My “You’re Not Good Enough” Dilemma
No one can earn God’s righteousness and salvation through their character, thoughts, and actions. All sin. But God “wants all men to be saved”. God uses the truth, “you’re not good enough” to draw us to the cross, where we can be redeemed and restored. He does this because He loves us. Satan twists the truth, “you’re not good enough” to draw us into a life of shame and fear. He does this because he hates us, hates the Kingdom of God, and hates God.
God’s plan for humanity is life; satan’s plan for humanity is death.
In this post I examine these ideas, recognizing there are profound mysteries in God’s plan for salvation and judgement.
Since I have been thinking, praying, and writing about 2 cosmic lies I have been aware of a basic contradiction. On the one hand, Paul tells us in Romans that “no one is good enough”. On the other, mankind is made in the image and likeness of God. Complicating matters, almost everyone we have ministered to struggles with a voice that says, “you are not enough” causing shame, fear, anxiety, or worse – even Christians.
Are these words, “you’re not good enough” from the same voice?
And what does God want me to know, and how much about “not good enough” is mystery?
As I wrote about the lies (see the previous posts about the Two Cosmic Lies) I realized God wanted me to address the contradiction. But I was confused. So, I prayed, “Jesus, show me”. He did. The following is what (mostly) I heard from Him, and from some brothers with whom I shared my thoughts.
Once again, God took me to the Garden of Eden. In the beginning Adam and Eve were in perfect harmony with God – living in His blessing and love. They were exactly who God created them to be; in God’s eyes they were perfect. And then satan promised Eve, “You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it (the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) your eyes will be opened – you will have greater awareness – and you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil” . . . And when the woman saw that the tree was “to be desired in order to make one wise and insightful, she took some fruit and ate it” (Genesis 3: 4 – 6 AMP). In other words, satan told Adam and Eve, “you are not good enough now, but if you eat from this tree you will become as good and as wise as God”.
Satan’s words “You’re not good enough” was a lie. They were perfect in God’s eyes. The irony is that after they chose to believe the lie and disobey God, the lie became the truth.
Through disobedience, they opened their hearts to sin – a powerful demonic force of rebellion, lawlessness, selfishness, and godlessness. Their choice affected the human race. That is why in Romans, Paul writes: “Jews and Gentiles are all under sin . . . There is no one righteous, not even one, there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God” (Romans 3: 9 – 11 NIV).
Sin is described by John Stott as, “the revolt of the self against God, the dethronement of God with a view to the enthronement of oneself. Ultimately, sin is self-deification, the reckless determination to occupy the throne which belongs to God alone” (Stott, Romans, pg. 100).
Every human being is born with this spiritual corruption causing them to choose rebellion against God – choosing to seek value, safety, security, and comfort in their own power and in their own way, usually at the expense of others – the way of self. This attitude of the heart is pride; pride leads to destruction.
Human beings, apart from God in Christ, really are “not good enough”, with respect to salvation. We can never fully satisfy the demands of the law and we can never, under any circumstances, save ourselves. Paul is very forthright about the human condition – we are guilty! He wants us to understand that we are condemned; our only hope for salvation, which means to me Kingdom life now and for eternity, is Jesus who died for our sins. But Paul’s ultimate objective is not condemnation; it is our redemption and restoration back to the original relationship Adam and Eve had with God.
Satan speaks into the human heart, “you’re not good enough.” But instead of convicting us of our guilt and leading us to restoration, satan twists the truth and uses these words to fill our hearts with shame and fear. His objective is not life; his objective is our death and destruction.
Because Adam and Eve chose to believe the lies and disobey God, all humanity has been subjected to and oppressed by self-will and pride. What happens when a pride-filled man is faced with the accusation “you are not good enough”? Through his power and works he will strive to be valuable, relevant, and significant – to make himself “good enough”. The result is to plunge deeper into darkness, farther from God. We respond to satan’s criticism, “you are not good enough” in the same way, even though technically “not good enough” is not a lie.
But this is only half of my dilemma. There is another dimension to “you’re not good enough” that is just as important as salvation.
Every person will stand before Jesus and be judged.
“Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath when His righteous judgement will be received. God will give to each person according to what he has done” (Romans 2: 5, 6).
Salvation is by faith, not by works. But judgement will be by works! John Stott writes:
“Some Christians, however, are immediately up in arms. Has the apostle taken leave of his senses? Does he begin by declaring that salvation is by faith alone, and then destroy his own argument by saying that it is good works after all? No, Paul is not contradicting himself. What he is affirming is that, although justification is by faith alone, judgement will be according to works” (Stott, Romans, pg. 83).
Each person will be judged based on how they use the unique gifts and talents God gave them when He created them in the “image and likeness of God.” There are two related ideas in this sentence: Judgement based the use of gifts and talents; and “created in the image and likeness of God” and how that intersects with judgement. Let’s examine these ideas in order – first, judgement based on gifts and talents.
Jesus illustrates the relationship between gifts and talents, Kingdom of God, and judgement in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25: 14 – 30).
The parable begins with the words, “It will be like.” The “It” is the Kingdom of Heaven (aka Kingdom of God). Three servants were given talents (in this case, money) by the master. To the first, he gave 5 talents; to the second, 2 talents; to the third, 1 talent. Then the master left them and went on a long journey. The first two servants multiplied the talents for the master’s benefit. They were rewarded. The third servant buried his talent and was afraid to use it to benefit the master. He was punished. In fact, the master commanded “throw that worthless servant into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25: 30).
God is the master in the parable. The talents are the gifts He gives each person. We are all called to use our gifts to benefit God and His Kingdom. If, out of fear, we ‘bury’ our gifts, Jesus tells us we will be judged. God is the Master of all, and whether we accept it or not, all are called to serve Him. Jesus will hold every person to the same standard as the servants in the parable at a final judgement.
Second, what does it mean to “be made in the image and likeness of God” and how does His image in us relate to the Kingdom of God, the lie “you’re not good enough”, and God’s judgement?
God has many names, but the first is Creator. The Bible begins with, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1: 1 NIV) from a formless and empty void. God created light, atoms and molecules, gravity, galaxies, black holes, as well as the land, the sea, and all life on the earth. God created – He brought order and organization out of disorder and chaos – and it was good. This is the essence of what it means ‘to create’.
Like God, human beings have the capacity to create; to bring order out of disorder or organization out of chaos. This is, in part, what it means for every human being to be made in the “image and likeness of God”. Man’s first creative act was to name every living creature – “whatever the man called each living creature; that was its name” (Genesis 2: 19). Man’s assignment from God was to collectively rule over all life on earth – animals and plants in partnership with God, using man’s creative gifts and talents.
Although a spirit of rebellion and godlessness entered the human heart, the image and likeness of God, our very being, remained intact. It is out of this place that the drive to create — to generate value, things of beauty, or what is good – flows.
Every human act of creation – every act that increases order and organization, reduces chaos, or makes something out of nothing on the earth – has Kingdom value. Creation is a mark or manifestation of the Kingdom of God. It is the reflection of the reign of the King in the world. And the world is important to God – it is the place where we ultimately will be resurrected.
Every person is given gifts and talents by God at the time of their creation. When they use these gifts and talents to create, build, or innovate, I believe, a power or force for good is released into the supernatural realm. Creative acts, even those done ‘in secret’ like writing a poem that never gets published or praying for a child every night for 30 years, are never done in vain, never wasted. They join the millions of other creative acts performed by humans using God-given gifts each day to push back the darkness and take back the territory usurped by satan. God, the author of these gifts, is glorified and the evidence of His Kingdom is made plain for the world to see.
Other creative acts that mark the Kingdom of God include acts like planting a garden, writing a book, painting a picture, cooking a meal, feeding the hungry, writing and performing music or a play, starting and building a relationship, raising a family, beginning a business, designing a building, repairing a house; designing or inventing a new product, device, tool, or technique; or imagining and bringing to life a new idea or concept; and, of course, praying.
Some creative acts change the world like writing the Magna Carta or the American Constitution, inventing the electric light, or discovering antibiotics. Some are simple, like cleaning a house or coaching a soccer team. But all are significant because all bring glory to God and create order and organization from disorder. There are no insignificant acts of creation.
Every human being is made in the image and likeness of God; God gives every person gifts and talents, so every person has a unique capacity to create. Christians do not have a monopoly on good deeds and great creations. The ancient Greeks laid the foundation for Western culture, including science; some of the most beautiful buildings in the world were constructed by non-Christians, and modern mathematics can be traced to ancient Greece, Mesopotamia, and India. All of these creations are evidence of the reign of God over the earth; all of these creations are good. I believe God uses non-Christians to create for His Kingdom purposes.
Of course, humans are capable of great destruction as well as great creation. The former is the result of humans operating out of their self-sufficiency rather than God-given gifts, to satisfy their own wants, needs, desires, and to dominate. These acts of destruction are the opposite of creation: destruction occurs when ordered and organized systems are allowed to degrade, or are intentionally brought to a state of disorder or chaos, which to me is the definition of evil.
Satan’s purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy to increase disorder and bring chaos into ordered systems – to tear down God’s Kingdom. The lie, “you’re not good enough” is satan’s method of hindering humans from creating and thereby hindering the manifestation of God’s Kingdom. Satan constantly whispers into our hearts, “you’re not smart enough, not spiritual enough, not strong enough. No one will listen to you, no one will love you. No one will support you, back you, or help you. You are on your own. You don’t have enough experience. You’re no one special; you are aiming too high. You will look like a fool, people will hate and criticize you.” All variations on the same theme: “you are not good enough.” And all of them are lies designed to discourage, deceive, and cripple humans with fear and shame.
What about Moses, Saul, or Gideon? When called upon to use their gifts, their first reactions were fear and “I am not good enough”. Think how the disciples must have felt as they followed Jesus. Perhaps these words sound familiar to you also.
Using the lie, “you’re not good enough” satan attempts to block human creativity, shut down evidence of the Kingdom and the release of Kingdom power, and, as I said, release chaos and destruction. But it is more than that – when we choose to believe the lies we can bring ourselves under judgement.
We are saved by grace through faith, not works. But Jesus and Paul tell us that every human being will be judged by their works, even those who live apart from the law and do not follow Jesus. Paul writes, “God’s invisible qualities . . . have been clearly seen . . . so that men are without excuse” (Romans 1: 20 NIV).
Each person will be held accountable for how they used their God-given gifts. Some, like the two servants in the parable will be rewarded and given more; but, some like the third servant, will reap the wrath of God and be thrown into darkness.
Creation cannot occur without God; and God’s creation will not be thwarted. But, inexplicably God uses us to carry the message of His Kingdom to the world through our creative acts. The abilities, gifts, and passion to create are given to each person by God; but we must act! It is up to us to pick up the paint brush, the hammer, or the computer. And it is true that every creation will be better if we invite God to join us in the creative process. But the painting, the house, or the manuscript will not create themselves.
It is here, in this process of creation or before the process even begins, that satan attacks us with the discouraging, demeaning, and devaluing lie, “You’re not good enough.”
Will we choose to believe the lie and let God’s gifts lie fallow; or will we choose to live a creative life – best lived ‘in Christ’ – realizing the joy of being and becoming the person God created us to be, releasing God’s Kingdom blessings? We have the freedom to choose.
On the one hand, “you are not good enough” is true. Our eternal life depends upon accepting this truth and turning to Jesus for His life to grow in us. On the other, “you are not good enough” is a lie intended to shame and destroy us. The truth, “you are not good enough” leads to life; the lie, “you are not good enough” leads to death. It is important to know the difference and choose wisely.
Many people believe the demonic lie that they are not good enough; they are filled with fear and shame. For most this lie was planted in their hearts and activated by some type of devaluing early in life. To know the truth in their hearts and not just their heads – to know Jesus and not just about Jesus – they need to be spiritually and emotionally healed. And until this happens, many will remain outside the Kingdom of God. The healer is Jesus. But we have a creative part to play; the outcome has eternal Kingdom significance.
Finally, how are salvation and judgement related? I am not sure. But I do know that if we are to resist the lies of satan and fulfill our destiny we need the Holy Spirit. And to receive the Holy Spirit we need Jesus. The way of salvation – surrendering and submitting to Jesus so that He rules and reigns in our hearts – is the ‘way’ leading to the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant” on that final day of judgement.
Resting in His Love,
John