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

2 Cor 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

1 John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

Matt 21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

Faith is the Old Testament word for trust, but trust in what, for what, and to what degree? We say we trust our parents, we trust the bank, we trust our spouses, we trust our kids to do the right thing, and we trust in God. Much of the time however, our trust is violated by those we hold in the highest esteem. Parents fail us, children deceive us, banks go broke, and for many, God has failed them. Maybe He has allowed some great tragedy to happen to them or to a loved one; He has failed to answer some fervent prayer about something that He could have and should have answered; or He has allowed some great disappointment in our lives.

Trust (Chacah):  to seek refuge, flee for protection, to put trust in (God), confide or hope in (God) .[1]

Faith (Pistis): belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same [2]

Psa 115:11 Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.

Prov 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

Psa 118:8 It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.

Mark 11:22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Heb 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

To begin with, Biblical faith is more than what we as humans possess in our natural state. It is not something that we work up or feel, and it is more than just placing our trust in someone until they fail us. Saving faith is a gift of God; it is what the Holy Spirit produces in the hearts of those whom God chooses to save. It is something that is impossible for the natural man to possess, because it is contrary to that which is at the core of our sinful state—pride, self-sufficiency, and vanity. It is something that is intangible to the human senses and therefore cannot be grasped by human means; it is spiritual and we are carnal, sold under sin. True Biblical faith involves trusting God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves—we cannot save ourselves from death and hell unto eternal life and heaven; we cannot keep ourselves after we are saved; and we cannot have any victory over the sinful elements of the world, the flesh, and the devil, by and in ourselves. Only God’s strong arm and miraculous power can do these things for us, without any added effort of our own, or without having any of our own works added to His.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Rom 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Rom 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.
28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Rom 4:4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

1 Cor 2:5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Psa 98:1 O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.

Human pride says that we must do something on our own; we must have some part in our salvation, even if we just walk the aisle, say a prayer, get baptized, or join a church. After we are saved, many say we must keep the Ten Commandments and fight the devil if we are going to make it into heaven. We think God certainly requires that some trinket of our own human works must be added to the riches of His infinite Grace. Our human reasoning cannot imagine a salvation that requires nothing of man’s efforts, works, abilities, or even will; and that saving faith must be initiated, cultivated, and sustained by God alone.

Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Gal 3:1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

Phil 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

When we see our vile, sinful, helpless, hopeless condition, our only avenue of escape is to turn to the only One that can save us. When the work of God’s Spirit begins to convict us of our lost condition, we begin to cry out in desperation for God to have mercy on us and help us. If we are truly at our wits end, then God reveals to us His salvation, which is Jesus Christ alone. At that moment we are given our first glimpse of the intangible, albeit real faith that God has created in our hearts. When we see Christ Jesus hanging upon the cross for our sins, it is at that moment, by God’s grace through faith, that we are truly saved and become a child of God.

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Psa 107:1 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
3 And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
4 They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.
7 And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.
8 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
9 For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.
10 Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High:
12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help.
13 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder.
15 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
16 For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.
17 Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted.
18 Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.
19 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.
20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
21 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

Isa 45:22 Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.

John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

That moment however, is only the beginning of our journey as a Christian. Even as a newborn baby we begin to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” That growing involves more and more of us seeing our own weak estate, and then having our eyes turned again and again to see the riches that God has given to us in Christ. Our flesh, which is still unregenerate, constantly seeks ways to express its own vanity and to have a part in God’s salvation—which is by grace alone. Even pastors and teachers which should instruct us in the ways of Christ, become guilty of turning us to the old ways of the flesh to please God. We begin to add things to God’s salvation: works, creeds, and the “commandments and doctrines of men.” Practices such as baptism, partaking of the Lord’s supper, becoming a part of a local church, prayer, Bible reading, and witnessing (which are all good and proper when used in a Biblical context) start to become things we do to help God save us. We begin to see them as a part of our salvation, and make them works which we do to please God. Soon, we may even lose sight of Christ—what He has done for us and what He wants to do for us. We are again found looking to our own efforts as the means to secure the blessings and favor of God, just as we did when we were lost. Our faith is made purer when all these efforts and add-ons to God’s grace and salvation are burned up in the many trials and afflictions that God designs to bring us back to Christ.

2 Pet 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

2 Pet 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. 2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.

2 Cor 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

Gal 4:8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.

Gal 4:19 My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,

Gal 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?

Col 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

Col 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
18 Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.
20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?

1 Pet 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

Many times our cursings, failures, sins, murmurings, and complaining, cause us to doubt that we even are saved. We begin to wonder how could we do such things and be a Christian; or we think that God has surely cast us off because of our wickedness; or we think that maybe there is something we didn’t do properly to become a Christian; or there is something that we still lack before we are truly saved. All kinds of these doubts and fears begin to creep into our minds, leaving us in despair. We feel so distraught and miserable that we wish we could die. We may even entertain ideas of how we can end our lives. Our cursing is brought about because we are frustrated and angry that nothing we do seems to work as we think it should, or in any way pleases God as we think it should. We long to see the smiling countenance of God and to have His blessings, but all we see is a frowning face and our own misery. Indeed, we are brought to see the deadness of our own ways, and that there is no satisfaction now in the existence we had in the old life. It is at this point where God now steps in and offers us once again His life; He again reveals the simplicity that is in Christ; He shows us once more that it is in Christ and Christ alone that we have life; and it is Christ alone that saves us and keeps us. We may even hear His voice saying, ‘Since you are so miserable and want to die, why don’t you yield yourself to Me and accept the life that I have to offer?’  It is during these trials that we are drawn deeper and deeper into the abyss of self, and purer and purer our faith becomes as we begin to look to God in more richer and fuller ways, until “Christ is all, and in all.”

2 Cor 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:
9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

2 Cor 1:8 For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life:
9 But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:
10 Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;

Gen 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

Another benefit of cursing God has to do with our relationships with others. When our flesh is revealed to us as it truly is, and we see more and more of our own vileness, we begin to have more mercy and compassion toward others. Faith is the enemy of pride and produces a genuine meekness in those that obtain it. We stop being so judgmental toward lost sinners and those of Christ’s flock who are weak or who have stumbled into sin. The unsaved have not the Spirit of God in their lives, neither do they know ought of the saving grace of God. The weaker brethren may be babes in Christ or their “depth of earth” may have been much shallower than ours. We realize also, that we are not so far removed from their condition, and that it is only “by the grace of God that I am what I am.”  We become aware that there is but a step between us and a fall into the depth of sin. We also stop looking down upon others, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ; because we see, that after all, we ourselves are nothing special. We begin to see that there is nothing in us that makes us any better than anyone else. In fact, we begin to “esteem others better than ourselves” because we see our own condition as so vile that we begin to think that we are the “chief of sinners.” We think that our fellow believers must surely be more mature and victorious than us—though they too suffer with the same conflicts.

Rom 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

1 Thess 5:14 Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.

1 Cor 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

1Cor 4:7 For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?

Phil 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

1 Tim 1:15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

If you will allow me another digression into one of my own experiences, I believe that it may be helpful. When I was first saved it seemed as though I walked in heavenly places; and that with all of my being I tried to avoid sin or anything that would interfere with my joyous estate. I longed to live a life pleasing to God and wanted His every blessing. However, being in the world, I was required to work around other men who were not so ‘heavenly minded’ as myself. For a period of time I had to work with one man, who in particular, was extremely offensive in everything he had to say. He both smoked and cursed incessantly, and I became increasingly annoyed to the point of almost rebuking him to his face. I worked in a shop area where there were many obstacles that had to be navigated around constantly. On one particular day, when I had reached my endurance of this man, I rammed my knee into a steel sawhorse which produced a burst of instant pain, and to my horror, an outburst of cursing from me in the very presence of this man that I had so piously judged. At that moment the Spirit of God spoke to my heart, ‘Here you are, a Christian, who has come to know the grace and mercy of God. For weeks you have judged in your heart this man who is a lost, blind sinner; to whom you have not shown the least care or concern for his soul, other than to be irritated by his cursing. Now you have committed the same offense for which you looked down upon him.’  Now God had orchestrated this whole experience to teach me a lesson about showing mercy and compassion which I have never forgotten. I have, of course, fallen into Satan’s trap of judging others again and again; but God is always faithful to allow me to be judged for the same things that I regard as so vile in others, and to experience His condemnation for my judging after the flesh.

Rom 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.
2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

Matt 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.