The Philosophy of Psychology

     If we're thinking of anything else, we are not thinking of God. Because mankind is the biggest competitor to God, the philosophy of the world is to keep our minds on ourselves. Psychology is the process of self-absorption. The purpose of psychology is maintaining or reclaiming self-esteem. Ironically, the high esteem which people already have for themselves is the roadblock to esteeming Christ!
      Psychology feeds on those with self-pity and imbalances. Indeed, self-pity is an imbalance. Of course, some people have clinical depression. That is not an emotional dysfunction but a neurological problem. Therapy can do little more than treat the depression with drugs to enable the synapses to transmit more effectively. Other than that, psychology can never "fix" anything, and honest psychologists do not claim to be able to cure anything; their goal is for the patient to help themselves. Taking care of ourselves is spiritually problematic. As far as "fixed" is concerned, how can that even be defined? Tribulation in the world will always create worry and turmoil. Nobody can "fix" that but God.
      Usually "fixed" in terms of psychology is the ability to cope with life. There is no measurement for "coping" so people must determine their own level of contentment. Many expect a utopian existence. That can never be found because there are no Utopias in this world! (Perhaps Ward Cleaver's family comes close, but Eddie Haskell ruins that for the Beaver.)
     Most people want continual satisfaction, pleasure, and love. Others add to that prestige, wealth, and reputation. Maslows's Hierarchy of Needs Pyramid presents "needs" but most people want more than that; they want their desires fulfilled as well. That's why lottery tickets sell so well, especially to the needy, who seem to value pleasure more than nourishment and contentment.
     Psychology is the "study of the soul". The soul, in their lexicon, is the psyche. Psychology is a branch of philosophy which is "the love of wisdom". The two together focus on the self. People love to think on and study themselves!
     "The love of self" is inborn in the animal kingdom and results in a striving to survive - to be one of the fittest. Like the animals, each of whom desire to be the fittest, people all want to survive as the fittest. With that, people have power struggles to maintain their status in life. Most people want to be loved, and when they perceive that they are not, it seems their esteem for themselves flattens. That is a delusion - that feeling of minimization is esteeming oneself. They would never want love and attention if they did not value themselves highly!
     "Love of self" is God-given. Scripture says that no one hates their own body (Ephes 5:29). Hatred is the lack of love. That could as well be written, everyone loves their own body. Everyone truly does because self-love is the reference amount for loving others (Mat 2:29). In the Greatest Commandment, God indicates the capability to love: hearts, minds, souls, and strengths (Mark 12:30. That is with our all and how much we value ourselves. Psychology seeks to convince dysfunctional people that they don't love themselves, and that that needs to be fixed.
      Actually, psychology knows that dysfunctional people have a spiritual problem; thus the study of the soul! Psychology is a religion whose gods are mankind's egos. "Egos" are the "I" in everyone. A person's self-importance can be measured by the number of I's, me's, and mine's they use. Those we say have a lack of self-esteem are usually the ones most concerned with the ego. The "id" in people is the instinct to be self-preserving and self-pleasuring. I would say that's what the Serpent meant when he said, "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil" (Gen 3:5).
     Self-love is a characteristic with which mankind was endowed. If Adam had been created disdaining God's handiwork, he would have killed himself out of despair. People are expected to have a degree of self-love! How much is the problem! God desires that "none should perish" (John 3:16). His expectation is that his creatures want not to perish.
     God's desire for us is His expression of love, and His expectation is that we love ourselves so as not to perish. That is important because otherwise God would never be able to influence our lives! Ironically, Christians turn to God to save our own gods and goddesses - ourselves. "Born again" is when we see the light which is that we are not really gods, have no power to save ourselves, but that God Is God and can!
     Regeneration (born again) is to cease trusting ourselves and commence trusting God. It is a commitment: we quit the self-esteeming and begin Christ-esteeming! The souls of people are to be diminished as the Spirit of God is elevated. That is minimizing, not eliminating, self-love and the love of our own wisdom (philosophy), and elevating the love of God (philotheia), and the study of His Word (theology). It's not, however, the study of the Word which is saving but the love of the Word who is Jesus!
     Atheism is all about you. It is the religion of the self, and it's doctrines are philosophy and psychology. Christianity is all about Jesus, and it's doctrine is philotheia - the love of God. God has a Face and a Name. His "face" is Jesus and He is called Jesus. The focus is off the self and on Jesus: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). Implementing that is Christ-esteem and we are to so love God as much as He so loves us!
     God esteems Himself and wants love. He's not a weak God who wants love because He lacks Self-esteem. He's so certain of His Supremacy that the most important thing for Him is to be loved. Because people esteem themselves so highly, we too, made in the image of God, esteem ourselves highly and seek love. I hope you see how self-esteem has been misrepresented by the religion of the world! It is not mankind's kryptonite but his self-made gold. Self-esteem is deceptive: we are told that we are in emotional poverty all the while we are in emotional grandeur. Self-esteem is mankind's problem and Christ-esteem is the solution!
     Regeneration is returning to the Designer's intent. Adam never focused on his needs or contentment because God provided both. When he began to focus on himself was the first sin. Eating of the forbidden tree didn't provide nourishment but lusts of the eyes and flesh and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). Adam neglected his Creator in favor of Himself! The pride of life was as if he was responsible for his own stature. Not so! When he began to make himself as god, that attitude emancipated him from God. Because, he was remorseful, God quickly restored his bright nature as Adam realized that the works of his own hands was not sufficient or efficacious for regeneration - back to his origin.
     The superego is what we have learned to critique our conscience which governs the attitude of the soul. The id is the source of original sin, and the superego is how people rationalize their thinking. Eve blamed the Serpent and Adam blamed Eve for their own transgression. They learned that from Satan as suddenly the Serpent became their father (John 8:44) until by grace God adopted them again. Regeneration means returning to our genesis: worshiping our True Father and relinquishing our kidnapping father. Half-way born again, if that was possible, is trusting God for salvation, but failing to accept God as the Father to whom we show reverence, love, and obedience.
     People belong to the party of Mug-wumps; they have their "mugs" on one side of the fence and their "wumps" on the other. That's the condition of many Christians who trust the psychologists to adjust the soul when that is God's function.