Truth and Self

At times truth is difficult to accept because it presents something about ourselves. You can see King David who immediately judges a situation correctly without realizing the situation is a parable about himself.

It is not that truth is difficult to understand, but rather that it is easy to take truth selectively. To only think of the facts that make us look good.

It is of course our nature of sin which wishes to hide the truth from ourselves. Having the honest to admit the truth is refreshing.

We are not perfect. We are accepted by a God who knows we are not perfect.

Denying our flaws and weaknesses does nothing other than to prevent us from growing. When we are weak we are strong.

It is not that weakness is strength, but that if we think we are strong we fail to understand. The greatest of people is not immune to sudden illness or accident. When we feel strong we are weak, because we lack the humility to realize that life is not fully in our control and that we must rest on God for strength.

Happiness in the Christian Life

Some traditions and common sayings in Christian circles may lead people to believe that Christianity is only about self-denial. The Bible mentions this, but the Bible has a specific meanings for it, and when done in the right way (following the true meaning of it and with wisdom), it leads to happiness.

Christianity is about seeking your happiness and the happiness of others in God. The self-denial of Christianity promotes the long-term happiness of ourselves.

Often people focus too much on the denial, of not doing things, like denying themselves pleasure instead of positively doing things for others. When we help and love others we find we are much happier than if we were always alone.

When we talk about the Christian life, it's important to not forget the freeing aspect of Christ's work for us and how God's commands are really good and freeing in a sense. Sin is what tries to convince us that there is a better way than God's commands when truly there's not.

Here are five posts related to this topic:

• Our True Selves: "Often our feeling about Christianity from the outside or inside is that it may destroy our personality. ... The reality is that we find our true selves when we accept God. ..."
  
  
• Suffering as Non-Ideal: "Various Christian groups have promoted suffering as a Christian virtue. While the bible does suggest that suffering produces virtue, the bible does not promote a life of suffering. ..."
  
  
• The Word "Sacrifice" Should Be Used More Carefully
  
  
• Pleasure Is Not the Enemy
  
  
• Reflections on Being "Selfless"

Our True Selves

Often our feeling about Christianity from the outside or inside is that it may destroy our personality. Christianity asks us to live in a certain why which limits our freedom and forces us to conform to principles.

It is often viewed that autonomy from religion is true freedom that preserves personhood, and therefore we are giving up freedom to accept religion.

The reality is that we find our true selves when we accept God. You see our personhood is based on the image of God in us which has been marred by the fall.

It is through our union with Christ through faith that the image of God in us which is marred slowly is restored.

God has always had man's happiness as a priority. We rarely see the fact that God has our happiness as a priority.

The problem of course is we see each moment in isolation and are lost in the thicket of the moment and cannot see the whole story of our life from start to finish as God can.

People often wonder why this or that happened. How can God use it. Often we can see this or that that God uses.

But he never shows us everything. We must always live by faith in his promises.