Selfishness is not in your self interest

Selfishness is damaging and destructive, most cultures affirm this.  Yet we slide into so often because of the fallenness of mankind.  If we really even cared about ourselves more than what we want we wouldn't be so self-centered.  Selfishness is not in your own self interest.


Greed for example is little more than actualized selfishness no matter how deceptive.  Contrary to a popular movie characters take on it, it is not good

Of course events that aren't too distant in the past testify otherwise.  Enron's greed didn't just end badly for other people, it ended badly for Enron.  The recent housing bubble was a misguided venture to socially engineer a society where everybody had a house.  The resulting bubble and instability led to those holding assets and in the know to hide their findings and sell the assets at their face (but not real) value.  Ambition and incentive are not evil, greed certainly is as it is a worship of possessions and wealth.

This is a concept not foreign to scripture.  The first example that comes to mind is Genesis 3,  Adam and eve in the Garden. Our first parents detail our failure to die to ourselves best.  Eve ate for herself believing the serpents lie, that she would be as God (taking his place, making herself central).  The selfishness is plain for her case, as it was for Adam.  Adam may have eaten the fruit to save Eve but when confronted he did a decidedly selfish and unloving thing to Eve, placing his own self before her and God's law.  He did not confess and tell the story as the truth, he deflected blame that it may fall on the woman he just tried to save.  Christ however perfectly took on our sins and became sin, that we may become his righteousness.

The result is what selfishness really is.  Broken relationships to self and others with a broken relation to God being central.  We disconnect from God, we don't relate rightly with others or ourselves.  This leads to us placing ourselves in God's place and using God and others as a means not an ends in themselves.

Judas was known to steal from the money purse for his own gain.  He even feigned being interested in the well being of the poor showing he knew what he should say to curry more positive attention.

He selfishly sold Christ for 30 pieces of silver.  In the end he was guilted and hung himself.  His selfish love of money and desire for gain led to him disregarding the consequences and the reality of what he was doing.  He disregarded the consequence of betraying an innocent man and whether he knew who Christ truly was or not he knew the law.  Having a momentary selfishness he was blinded to the horror of what he was doing and led to his own ultimate downfall. He is the one person the bible describes as "it would have been better had he never been born".

Peter's momentary selfishness  ended with repentance as he was heartbroken over the relationship he had damaged.  He was torn over how he hurt a friend and therein lies a key difference.  Peter was convicted and not caught up in himself.


Contrary to selfishness, Self Sacrifice is in your best interest.  And that is exemplified in the character and actions of God himself.  God himself turned outward to loving us and in so gave himself for us.

When Christ was on the cross he likely thought of his reward as well, but he was not centered on himself.   He gave himself for us.  If Christ had done the selfish thing in the Garden, he would never have gone.  The universe itself would have ceased to exist.

This is ultimately what love is.  I will give all of me for you.  When returned it is a beautiful thing.  Two people giving each other wholly for each others benefit.

Look at the model of the trinity as well.  No member is jealous for the other's.  Each gives in love.


Ultimately selfishness leads to breakdown.  We can't be the center of the world because we aren't the center of the world.  Neither were we made to be the center of our own lives.  That position belongs to God and God alone.


Matthew 8 gives a good example of a man thinking of other things before Christ and the cost of following Jesus

Jesus is not being a jerk to the man who wants to bury his father.  Like the others he is concerned with the wrong things.  It was societally expected the son would bury his father and this example the man asking hasn't even lost his father yet.  He is selfishly placing what society expects first.  Yet such selfishness won't save him or serve him in the long run.  Concerns that come before Christ, even if not primarily are definitively rooted in our natural turning inward toward ourselves.

Luke 9:23-34 Details a very Christian understanding and remedy. Taking up our crosses


Jesus likens losing one's life for his sake, will actually save it. Whoever denies himself  and his life for Jesus' sake will find it. Self-denial is the call of the Christian. There you have self-interest as self-denial, a turning from selfishness that ends in the person's best interests coming about.  This trend holds true in eternity and such a blessing benefits always.

The classic bit of wisdom, even biblically illiterate may have heard "what will it profit a man should he gain the whole world but lose his soul?"

An old story I've heard paraphrased states the idea well.  "A man saw hell, everybody was stuck where they were and had long forks so they couldn't feed themselves.  He went to heaven and saw the people with the same situation, but heaven was where they fed each other."

God rather furthers himself as a blessing.  He didn't need to make us, yet he did and where seeks glory it is his and for our own benefit.  He made all things, created all things and is a benefit to all things while giving his love and goodness without requiring anything from us.
Adam4d explaining well how God is not an egomaniac.

It is an amazing testimony that the order of the universe would reflect the self-sacrificial love found only in the God of Christianity.