I wish I knew better what you mean by "vanity." We make up words to express what we think spiritually and this h as always caused some confusion for me. A poster here speaks of the "contrariness". Took me much reading to understand what he meant. Are you using "vanity" in this way? Vanity is pride in something I either do or how I look. Or the "vanity" of beauty, in that it has no real value. But I can't apply it to your concept.
Good question. Vanity is difficult to articulate in it's implications because of semantics. But I will try to elaborate. I call vanity taking God for granted in unthankfulness. That would look like, questioning what God has made me or given me in comparison to others.
You mention pride in what we do. But do we thank God Who made us able to do the work? Do we thank Him for our being useful? Or do we congratulate ourselves while we expect the same from others? External beauty is also given and also taken away. Thus the beauty given should not be applied to one's value as a person. Beauty puffs up our carnal self esteem, while ugliness brings us low self esteem, but only if we are vain. Do we thank God for learning this? Do we realize why we experience both? Do we treat the beautiful and the ugly without prejudice? Romans 8:20.
You say it works both ways: Things are imagined to be worse or to be better, than they really are. The grass is greener - how is that vanity? Isn't that envy? Is it not even important that I really understand this? It seems pivotal if I'm to understand you...
Good word, envy. What is the opposite of envy? I think it's being thankful for what one has instead of focusing on what one does not have.
It works two ways: Things are imagined to be worse or to be better, than they really are.
The grass is greener is an illusion. Where I'm presently at, appears worse than over there, which is imagined to be better than where I'm at here.
To think more highly of myself than I ought to, is pride and vanity.That's easy to understand. But to think less of myself than I ought to, is also pride and vanity. How is that? Because I think I should be better than what I am. See Satan, wanting to be as high as God. Both take God for granted in un-thankfulness. This is a battle in the mind hidden in semantics. Because if I think more of myself than I ought to, then I should think lesser of myself, yet it is not vanity.
This is great. Every now and then you come upon a gem - and your above is one. If I could write, a theme would be that no one really understands anyone (off topic) and thus no one is really appreciated. Thanks for the full circle idea. I'll share royalties with you! Okay. Satan does certainly use this situation, as he also uses many others.
The main point is that, there exists a no fault scenario, wherein what is fair to one person is not fair to another, and visa versa, and yet it is no one's fault. This unfair relationship must depend upon faith, mercy and understanding. Patience and empathy also comes to mind.
Freewill doctrine exists so as to not blame God for sin. But it also exists to blame sin on man, who is made in God's Image. So either way, God gets blamed and the lie questions what is Holy either in the Maker or in what the Maker has created. This is part of the cunning of the serpents lie who sows enmity between man and God from a manufactured and imagined fault. Vanity finds fault where there is none, in unthankfulness to God. This is why freewill doctrine is vanity, when used to condemn. There was a saint who was a hermit, who upon meeting any other person, greeted them by falling on his face before them in tribute to God.
And, yes, we certainly are unthankful to God for everything. Our very lives , our chance to get to heaven and continue life with Him. In fact, I understand "unthankful" much more than "vanity". it's much clearer what you mean. This reminds me of Mathew 18:21-35 Are we on the same page?
Yes, we are on the same page. The above scripture is showing that mercy and understanding are required, and that we are judged according to what measure we judge. The lie is still at work, for in as much as any person believes that Adam and Eve were not innocently duped by the serpent, and therefore are knowing and deliberate participants in calling God a liar, so also do they reveal their own lack of faith. For in our judgments of others, we project who we are. Romans 2:1.
Here we get into your actual understanding. Is the following right?: God created man and angels to destroy their unthankfulness and this cycle of not appreciating the other so that we may also appreciate God (and the other) for who He is and unto His glory.
I would have said that God created flesh beings to reveal unthankfulness inherent in the creation through an ignorance of Who God is. If you're getting what I am saying, then you would understand why God gave men hunger, so that men would be thankful to God for their food.
You could probably also see why this testimony of the Holy Spirit is being played out in a temporal existence.
I was on another thread regarding this glory idea. God made us for His glory. I know Jesus said at different times that what He was going to do was for God's glory. I don't quite grasp how it could be that God would CREATE us just for His glory. God needs glory? I mean, once we're here, we're to give Him glory. But you think we were created for this? or do you just mean that once we understand and appreciate WHO God IS, then we feel we want to give Him the glory?
The glory that God reveals, moves a person to worship so that they cannot help but do so. The thankfulness God gives us, to give to Him is not one that patronizes Him, but is sincere and from the heart without pretense. We are even thankful to be thankful. God's need for glory is the same as our need to see it. Because Whoever Knows His Maker in Truth, knows his self. Whoever glorifies their Maker, glorifies their self whom the Maker has made. Beauty is not beauty if not seen and appreciated. God not only wants us to see so as to appreciate His glory, but also share in it as His children.
But it can't be this simple. If we had never been created - the whole problem of unthankfulness (or vanity) and non-appreciation would never exist in the first place.
Love is simple and yet Eternal and unfathomable. God has created out of an unfair yet no blame scenario, the beginnings of what may be a perpetual epiphany. Such is His Glory.