Self-denial vs. denial of self.
There is a crucial difference between denial of self — the humility Jesus taught — and self-denial – an emotional and physical deprivation of the kind promoted in Eastern religions. It’s the difference between divine grace and man’s works. Denial of self, by grace, defeats selfish desire — but self-denial is little ore than a ritualized system of deprivation, including the rejection of various personal comforts in the pursuit of some kind of mystical spirituality.
