For such a worm as I
Some will recognize that title as the original words of a hymn by Charles Wesley. "Would he devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?"
The words were changed to wretch over time. Still, both show a self-loathing that the recognition of our sinfulness might bring out.
Contrast with a song I heard on the radio the other day that asserted, "Because you saw I was worthy, you saved me."
How about no?
It seems hard for us to walk circumspectly between the two extremes of being a vile worm before God (because humankind is in the imago dei) and that we are redeemed because of our potential, because God saw something in us individually worth redeeming.
Like most things in life, getting that right is a life-long battle. I tell my communication students they will study and improve their communication all their lives. Likewise, we will be tempted to swing between these two extremes all our lives. Yes, we will feel like garbage, which we aren't. Or we will feel superior yet undervalued (which we might be in the employment sense but not in reality). Both are rooted in what Donald Miller calls our self addiction.
The words were changed to wretch over time. Still, both show a self-loathing that the recognition of our sinfulness might bring out.
Contrast with a song I heard on the radio the other day that asserted, "Because you saw I was worthy, you saved me."
How about no?
It seems hard for us to walk circumspectly between the two extremes of being a vile worm before God (because humankind is in the imago dei) and that we are redeemed because of our potential, because God saw something in us individually worth redeeming.
Like most things in life, getting that right is a life-long battle. I tell my communication students they will study and improve their communication all their lives. Likewise, we will be tempted to swing between these two extremes all our lives. Yes, we will feel like garbage, which we aren't. Or we will feel superior yet undervalued (which we might be in the employment sense but not in reality). Both are rooted in what Donald Miller calls our self addiction.
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