Biblical Answers for Feelings of Insignifcance and Success
Faith and Significance
Even if
we are now convinced that what God says about us is the only reasonable
evaluation of our worth, we must still deal with the issue of significance.
Significance has to do with carrying out the meaning that God
placed in our lives when He created us.
Significance, as defined in the Standard College Dictionary (Funk
& Wagnalls, 1963), is that which is signified or intended to be expressed;
the meaning of the object. It is
the degree that the object meets its intended use or potential.
A closely related issue is that of having a feeling that we are
important in some way. As an
example, a Rembrandt painting has certain value no matter where it is and
how it is used. However, it is not
very effective in improving the looks of a room when it is hung upside down
on a shattered wall of a rundown slum.
God is glorified when we reach our potential.
Sin is missing the mark of that potential.
If we never sinned, we would achieve absolute significance for a
human being, just as Jesus did.
How We Develop
Worldly Significance
Just as with the case of self-worth, we first develop our concept
of significance in our families of origin as we grow up.
From the first experiences we have as we play with other children,
we begin to determine who is fastest, smartest, or best at any particular
game. Once we begin to attend
school, it very soon becomes evident who gets the best grades or who is the
best at certain sports. This is
the beginning of a pecking order of who is popular and who is not, and who
is most likely to succeed in life.
Even at this early age, we have entered the “rat race” of life.
We are in a battle or competition for who will win the game of
“king of the hill.” As we
discovered in the previous chapter, this information concerning our
significance is also many times erroneously applied to our evaluation of our
worth or value.
The World’s
System
From the world’s point of view—without God in the picture—each of
us is in competition with all others to obtain the scarce resources of life
in order to meet our needs. We
want to feel that we are important or significant in life and that we count
for something. The problem is that
the world believes that each of us, as our own god, must determine our own
destiny and then compete with others in order to achieve it.
Of course, in the world’s system, only a few make it to the top,
and those who do will soon be replaced by the generation that follows.
The world is filled with pride.
Each of us wants to become somebody, be important, and do
something significant in life. It
should humble us to understand that almost nothing that we do or attempt to
do will even be known two hundred years from now and that our entire solar
system is totally insignificant in the universe.
We are like ants thinking that we are so great because we can move
a larger grain of sand than another ant.
The Bible compares us to vapor that exists one moment and is gone.
(James 4:14)
The Consequences of the
World’s System to Achieve Significance—All Eventually Lose.
Every society has a focus that is its own particular theme or
somewhat universal goal. In the
Orient it is saving face, in the Middle East it is getting revenge for
wrongs suffered, and in the United States and much of Europe, it is being
successful. In our drive for
worldly success, one of the premises of our societal system is that
significance must be obtained at the expense of others in our society.
We are all in competition but we cannot all be significant.
This is called the “rat race.”
It results in a number of direct consequences for our lives.
1. We are stressed by our competitive life style. Because we view our world as a “zero sum game,” we view all others in our society as competitors for a limited resource called success. A zero sum game means that to the degree one person wins, another has to lose out on that resource. Consequently, some will win, some will lose and it is our desire to do whatever it takes in order to be one of the winners. Stress results when we perceive that what is required of us may exceed our capabilities. Of course, failure is always possible in a competition and therefore, we live a life filled with stress. Because this competitive way of viewing life pervades our entire society, we are stressed about almost everything in our lives. This competitive mindset is clear from the high salaries we provide for the most successful players of our competitive sports.
2.
Only a limited few achieve significance at any time
and it is short-lived. In the
game called “king of the hill,” only one can achieve the significance of
being “top dog” or king of the hill.
The rest will do anything to topple the king, including stepping on
others who are also trying to be king.
The result is a selfish “dog fight” to be somebody and the
majority who play this game do not go away without emotional bruises or
worse. Of course, in our society,
we prize those who know how to win in a more socialized manner, but the
battle for promotion is a clear fact in most of the corporate world.
There are only a few of the six billion people on this planet who
can reach the top and even fewer are able to remain at the top for an entire
lifetime.
3.
Eventually, we all lose.
It might seem negative, but it is a fact of life that eventually
all lose in this worldly fight for significance.
Let me explain through the example of a high jumper.
If you are good at high jumping at your school, you will compete
in more competitions at the state, regional, and, finally, national level.
If you prove to be one of the very best, you may even make the
Olympic Team. If you compete in
the Olympic Games, you may even win the gold medal.
If you do, you are definitely successful and significant at least
for the moment. If you do not go
on to win a gold medal at the next Olympic Games, you will be labeled a
loser, even if you win the silver medal.
If you continue to win, eventually you will grow older, and will
be beaten by a younger, stronger competitor.
If you set a world record, eventually someone will surpass your
accomplishment, and your great success will be forgotten.
4. We are driven to take on more than we can easily accomplish. Although talent is highly rewarded in the world’s system, it also has its downside. The more talented we are, the more opportunities we will be given to take on more and more difficult tasks. Figuratively, if we are a very successful fish in a small fish bowl, we will be promoted to larger and larger bowls. Unfortunately, in the larger bowls are other very talented fish and larger sharks. Because we feel each promotion makes us more significant, we are driven to take on more and more difficult tasks. One well-known statement concerning this issue is “the higher you go, the harder you fall.” The problem is that there is always a higher mountain. One of my friends, caught up with this drive for significance, died in the Himalayan Mountains on Annapurna I. Another froze to death after making the summit of Mount Everest.
5. We all eventually top out at the level of our incompetence. In the corporate world, this has been called “The Peter Principle.” It goes like this. In most cases as long as we are doing a good job at the current level of responsibility, we will be promoted. When we reach a level where we are no longer competent, we will be passed over for promotion. Therefore, unless we are fired, we will finish our careers working at our level of incompetence. Of course, this also means that we will find ourselves locked into a stressful job that requires more of us than we can produce for the remainder of our careers.
6.
We are driven to medicate our stress with addictions,
alcohol or drugs. Because of
the high stress environment produced by this drive for significance, we are
tempted to medicate our emotional swings and our stress with some sort of
addiction or drug. Drug, alcohol
and other addictions are commonplace in the corporate world.
It seems to be a necessary part of attempting to cope with such a
competitive and stressful life.
7.
We are taught to
sacrifice character in order to accomplish things.
With this as the predominant message in
our society, it is not difficult to understand why the number of
high-ranking politicians and corporate executives charged with ethical
violations or crimes seems to be increasing.
8.
Anxiety has become a major factor in our failures.
Because we are so driven to be successful, the fear of failure is
an underlying cause in many dysfunctional attempts to succeed, avoidant
types of codependency and even mental illness.
The anxiety from a fear of failure can prevent us from even trying
something, it can lead us to an all-or-nothing mentality, and it can drive
us to try too hard to be successful.
All of these can lead to failure, which in turn leads to more
dysfunctional attempts to succeed and more failure.
9.
We are losing our soul for the sake of success in this world.
Unfortunately, even many Christians are not aware that we have
been caught up in this “rat race” of life.
It can cost us our families, will do damage to the quality of our
lives, and will limit our ability to be fruitful in the Kingdom of God.
In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus explained that it was the cares
of this world that were the weeds that choked out the plants and caused them
not to produce fruit. (Matthew
13:22)
God’s System of
Significance
As you might have already guessed, God has a very different method of achieving significance and a successful life. Let us start our investigation by examining what the Word of God tells us about this subject.
1. When
the Bible speaks of significance, it generally uses the term “worthy” to
evaluate our merit as compared to what God originally intended
us to be. The word
translated from the Greek as worthy is axios, which means, “something
having the weight of another thing of like value, worth as much, or
one who has merited anything worthy both in a good and
a bad sense.” Those who act in a worthy way deserve rewards.
Mt 10:37
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me:
and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his
cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 22:8
Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they
which were bidden were not worthy.
2. The ultimate in human
functioning is called “the glory of God.”
The word translated as glory is doxa, which means, “a good
opinion concerning one, resulting in praise, honour, and glory; splendor,
brightness, magnificence, excellence, preeminence, dignity, grace; or the
absolutely perfect inward or personal excellency of Christ.”
1 Th 2:12 That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.
Php 1:11 Being filled with the fruits of
righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
3.
Everything we do in our own strength is motivated by selfishness and is,
therefore, filthy rags in God’s eyes.
Before we accept Christ, we are dominated by our sin nature.
Each of us has sinned.
Sin simply means missing the mark of the full potential for which God has
designed us. We are selfish and
therefore, everything we do is motivated by that selfishness and is no
better than filthy rags to God.
The Bible tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
(Rom 3:23)
Isa 64:6
But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as
filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the
wind, have taken us away.
4. When
we were saved, God began the process of delivering us from our selfishness
through salvation by faith, and God has declared us to be righteous based on
that faith. Righteousness is
another word for reaching our potential (making right judgments and carrying
them out). Because God operates
outside of any reference of time, when we have faith in Him, He counts us as
already being righteous. This
allows us to have intimate fellowship with Him.
Ro 4:3 For
what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him
for righteousness. 5 But to him
that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his
faith is counted for righteousness.
5. As our faith grows, we are transformed more and more into our full potential. Through the process of salvation, we become more and more righteous and we sin less and less. In direct proportion to our faith, we learn to love others unselfishly and we are conformed into the image of Christ Jesus—our full potential.
Ro 8:29
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed
to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called:
and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he
also glorified.
6. When
we sin, our sin is covered by the blood of Jesus' sacrifice and so, in God's
eyes, we remain righteous.
Col 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.
7.
Jesus resolved the problem of shame for us when He took our shame upon
Himself as He died on the cross.
Since Adam and Eve ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we
have had the capacity to judge our actions; therefore, we feel guilt or
shame when we sin. This shame
leads us to negative evaluations of ourselves, especially when we try to
hide the shame or blame others.
Shame and guilt must be dealt with effectively or they will result in toxic
shame—a pervasive feeling that we are bad.
Isa 50:6 I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.
Ro 10:11
For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
8. Even
with all that Christ has done for us, the Bible tells us that we are still
powerless to do anything of merit for God, without doing it in His power and
strength. Everything we
attempt to do in our own strength will be deficient in some manner and will
be rejected.
Jo 15:4
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except
it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I
in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do
nothing.
Ga 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?
10. It
is God Who makes us want to do what is right, promotes us, and assists us in
being successful and wealthy.
Therefore, He is the one Who should get the glory for everything.
We have not made ourselves successful.
It is God who created us, gave us the talents we have, promoted us
and gave us all the good things that we have.
All the thanks and glory are to go to Him.
Deuteronomy 8:18 But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.
1 Co 1:31
That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the
Lord.
11. If
we think that we have accomplished anything and take the credit for it, we
have fallen into the trap of pride.
A prideful attitude states that we do not appreciate what God has
done for us, and that we do not need God.
For our own good, God will resist our success and will bring us
low until we realize that everything that we have is a gift from him.
(See the biblical model of King Nebuchadnezzar for overcoming
pride later in this book.)
Job 33:17 That he (God) may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man.
Ps 10:4 The wicked, through the
pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his
thoughts.
Pr 16:18
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a
fall.
12. The fact that God has adopted us into His family makes us so significant that there is absolutely nothing that we can do to make ourselves any more significant. As I have stated before, without God, we as people, are so insignificant in the universe that even if we blew up our entire solar system it would hardly be noticeable. The fact that God has already made us children of the ruler of the universe, joint heirs with Christ (we will own a huge chunk of the universe), selected us to be on the team that will rule the universe, has provided a throne for us, and has declared us to be righteous through faith elevates us far beyond anything we can do in our own efforts in this lifetime. This is our position in Christ. What can we do on this earth that is so important that it will make us more significant than this?
13. We
must, therefore, draw the conclusion that our significance is totally
dependent on what Christ did, and that we cannot do anything in our own
strength to achieve any greater success than this by ourselves.
It is God, through the process of salvation by faith, who delivers
us from our selfishness, so that we are capable of good works.
It is the blood of Jesus that provides for the forgiveness for our
failures (sins). It is Jesus who
took our shame upon himself so that we would not be ashamed.
It is God Who provides the strength and ability to do His will.
And it is God Who, by adopting us into His family, makes us so
significant that there in nothing we can do to make ourselves any more
significant.
The Consequences
of God’s System—We All Can Be Significant and Important in Life
It is important that we understand the difference between what it is to be
successful in this world and what it means to be successful from God’s
point of view. In the world,
success is deciding what we want to do and accomplishing it in such a way
that others see us as making a significant contribution to something.
God’s view of success and significance is very different from
this.
1. The Bible tells us that God has a plan
for us even before we were born and that He designed us to fulfill that
plan.
Jer 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
Isa 49:5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.
Ga 1:15
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called
me by his grace, 16 To
reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately
I conferred not with flesh and blood:
2.
Because each of us has been designed and called for a specific purpose, we
are not in competition with others, but with ourselves to become all that
God has called us to be and do.
We are running different races; therefore, the Bible warns us that if we
compare ourselves with others, we are not wise.
What would happen if a racer who is running 440 yards compares his
progress with one running the fifty-yard dash or the marathon?
3. God has also chosen to give us different talents, based on our calling and He will reward us for what we do with them. The more that He has given us, the more He requires of us. Since it is He Who chose to give us the specific talents that we will need for the specific mission on earth for which He designed us, we are only responsible for doing our best to find and carry out that specific calling. Notice that the man with two talents who made another two, was rewarded exactly the same as the man who had five and had made another five. Had the man with one talent made another, he also would have received the same reward. Only the servant who refused to use what God had given him was punished. God sees and rewards us according to what we have done with the capabilities He has given us. Again, we are not in competition with each other and we are not to compare ourselves with others; but only with ourselves.
Mt 25:15
And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to
every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his
journey. 19 After a long
time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. 20
And so he that had received five talents came and brought other
five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I
have gained beside them five talents more. 21
His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant:
thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many
things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 22
He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou
deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents
beside them. 23 His lord
said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful
over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into
the joy of thy lord. 24 Then
he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that
thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where
thou hast not strawed: 25
And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou
hast that is thine. 26 His
lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou
knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
5.
Those things that are motivated by selfishness, as well as those done in the
flesh according to what we want to do, will have no value and will be
rejected by God.
6. In
God’s system, we can all win and be successful in life.
Because God has saved us from our selfishness, has called all of
us to a different specific mission and has given us all differing talents to
fulfill that mission, He does not compare us with each other.
Because He helps and provides all we need, absolutely every one of
us can become significant, have a fully successful life, and become a hero
of faith.
The Process of
Transformation by Faith
in Order to Achieve Significance or Success
Although all of us are already significant in the eyes of God
through our position in Christ and even though all of us can become truly
successful in this life according to God’s plan, the Bible warns that many
of us will not actually achieve the level of success that God has intended
for us. Matthew 22:14 states that,
“For many are called but few are chosen.”
Clearly every one of us has something significant to do in this
life, but all of us will probably not achieve the level of commendation that
Jesus gave to John the Baptist:
“…Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than
John the Baptist:..” (Matthew
11:11) In order to understand our
part in becoming truly successful in life, let us examine the life of John
the Baptist.
1. We must be saved and develop
a close relationship with God in order to know specifically what He has
called us to do. When we are
saved, we all have a general call on our lives to become established in a
church, read our Bible, witness to others and do what we can to further the
Kingdom of God. But, as in the
case of John the Baptist, God calls all of us for a particular mission even
before we are born. John the
Baptist’s call was revealed to his father in the temple by an angel even
before his mother Elizabeth, a relative of Mary the mother of Jesus, became
pregnant. This was prior to Jesus’
birth. Many clients I have
counseled have wished that God had revealed their specific call in a similar
manner. But for most, God requires
us to get to know His voice and prove ourselves faithful to our general call
before He reveals to us our specific call.
Lu 1:13
But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard;
and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name
John. 14 And thou shalt have joy and
gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
2. We must accept
that we are already significant because of who we are in Christ, reject the
world’s system of trying to establish our significance through worldly
accomplishments, and be willing to accept what God has called us to do, even
if it appears worthless in the eyes of the world.
From a worldly standpoint, John was a loser.
We are told nothing about him for the first 30 years of his life.
When God directed him to begin his ministry, he is a loner in the
wilderness, wearing camel’s hair and eating locusts and wild honey.
His mission was to preach that people should repent of their sins.
From a worldly standpoint, this calling does not appear to be one
that will lead to great significance.
The world lies to us and tells us that we must do something “significant”
in its eyes to be successful.
Mt 3:1 In
those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
4 And the same John had his raiment
of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was
locusts and wild honey.
3. We must obey God
and do what He tells us to do even if we feel unworthy, or the task seems
overwhelming or insignificant to us.
John obeyed God and baptized Jesus, even though he felt he was
unworthy to do so. Another danger
in our attempt to fulfill our calling is listening to our own evaluation of
ourselves when we feel unworthy, inadequate, or incompetent to accomplish
what we have been called to do. As
in the case of the one talent man in the parable of the talents, we can be
easily diverted from our purpose by our fear of failure.
(Matt 25:25) Jonah was
also temporarily diverted by his fear of failure when he was called to
preach repentance to the city of Nineveh.
(Jonah 1:3)
Mt 3:13
Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
14 But John forbad him, saying, I
have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15
And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for
thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.
16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up
straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and
he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
4. We must not seek to make a
name for ourselves or compete with others, but do our best to fulfill
exactly what God has called us to do.
John the Baptist did not try to make a name for himself.
In fact, he said that he must decrease so that Jesus could
increase. He refused the
temptation to compete with Jesus when his disciples complained that Jesus
was becoming more popular and was baptizing more converts.
In fact, he even sent some of his disciples to Jesus.
He understood that he was called only to go before Jesus to
prepare the way for His ministry.
He recognized that they both had distinct and different callings.
5. We must be willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to fully fulfill our ministry and accept whatever role God has for us in this life. John was condemned by the world and eventually executed after only six months of ministry. From the world’s standpoint, he was a total failure. We are not to defend our ministry or ourselves but simply do what God calls us to do.
Mt 11:18
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.
14:3 For Herod had laid hold on
John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother
Philip's wife. 4 For John
said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her. 8
And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here
John Baptist's head in a charger. 10
And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.
6. We must persevere
in viewing our life and what is important in this world from God’s point of
view. This will enable us to
yield our lives for His glory, and trust Him to bring it to pass.
Although, from a worldly standpoint, John the Baptist might be
considered a loser, Christ Himself stated that from God’s standpoint, up
until that time, there had been none greater than John had.
That meant that in God’s eyes, John was as great as Abraham, Moses
and Elijah! If we wish to be
significant in the Kingdom of God, we need to find what God has called us to
do, focus on our mission, serve God and complete it, without comparing
ourselves to others. The soldier
who does exactly what he is called to do is the one who is great and who
will be rewarded. We must make a
choice between being significant in this world, which passes away, or
significant in the Kingdom of God, which lasts forever.
We all have the potential to become great in God’s Kingdom if we
will simply seek His will for our lives, do our best to carry it out, and
trust God for the results. This
last verse states that all of us can be even greater than John the Baptist
was, because the Spirit of God is within us.
Mt 11:2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? 11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
Steps for Overcoming Insignificance
1. True significance comes by
fulfilling what God has designed and called us to do. It is achieved
by accepting our identity in Christ and doing
God’s will, not ours. We must find our importance in the sight of God,
not in the sight of men.
2. We must be convinced that the
world’s system of competing with others (The “rat race”) to achieve
significance is a lie.
3.
We must understand that we are not in competition
with others, but that we are to compete against ourselves in order to run
our own race and become all that God designed us to be.
4. It is God Who has chosen to give us
life and the talents we have. He is the one who gave us our mission on
this earth, He is the one who gave us the ability to get wealth, and
He is the one Who promoted us, so we cannot take credit for anything that we
have done, for what we possess, or for our success.
5. We must fight pride by being careful
not to accept credit for anything we do, since without Christ, we cannot do
anything of eternal value.
6. To God, all of our attempts to be
righteous in our own efforts are filthy
7. Through the process of salvation by
faith, God delivers us from our selfishness, forgives our sins, deals with
our shame, and brings us into a place where we can
do right motivated by unconditional love.
8. Because of what Christ has done, we
have become so significant that we
For videos on this subject select the links below:
1. Overcoming Insignifcance by Faith (Faith Therapy Lesson 5)
The written material information presented above comes from:
Faith Therapy by Dr. Reiner $18.99