Do you realize that God is for you and not against you?
For many, the weight of sin or failures zaps the joy of salvation right out of them. God the condemning Judge looms large. For those individuals and for all of us let me remind you of what God’s Word says:
There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. – Romans 8:1-2 (NLT)
I suggest that all of us take comfort in 5 ways God shows Himself to be our loving heavenly Father:
- Your Father reaches out to you – He is the One who calls you to come to Him. He takes the initiative. Did the father in the Prodigal Son parable punish his son when he came home? NO, the father was on the lookout for his return – the father ran to meet the son – hugs, kisses, and gifts awaited the wayward son. And your heavenly Father constantly reaches out to you – not to condemn but to accept.
- Your Father loves you – With all of your weaknesses, He loves you. He totally knows you, and yet He loves you. You can’t do anything that He is not aware of nor surprised about. Your sins sadden the Lord but they do not, in any way, diminish His love for you.
- Your Father forgives you – God doesn’t just excuse, tolerate or ignore your sins and failures. He forgives them. The death of His Son, Jesus Christ, reminds us how seriously God takes our sins and what cost He was willing to pay to forgive them. When you were saved all your sins, past, present and future were forgiven. You can’t do anything that hasn’t already been covered by His blood.
- Your Father is for you – Have you thought about how transforming it is to realize that God is in your corner? As a Christian you are God’s son or God’s daughter. And He takes care of His kids. There are times He may decide to discipline you because you are headed in the wrong direction, but He will never beat you – abuse you – or condemn you. You belong to Him and He is glad about that.
- Your Father is always with you – You may feel lonely or neglected, but you are never without His presence. He is with you during your celebrations and with you during your heart breaking moments. He is with you even in your worse rebellion state. There is no where you can go where the Lord is not present with you
Dr. James Mahoney has published The Christian Identity Confession. Why not meditate upon that confession now? In fact it might be good to meditate on this often.
I am an awesome spirit being of magnificent worth as a person
I am deeply loved of God, I am fully pleasing to God,
I am totally accepted by God, I am inwardly perfect like God, as a person, in His sight,
And when my person is expressed through my performance,
The outward reflection will be dynamically unique,
for there has never been another like me in the history of mankind
nor will there ever be…so no one will reflect God quite like me,
I am an original, one of a kind, really somebody
And so are you, WHEW!
Oh friend, God is in love with you! In the words of Max Lucado in his book A Gentle Thunder “If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. If he had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, he’ll listen. He can live anywhere in the universe, and he chose your heart…Face it, friend. He’s crazy about you.”
I’m crazy about you too,
Brother Steve