10 Bible Verses to Help Us Love Ourselves the Way God Does
- Whitney Hopler Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
- Published Mar 10, 2022
Do you love yourself? God’s essence is love, and he wants that love to flow fully through your life. Choosing to love yourself means agreeing with God’s perspective on you as someone who is beloved. It can be challenging to love yourself, though, when you’re discouraged by your own mistakes or hurt by the unkindness of others. You may have negative thoughts about yourself running through your mind, but that doesn’t mean they’re true or worth your attention. Here are 10 key Bible verses about loving yourself, which can help you accept and enjoy God’s love for you.
How to Love Yourself in a Biblical Way
The Bible encourages you to love yourself because your Creator made you valuable and worthy of love. Psalm 139:14 describes King David praising God for making him so well: “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” That verse applies to every human being – including you! God has made you with a wonderful soul that reflects his own wonder. You and all other souls are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). The Holy Spirit wants to help you grow closer to God so that “beholding the glory of the Lord” you can be “transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
In a relationship with God, you must prioritize expressing love, because love is at the core of who God is. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” 1 John 4:8 declares. You can’t refuse to love yourself when God loves you and still be faithful. You should love yourself as a Christian, because doing so reflects the reality of who God is and how God works in your life.
Loving yourself involves choosing to see yourself as God sees you. Choosing love offers many well-being benefits, according to research I cite in my book Wake Up to Wonder. Those benefits include experiencing more awe, less anxiety, better stress management, and more joy than people who don’t regularly prioritize love in their lives. You can enjoy the quality of life that God intends for you by deciding to love fully, which includes loving yourself, other people, and God.
It’s important to make a distinction between loving yourself and being selfish. When you love yourself, you’re accepting God’s love and letting his love flow through your life into other people’s lives. Selfishness is different, in that it directs your attention only to yourself, rather than to God and his call to love. Loving yourself empowers you to serve others, while being selfish makes it difficult to do so. Loving yourself in a biblical way isn’t selfish. Instead, when you love yourself as the Bible describes, you welcome God’s love to flow fully through your life rather than blocking it. Loving yourself frees you to love God and others, as well.
10 Bible Verses about Loving Yourself
Here are 10 Bible verses about loving yourself. Read them whenever you need encouragement. Ask the Holy Spirit to use them to renew your mind, as well, so you can think about yourself as God thinks about you. You can also incorporate these verses into your prayers for self-love.
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! ...” – 1 John 3:1
“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.” – Ephesians 1:4
“To acquire wisdom is to love yourself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.” – Proverbs 19:8
“You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you.” – Song of Solomon 4:7
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” – Ephesians 2:10
“And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.” – Luke 12:7
“How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!” – Psalm 139:17
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8
“The commandments … are summed up in this one rule: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” – Romans 13:9
“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.” – 1 John 4:16-19
A Prayer to Love Yourself as God Loves You
Anytime you need more encouragement, you can pray with confidence that God will listen with love and answer your prayers. Let God embrace you with his love! Pray this prayer to love yourself like God loves you:
“My heavenly Father, thank you for making me in a wonderful way and treasuring me with your love. Please help me see myself the way you see me, as a beloved soul. Through the power of your Holy Spirit, renew my mind so I can let go of thoughts that don’t reflect the truth about me and embrace thoughts that reflect your accurate perspective on me. I choose to stop judging and condemning myself for my shortcomings, but instead to turn to you for forgiveness and help to learn from my mistakes. I choose to stop worrying about the unkind words or actions of other people toward me, but instead to ask you for the healing I need when I’m hurt. Please help me discover the wondrous qualities of my soul, and be in awe of all that distinguishes me as a person. Thank you for giving my life a good purpose. Day by day as I walk with you, show what me to focus on to keep fulfilling my purpose. I’m grateful that Jesus serves as my advocate in all situations. Remind me not to fear, but instead to turn to Jesus in faith for help whenever I need it. Help me notice your constant presence. You never move away from me, but I sometimes move away from you. Keep me close, Lord. The more I can be aware of you right here with me, the more I can sense your love and receive your love fully into my life. Thank you for loving me completely and unconditionally, so I never have to try to earn your love or worry about losing it. I love you! Amen.”
Conclusion
Whenever you become discouraged, remember who you are in God’s eyes. You are beloved! Let these Bible verses about loving yourself refresh your perspective, so you can live with the confidence that you are worthy of love. Pray whenever you need to connect with God for the strength to love yourself well, even in discouraging circumstances. God’s love is always accessible to you. When you embrace that love, it will flow through your life into other people’s lives, in a wonderful cycle that can transform every situation you encounter.
Photo Credit: © Unsplash/elisa-ph
