Thanks for stopping by! This is Day 27 of my 2015 “31 Days Reflecting on God” series. Find the rest over here.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. Ephesians 1:7
Believing that what we do affects God’s happiness with us often results in a struggle to believe his complete forgiveness. We can never be perfect, and we wonder how a perfect God could accept us with our laundry list of failures.
I’ve met countless people who just can’t get over this hump, myself included. “I’ve messed up again. How can God still love me? When is he going to throw in the towel?”
God is gracious. He doesn’t save us because we’ve cleaned up our act. He saves us because he wants to. His plan isn’t based on me and my character, but God and his. So because he is gracious, he forgives. Over and over again.
God chose to pay for our sins himself when he sent Jesus to die and rise again. As Jesus took the blame for our wrongdoing, in spite of his innocence, he made a way for us to be cleansed forever. When we believe in him and accept the gift of his sacrifice, God no longer sees our sin. He sees Christ’s righteousness. Jesus’ blood provides the forgiveness we need to walk with God.
So how do we shake the guilt that creeps in when we fail to obey God, when we sin, yet again, or even just remember our sin from the past?
By returning to the cross. We have to remember that we never saved ourselves in the first place. God chose to save us in spite of every sin we ever committed or would commit. This is God, and he isn’t going to change. He’ll never suddenly decide to quit forgiving. We have to tell ourselves, “God forgave me. It’s finished. I’m clean. Thank you, Jesus.”
Guilt and shame come from the enemy, not from God. Romans 8:1 says, “There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ.” If we are following Christ, no condemnation hangs over our head. So if we’re feeling it, it’s from Satan. It can be ugly. And it can keep coming back. So we take it to the cross over and over again and lay it down.
Jesus paid for it all. God forgives us for everything. And he accepts us as fully as he accepts his own perfect son. Now that is forgiveness. Let’s walk in it!