Philippians 2:3-4
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Self-love, self-actualisation, self-made, self-improvement, etc. There is nothing necessarily wrong with these things yet everything is wrong with them. This is because they are set on the premise of self. Unfortunately, we live in a day and age where self is king. Everything that we do is for the benefit of self. As a result, anything and anyone that seems to stand in the way of us attaining ‘self’s highest good’ is quickly and brutally cut off. Isn’t it interesting that the rise of such phrases and concepts like ‘fake friends’, ‘toxic people’, etc, was at the same time when such phrases such as ‘self-love’, ‘Me first’, etc, were also becoming prominent? It seems that an obsession with self only led to the damage of self.
The apostle Paul, while writing to the Philippians, appeals to them to be more others-focussed. To consider the effect of their actions not just on themselves but especially on others. To place a higher premium on others than they do on themselves. This is the same exhortation for us today. If we are to live meaningful, happy lives, then we must look to the interests of our brothers and sisters. We must seek and pursue their good. What an amazing society we would live in if we each had this kind of attitude. The same attitude that was in Christ who forsook self to save selfish human beings like you and I. That’s the only society where self can thrive!
Reflections
1. In what other ways have we exalted self?
2. How will you order your life differently after today’s devotion?
