Quit Trying To Improve Yourself

Exodus 34:27-30, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water.  And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments. And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.”

I listened to a wonderful sermon today by my favorite preacher, Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001). Dear reader, I sincerely hope that you will take the time to hear this life-changing sermon. It is titled, “Self Improvement Versus Others Improvement.” I heard Dr. Hyles once say that if he could teach his church congregation one thing, next to how to get to Heaven, it would be to GET OUT OF THE SELF LIFE! I couldn't agree more. As humans we are born with a sinful selfish nature. By default we are all selfish.

In this helpful sermon, “Self Improvement Versus Others Improvement,” Pastor Hyles points out that only two times in the Bible did a Christian not recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit—here is Exodus 34:29 when Moses wist (knew) not that he face shown with the Spirit of God; and then in Judges 16:20 when Samson wist not that the Holy Spirit had departed from him. When you are what you ought to be, you won't know what you ought to be! That is, when you lose yourself in meeting the needs of others, you won't be concerned about how well you are doing. I don't care if I am a good preacher or not, I just want to help others by giving you THE TRUTH you need!

This is one of my favorite sermons by Brother Hyles, because it really hits home, doesn't it. We live in a very selfish culture in America. Someone even published a magazine called, SELF. The important thing is not being filled with the Holy Spirit, it is yielding to allow the indwelling Holy Spirit to do the things God wants you to do (Galatians 5:22-25).

I learned a long time ago that I cannot live the Christian life, and neither can you friend. We will fail again and again if we try in our own feeble human strength to live the Christian life. What saith the Scripture? Galatians 2:20-21, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” Jesus lives the Christian life through us, via the Holy Spirit who lives inside every believer (Romans 8:9; 1st Corinthians 3:16-17; 1st John 3:24).

Pastor Hyles teaches this wonderful truth in his helpful sermon titled, “Filled With His Fulness.” I don't love you dear reader, God is loving you through me. I don't care about you, God cares about you through me. This is the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25). God doesn't give the fruit of His Holy Spirit TO ME; but rather, THROUGH ME to give to you. So, if I don't walk in the Spirit, you won't be loved. If I don't yield to the Spirit to obey God's Word (2nd Corinthians 10:5-6), you won't receive the blessings that God intended for you to have through me.

There is a voice in God's heavenly choir that only you can fulfill dear reader. You are the only Jesus that somebody knows! To someone you are the “the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8b). I visited a church one time and saw a sign above the exit door which read, “You are now entering the missionary field.” I love that!!!

In most bookstores today you'll find an entire section on “Self Improvement.” Sadly, that includes many Christian bookstores. No Sir, self improvement is a byproduct of living for others! Burn your books on self improvement and GET OUT OF THE SELF LIFE!!!

It doesn't matter who you are, it's who you help that matters. It doesn't matter what you're trying to become, it's what are you doing for other people. Dear reader, may we all by God's grace get out of the self life. Forget self improvement, spend your life trying to improve OTHERS.

In the popular 2005 movie, “Batman Begins,” Rachel Dawes tells billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne: “Bruce. Deep down, you may still be that same great kid you used to be, but it's not who you are underneath. It's what you do that defines you.” That is absolutely true!

Moses didn't know that his face was shining. He was consumed pleading with God to spare the Hebrews from utter destruction. Because of their wickedness and idolatry God wanted to annihilate them! But Moses begged God to reconsider, lest the heathen nations say that God only delivered His children out of Egypt to slay them in the Wilderness. Thankfully for their sakes, Moses succeeded at changing God's mind.

I have never tried to be a good preacher, I have always tried to help others know THE TRUTH. Jesus said in John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”