https://youtu.be/6JICsTWjQQo

How to Not Be a Selfie Church

Excessive self-love is defined in several fields of study as narcissism. It is a generalized personality trait characterized by egotism, vanity, conceit, or selfishness. It is having an excessive self-focus in interpersonal exchanges or being excessively selfishness and self-absorbed. It is one who has a grandiose sense of self-importance, requires excessive admiration, and has a very strong sense of entitlement. The word comes from the Greek myth of Narcissus, a handsome Greek youth who fell in love with his own reflection in a pool of water and would spend hour after hour gazing into the pool at himself.

This is the opposite of the Christ-like nature within a true disciple who demonstrates their love for others by their faithful attendance, serving, giving, and sharing of their life. Jesus said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends John 15:13.” Some count their life too dear unto themselves, too valuable, too precious to lay it down for others. This is unlike the Apostle Paul’s example and messages to the church. Paul’s letter to Colosse had three purposes: to combat false teaching, to make clear the revelation of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and to stress the true nature of life in Christ and its fruit in the believer.

Colossians 3:5-15 New King James Version (NKJV)

5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.

8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. 12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.

I want to talk about “self”. Self is the mark of the lukewarm church.

Another word for lukewarm would be complacent- showing smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself or one's achievements. Synonyms include- smug, self-satisfied, self-approving, self-regarding, triumphant, proud, pleased, content, careless, lazy, slack

Seven churches are mentioned in Revelation. The number 7 being the number of completion these were 7 churches all about 30-40 miles away from each other in the Asian province. They not only represented the whole churches at that time, but also are representatives of the entire church throughout the church age. There were many other churches at this time in history, but these represented the spectrum of churches that existed in the first century, but also the spectrum of churches that exist now. There were more well known churches- such as the church of Colosse, but the Lord chose these seven because they represented conditions that have prevailed throughout church history. In other words, there are 7 basic types of churches that exist in any time period of church history.