What does the Bible say about self-love, loving self?

It is well worth stressing because there are those today who speak about loving oneself as if it were a right thing, whereas in second Timothy it is noted as a feature that marks corrupt Christian profession in the last days "Men shall be lovers of their own selves" (2 Tim. 3:2).

"For men shall be lovers of self." Such is the opening characteristic, so grievous to the Lord and His own in those bearing His name. Justly does it hold the first place in this list of Christ-dishonouring professors; for it is a very mother of evils, as it directly contravenes the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning His children. Christ died for all indeed; but the moral end was that those who live (whatever others do who remain dead) "should henceforth not live unto themselves, but unto Him Who for them died and rose again" (2 Cor. 5:15). "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another" (John 13:34-35). For "every one that loveth Him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep His commandments, and His commandments are not grievous" (1 John 5:1-3).

Thus, loving God proves that we truly love His children; as obeying His commands proves that we truly love God. So the first condition of discipleship, if we hear our Lord (Matt. 16:24, Mark 8:34), is denying self, the clean contrary of loving it. Oh, what a pattern in Him Who, though He was rich, yet for our sakes became poor that we through His poverty might become rich! Fully do I admit that such love as we are called to is not the original unfallen condition of Adam, still less of course the hateful and hating state of man now; it is what we see and know in the Second Man, the last Adam; it is to be imitators of God, as dear children, and to walk in love as the Christ also loved us and gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God of a sweet-smelling savour (Eph. 5:1-2). As having put on the new man and sealed with the Holy Spirit of God, no other standard could be set before us; in awful contrast with which stand lovers of self, and so much the more sadly, if baptized to Christ's name and death.

(1) “Men shall be lovers of their own selves.” The first and outstanding characteristic of Christendom in these last days is the love of self. This is in direct contrast with true Christianity which teaches us that Christ “died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live to themselves, but to Him which died for them, and rose again.”

First (Vv. 1-4); we are warned that in the last days the mass who compose the great Christian profession will be marked by uncontrolled selfishness, leading to every form of evil and self-indulgence. The solemn description commences with the statement that "men shall be lovers of their own selves." Hence they covet for self, boast in self, are proud of themselves, and are impatient of every form of restraint upon self, human or divine. They indulge self according to their own evil lusts and are lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.

"Men shall be lovers of their own selves," this is the first item on the list. The second is, "covetous" or "lovers of money." The list ends. "lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God." Love of self, love of money and love of pleasure are to mark the religious people of the last days, and as for all the evil things mentioned between they indicate the various ways in which the proud, self-sufficient, lawless spirit of fallen man expresses itself — and all this, remember, in people who call themselves followers of the meek and lowly Jesus. If we know anything of the present state of the so-called Christian nations we may well conclude that we have reached the last days.

"The love of many shall wax cold," and no wonder when self-love waxeth so hot. It was foretold also by the apostle (2 Tim. 3:1-2), "In the last days … men shall be lovers of their own selves"; and what a black regiment follows this captain, sin! If once a man makes self the whole of his aim, farewell loving of, or praying for others: charity cannot dwell in so narrow a house as the self-lover's heart; yea, it is opposed to it: "Love seeketh not her own" (1 Cor. 13:5).

In chapter 3 we come to the difficult days. One would have thought them difficult enough in the days of the apostles, but however difficult those were, worse were coming. It is not of anything that lies outside the profession of Christianity the apostle is speaking, but of the corruption of the best thing that ever was set up upon earth. We are told that "men shall be lovers of their own selves," and if this heads the list of evils, we may well be prepared for all that follows. All that is here is utterly opposed to Christianity. There was no self in Christ: He loved the church and gave Himself for it, and He taught His disciples to love one another. "This is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment" (1 John 3:23). Christ was to be the Object of faith, and the saints the objects of love, and where this was found in a company of those that called on the Lord, the apostles were encouraged to address them as saints. Self is to disappear in Christianity, divine love to take its place. Jesus says: "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you .… this is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." All that the Father was to the Son in love, He was to His disciples, and all that He was to them they were to be to one another. Hence this is all divine. The life of Christ was a life of self-sacrificing love, and it all culminated in His death, and this is what is to obtain among His own.

Love “vaunts not itself, IS not puffed up.” Self-love and divine love do not go together. Love is not vainglorious. Love is engaged with its object, and not with self. To praise oneself, to talk about oneself, is not a sign of love. Indeed the excess of self-occupation often betrays want of mental balance. There are instances enough in history, secular and ecclesiastical, to warn us against that.

Again I want you to notice that our text begins with God, and in this it is unlike the law, which God gave at Sinai. The law began with you. The Lord Himself summed up its ten commandments in two marvellous sentences, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." We need not trouble just now about the second part of the law, important as it is, for no man can be right as to that, who is wrong as to the first part of it, and alas, all men have been wrong there. The first part of the law is the crux and test; and it begins with you and ends with God. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God." It was like a golden ladder set up on the earth, and reaching up to the throne of God, but never did sinful feet mount one rung of that ladder; every man has turned away from it, for every man has loved himself more than he has loved his God.

We greatly need the same truth presented by Mr. Haldane, and so much owned of God. When we love ourselves it is because we are selfish, but God in loving Himself shews His unselfishness. He is all that is perfect, He must love Himself, and He must labour unceasingly for the gratification of His own love. He must have the happiness of blessing, we may have all the happiness of being blessed. Would that we understood this better.