Anonymous Asks (362)

“Does the Bible teach that you should ‘be yourself’?”

I can think of at least one example in scripture of a person who was better off being himself than trying to be something he was not. Saul clothed David with his own armor to fight Goliath, but David was unwilling to rely on protection he had never personally tested in battle. He left the best armor in the kingdom behind and used a sling and stones instead of a sword.

We all know the results of that encounter. David being David got the job done.

The Sober, Sincere Self

That said, we don’t usually take historical examples as our universal authority in faith and practice. Certainly, scripture teaches Christians to be unpretentious. Paul writes to the Romans, “I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment.” That sounds like a call to recognize our lane and stay in it rather than aspiring to be something the Lord has not made us, to be “ourselves” as the Holy Spirit has equipped us rather than seeking out a role in the local church that others covet.

Likewise, the New Testament writers prize sincerity. Believers are to be genuine, unfeigned and authentic in love, faith, and wisdom. There is to be no hypocrisy in our dealings with others, no pretense of affection, goodwill or trust that is merely a put-on. To the extent that love, faith and wisdom reflect our current state, we could say we are “being ourselves” by expressing them.

A Transcendent Self

On the other hand, we must remember the Christian life is about putting on the character of Christ. In one sense, because the Holy Spirit indwells us, that process is natural. The “self” the Spirit is working to produce in us is the goal of our salvation. We should definitely “be” that self. From the perspective of the flesh, however, with which we still have regular dealings, the character of Christ in us is quite unnatural and even repellent. It is not at all the “self” the old me is comfortable with. The flesh would like me to return to my old habits and ways of thinking like a dog to its vomit.

This struggle between the believer’s two natures is vividly described in Romans 7. To the extent that the common practices of the flesh align with our current ways of thinking and behaving, we are absolutely better off not being ourselves. We need to get miles away from that sort of “authenticity”.

Struggling and Being

The good news is that being ourselves will not always involve a struggle to be better than our baser inclinations. God works in us “both to will and to work for his good pleasure”. One day there will be no distinction between his will and ours, and his pleasure and ours.

For me, that day can’t come soon enough! Until then, no, I will not always “be myself”. That might be quite undesirable.