Self-worth issues are rooted in believing that we are not worthy or deserve to be loved. When we believe that we are unlovable, we will unconsciously reject any love that comes our way. We won’t believe the love, because we believe in our hearts that we are not worthy. Self worth issues are all rooted in our failing to see who we really are in Christ.
If you walked into a gallery of world-class art, and pointed to a painting, saying, “That is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen! Who painted that??” Now let’s say the artist was standing right next to you. How do you think that would make Him feel? Do you realize we are the artwork of God, a special painting crafted together by the master painter? Do you think it brings Him honor when we look down on ourselves? We need to stop putting down what God has made.
Many times we have self-unforgiveness issues because we blame ourselves for something, or we’ve done something we deeply regret, and we simply cannot let it go. We need to realize that Jesus has forgiven us of all our failures, and we need to start seeing ourselves as forgiven. Otherwise, we’re denying the work of Christ in our life! If God forgave you, and you’re still beating yourself up, then you don’t really believe what Jesus did for you. It’s that simple!
Just as we must forgive others (see Matthew 18:21-35), we need to forgive ourselves just the same. Self-hate has been known to be the root behind diseases such as lupus and crohn’s disease, as well as other auto-immune diseases. We need to stop holding ourselves accountable for that which Jesus has set us free from.
If we want to be in faith, we need to BELIEVE what Jesus did for us, and part of that believing is seeing ourselves as forgiven and clothed with the righteousness of God, which is upon all who believe in the finished work of Christ. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (see Hebrews 11:6), so if you want to please God, start taking the finished work of the cross seriously, and begin to see yourself as forgiven, washed clean, and clothed in the righteousness of God. For the righteousness (right standing with God) is upon all who believe:
“Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe…” (Romans 3:22 KJV)
Unforgiveness is rooted in a lack of realization of how much God has forgiven us, and therefore we’re not thankful for the steep and terrible price that Jesus paid for our own failures. This is why it is so important to mediate on what Jesus did for us, until it transforms our heart. The message of Jesus’ work for us is what causes faith to arise in our hearts and transforms us from the inside out (read Romans 10:8-17).
Learning to see yourself as God sees you, and forgive yourself because you want to please God and be in faith and be thankful for what Jesus did for you, is the biggest step in overcoming self-worth issues. Of course, there are spirits that may need to be driven out as well, such as self-hate, guilt, condemnation, etc.
Persecution Live 