The American Dream - Can it lead to an improper view of self?

"Statue of Liberty Picture Contest Winner", by Beatrix, age 7 (Jakarta, Indonesia).

This post is part of my year long study of Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion.  To facilitate this course of study, I am following along with Princeton Theological Seminary's  "A Year with the Institutes", which also includes an audio reading of the text.

Calvin's Institutes of Religion: 2.1.1-3

The "American Dream" provides us no comfort on our death bed.

"Whoa!  Dave, dude, isn't that sacrilege?"

King Solomon:  the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.

John Calvin:  the second part of wisdom consists in the knowledge of self.

Before you all start screaming at me, and I get a bunch of hate comments, let me make it clear:  I believe (hmmm - interesting choice of words) in the American Dream. 

However, the incredible blessing of our American heritage, can also be, if we aren't careful with our freedoms, a most horrible curse.

How is that possible?  One word:  pride!

I spent 50 years of my life pursuing the American Dream.  I came from a modest, mid-Western family, went to college, worked hard, and now, at the tender age of 52, find myself enjoying the fruits of my labors.  I am living the American Dream baby!

Problem:  at the age of 50 1/2, I went through the greatest period of depression I have ever experienced!

Why?  Although I decided to take advantage of all that America has to offer me, I wasn't wise enough to have a proper understanding of "self". 

Therefore, when my "self" accomplished its hearts desires, and I began to realize that I had placed my "self" worth in my ability to create a successful business, generate income, etc, etc....and that pursuit was no longer there....I came crashing to earth, to splat in a big blob.  SPLAT!

Here is Calvin:

"With good reason the ancient proverb strongly recommended knowledge of self to man. For if it is considered disgraceful for us not to know all that pertains to the business of human life, even more detestable is our ignorance of ourselves, by which, when making decisions in necessary matters, we miserably deceive and even blind ourselves!"

We have a detestable ignorance of ourselves, and miserably deceive and even blind ourselves!  Strong words.

Let's explore what he is talking about...

OK, Mr. Calvin, what are you talking about?

"But since this precept is so valuable, we ought more diligently to avoid applying it perversely. This, we observe, has happened to certain philosophers, who, while urging man to know himself, propose the goal of recognizing his own worth and excellence. And they would have him contemplate in himself nothing but what swells him with empty assurance and puffs him up with pride."

Hey!  Are you talking about all those hundreds of "self" help books I read over the years?  All the business conferences that I attended, designed to teach me to help my "self"?  Calvin!  Dude!   What's wrong with that? 

Hey, what about the time I walked, barefoot, across a bed of hot coals, you know, seeking to face my fears...what's wrong with that, Mr. Calvin?

Calvin:

"But knowledge of ourselves lies first in considering what we were given at creation and how generously God continues his favor toward us, in order to know how great our natural excellence would be if only it had remained unblemished; yet at the same time to bear in mind that there is in us nothing of our own, but that we hold on sufferance [absence of objection rather than genuine approval] whatever God has bestowed upon us. Hence we are ever dependent on him."

Please dear reader, don't move forward until you understood all that he just said!  It would certainly do us all well, if we were to make homework of this paragraph, and read it several times each day.

Furthermore:

"Secondly, to call to mind our miserable condition after Adam's fall; the awareness of which, when all our boasting and self-assurance are laid low, should truly humble us and overwhelm us with shame. In the beginning God fashioned us after his image that he might arouse our minds both to zeal for virtue and to meditation upon eternal life. Thus, in order that the great nobility of our race (which distinguishes us from brute beasts) may not be buried beneath our own dullness of wit, it behooves us to recognize that we have been endowed with reason and understanding so that, by leading a holy and upright life, we may press on to the appointed goal of blessed immortality."

But how we love to take credit:

"Here, then, is what God's truth requires us to seek in examining ourselves: it requires the kind of knowledge that will strip us of all confidence in our own ability, deprive us of all occasion for boasting, and lead us to submission. We ought to keep this rule if we wish to reach the true goal of both wisdom and action. I am quite aware how much more pleasing is that principle which invites us to weigh our good traits rather than to look upon our miserable want and dishonor, which ought to overwhelm us with shame. There is, indeed, nothing that man's nature seeks more eagerly than to be flattered. Accordingly, when his nature becomes aware that its gifts are highly esteemed, it tends to be unduly credulous about them. It is thus no wonder that the majority of men have erred so perniciously in this respect. For, since blind self-love is innate in all mortals, they are most freely persuaded that nothing inheres in themselves that deserves to be considered hateful. Thus even with no outside support the utterly vain opinion generally obtains credence that man is abundantly sufficient of himself to lead a good and blessed life."

Did  you get all that?  We are persuaded to believe that we are sufficient, within ourselves, what is necessary for a good and blessed life.  In our blind self-love, we find it impossible that anything hateful lives in us.

What?  Hateful?  I'm not hateful, I just trying to live the American Dream.  You know, he who dies with the most toys, wins! Right?

I know this next quote is long.  But "gird up your loins" and purpose to understand this.  It is that important:

"God's truth, therefore, agrees with the common judgment of all mortals, that the second part of wisdom consists in the knowledge of ourselves; yet there is much disagreement as to how we acquire that knowledge. According to carnal judgment, man seems to know himself very well, when, confident in his understanding and uprightness, he becomes bold and urges himself to the duties of virtue and, declaring war on vices, endeavors to exert himself with all his ardor toward the excellent and the honorable. But he who scrutinizes and examines himself according to the standard of divine judgment finds nothing to lift his heart to self-confidence. And the more deeply he examines himself, the more dejected he becomes, until, utterly deprived of all such assurance, he leaves nothing to himself with which to direct his life aright.

Yet God would not have us forget our original nobility, which he had bestowed upon our father Adam, and which ought truly to arouse in us a zeal for righteousness and goodness. For we cannot think upon either our first condition or to what purpose we were formed without being prompted to meditate upon immortality, and to yearn after the Kingdom of God. That recognition, however, far from encouraging pride in us, discourages us and casts us into humility. For what is that origin? It is that from which we have fallen. What is that end of our creation? It is that from which we have been completely estranged, so that sick of our miserable lot we groan, and in groaning we sigh for that lost worthiness. But when we say that man ought to see nothing in himself to cause elation, we mean that he has nothing to rely on to make him proud.

Therefore, if it is agreeable, let us divide the knowledge that man ought to have of himself. First, he should consider for what purpose he was created and endowed with no mean gifts. By this knowledge he should arouse himself to meditation upon divine worship and the future life. Secondly, he should weigh his own abilities-or rather, lack of abilities. When he perceives this lack, he should lie prostrate in extreme confusion, so to speak, reduced to nought. The first consideration tends to make him recognize the nature of his duty; the second, the extent of his ability to carry it out."

Everything, in our nature, will fight this.  Did you hear that?  Our nature!  Oh, yeah, what is my nature's tendency?  What does the Bible have to say about my nature? 

My nature is evil, and desires those things that are apart from God.  Can you own any of that?

This is one of those instructions that, generally speaking, you are not going to take easily.  This instruction is completely against our nature!  We are going to fight it!

I am going to chew on this over the coming days, and weeks.  I also know that Calvin intends to develop this instruction even more, as the very next topic is man's original sin.

He intends to drive this point home.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Are you caught up in the American Dream?  Have you fallen in love with this world?  Or...do you groan for the life to come?  Do you have a right view of your "self" worth?

I must confess, I am in transition from a lover of self, to a true lover of Christ.  That is a life-long pursuit.  I understand that, but I am diligently working on, and learning from sanctification's journey. 

And this I can say from the bottom of my heart, my soul does deeply long for that which was taken away.  I so long to enter into complete, and full relationship with my Father, my Savior, my King, and my God.

You?