Sacrificial Development
By Anthony Casperson
1-11-25

During this time of year, it’s rather common to hear thoughts about becoming a better person. It’s the time of New Year resolutions. (And the time of failing to meet the expectations already.)

But when one of my friends sent me a link to a video that spoke about personal development, I wasn’t surprised because of a totally different reason. This is one of many topics that we talk about. He could’ve sent me the link in the middle of July and I would’ve reacted the same way.

However, my reaction this time was a little different than usual as well. I’d felt the need to push back a little on the things said in the video. I disagreed with its core premise. And it was on my mind so much this past week that I felt the need to share with others.

In the beginning of the video, the presenter rephrased the idea of, “I’ll help you, while you help me,” into “I’ll help myself for you, and you help yourself for me.” My head tilted a little to figure out the value of the rephrasing, but I kept listening.

And it sounded good when he got to the next part. The presenter asked to imagine if he devoted himself to personal development and became 10x better of a person, and asked how much better of a friend he would be then. There is truth in the idea that a person who is healthy spiritually, psychologically, physically, and relationally will be better able to interact with others. And we should strive to grow as healthily as possible.

Yet it was what the presenter said immediately after this that made me disagree with him. “Self-sacrifice usually earns contempt. Self-development and self-investment earns respect.”

There’s a part of me that always feels uncomfortable whenever someone denigrates self-sacrifice. Sure, an excess of self-sacrifice, where we’re giving to others so much that there’s no time for our own tanks to be refueled, will lead to terrible consequences like burnout. But the same is true of all excesses.

When it comes to we followers of Jesus, self-sacrifice is more than just a good idea. It’s a godly calling.

And that’s especially true when it comes to passages that talk about how our own spiritual giftedness—the allotment given to us by God—should be used for the growth of our brothers and sisters in Jesus. I can’t point to a single verse in the book of 1 Corinthians that will prove my point. But when I’d preached through the book a while ago, it became obvious that one of Paul’s points in writing to them was to help them realize that their spiritual giftedness was for the sole purpose of building up each other in the faith. They were called to invest, not in themselves, but in each other.

When Peter writes about spiritual gifts in 1 Peter 4:10-11, he explicitly says that we should use the gift to serve one another. It is good stewardship of our giftedness to focus it on others. The context in which we find these verses makes it even more clear as they’re found in the middle of encouragements of being self-controlled while loving one another and showing hospitality for one another without grumbling.

Moving outside of spiritual giftedness and into a general sense for we followers of Jesus, we could look to the pithy wisdom of Proverbs. “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered” (Proverbs 11:24-25).

A host of other verses could speak to the calling of self-sacrifice in the life of a follower of Jesus.

Yet, my mind continued to go back to the idea of self-sacrifice being met with contempt. There are plenty of people who will look at our self-sacrifice with a smug grin. They’re willing to take and take without giving back their part. Some will sneer at how much we try to help others while not being able to help ourselves. Such reactions make us want to do anything other than sacrifice so much for these worthless users.

But our calling comes from one who faced contempt and still chose to sacrifice himself anyway.

In Matthew 27:41-43, Mark 15:31-32, and Luke 23:35, we see the cultural and religious elite of Jesus’ time sneer at him up on the cross. They mocked him. In their contempt for him, they said, “He saved others, let him save himself, if he truly is the Messiah.” Yet, if he had held his own self-sacrifice in the same contempt that they did, we would have no hope. No salvation.

If Jesus had done as they said and saved himself—ceased from his self-sacrifice, in order to focus on his own self-improvement—then he would’ve failed to save anyone. And failed his mission. His calling.

We followers of Jesus are called to become more and more like our Savior whose self-sacrifice is the only thing that can help us from being the miserable sinners that we are. The fallen and broken images of God that is the best our own strength can lead us to be.

The author of the book of Hebrews writes in chapter 13 about Jesus’ sacrifice—his suffering outside of the gate in order to set apart his people through his own blood—and uses it as an impetus for us to grow in him. Verse 16 says, “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”

For followers of Jesus, it’s a both/and, not an either/or. Yes, we should have personal development—growth in holiness, like Jesus is holy. But that should never push self-sacrifice out of the way. For it is in our healthy self-sacrifice that we develop in ourselves the person God calls us to be.

Self-sacrifice is a part of our personal development.

And who cares if it’s met with contempt? Our Savior didn’t. And he’s the one we’re supposed to fashion ourselves after.

So, regardless of what resolutions we may have failed to keep so far this year, let’s keep our personal development of self-sacrifice as one thing that we continue to grow in. Year after year.