NARCISSISM

A LOOK AT NARCISSISM

"Narcissism is the pursuit of gratification from vanity or egotistic admiration of one's idealised self-image and attributes. The term originated from Greek mythology, where a young man named Narcissus fell in love with his own image reflected in a pool of water," (Wikipedia).

Narcissists are truly selfish and self absorbed.  They have delusions of grandeur and only care about themselves.  We live in a very Narcissistic culture.  It has to be cancelled by the Kingdom of God culture. You see it in the media all the time. 

Here is a list of 9 Traits of a Narcissist and Behaviour to Watch for:

Lack of Empathy. A lack of empathy may be the key defining characteristic of a narcissistic person. ... 

Manipulative. ... 

Projection. ... 

Emotionally Cold. ... 

Gaslighting. ... 

Never Takes Responsibility. ... 

Controlling. ... 

Grandiose.

In stark contrast, Jesus says take up your cross and follow me.  Selfless living. This is what Jesus demonstrated on the cross at Golgotha. Sin and selfishness must be put to death.  Sin is living independently of God and leads to eternal death and hell.  Dying to self is absolute surrender to God, and eternal life in heaven.  In Luke's gospel we read:

"And he was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to follow me (as My disciple), he must deny himself (set aside selfish interests), and take up his cross daily (expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come) and follow Me (believing in Me, conforming to My example in living, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in me)" (Luke 9:23, AMP).

That means totally deny self!  The absolute opposite to a self absorbed narcissist.  Give up selfish desires that only gratify the flesh and sin.  To serve self is to serve Satan not God. You have to put to death the sinful deeds of the body.  When Satan comes along to tempt you, you must reply like Jesus did, when he told the devil to get lost!  Jesus answered the devil in the temptations in the wilderness by saying, "You shall worship the Lord your God and serve only Him." (Luke 4:8).   He was quoting from Deuteronomy, when he said "It is written."  Therefore You have to fight the devil with the truth of God's word. 

In conclusion, I hate narcissistic behaviour and God hates it.  It is a stench unto his nostrils. The cure is the cross of Jesus.  Worshipping Jesus gives off a fragrance of heaven.  The smell of your sacrifice and perfume ascends to heaven and heaven moves on your behalf.  Love is the way forward, not selfishness or holding onto your rights. Love your enemies.  Let go and let God in. Then you will be truly free, justice will prevail and you will be  truly forgiven and able to forgive those who have trespassed against you or hurt you. Then relationships can be restored and healed and put back together ❤ Let the beauty of Christ shine out from within. Selah. 

Sharon