Self-love

There are many commands in the Bible that exhort us to love God above all things and all other people, even our dearest friends and family members.  There are also innumerable passages that instruct us to love others.  But we find no commands in Scripture that direct us to love ourselves.  The Bible assumes that self-love is an indelible part of our nature.  The only commands dealing with self-love are ones that direct us to restrain and moderate it.  Philippians 2:3 says that we should “do nothing from selfishness.”  The first demand Jesus requires of His disciples is self-denial.  The unrestrained preooccupation with self today is undoubtedly a root cause of much unhappiness.  The modern emphasis on self-esteem is a tragic old error in new language.