Acceptance part 5
What if we never questioned whether or not God loved us and accepted us? What if we didn't judge His love for us according to our actions? What if we simply knew and believed that we ARE loved and accepted? That would almost make us believers, wouldn't it? And that would really free us up to live, wouldn't it? It would almost give truth to 2 Corinthians 3:17, "...where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." If you have to work to be accepted, then it's not really acceptance. Acceptance, like love, is unconditional. It's, "I love you just the way you are. I accept you for the person that you are." And with this freedom--this liberty--from jumping through hoops and trying to be someone you're not... that's when you can really be who you ARE. I'm telling you, God created you to be YOU. He didn't create you so you could try (and fail) to be like someone else. Even the Law of Moses--which we still for some reason use as the standard of what a "good Christian" is--wasn't given so that we might keep it and earn acceptance. The Law of Moses was given to show us that we CAN'T keep it. It was given as a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. To bring us to the end of ourselves. To help us repent of dead works and stop trying to finish a work that is already finished. Now watch this: I don't believe there was ever a time when God DIDN'T accept us. That was never the problem. The problem, as Colossians 1:21 puts it was that we were alienated and enemies in OUR MINDS because of our wicked works. It was never that God didn't accept us. It was that we didn't accept ourselves, and didn't believe He COULD accept us. But that verse goes on to say that we have been reconciled. WE hid from the presence of God. WE ran away from Him. And yet He hung on the cross with arms open wide and welcomed us back to Himself. He accepted us even when we were sinners (unbelievers). He accepted us even when we were dead set on doing it ourselves. He did it because we couldn't do it. He reconciled us to Himself because, despite our best efforts (or, really, BECAUSE of them) we were running in the wrong direction. He said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you. You think you're my enemy, but really you are my beloved. You can run, but just as soon as you get tired, you can turn around and you'll see that I'm right here with you. Always with you. Not just when you're "good," but ALWAYS." And when we know and believe that truth--when we let the Holy Spirit inside of us lead and guide us into all truth--then we can stop trying to get something we don't have. We can stop trying to earn something that has already been freely given. We can stop trying and start resting. We can receive it and release it. We can share it and enjoy it. When we know that we ARE accepted, we can accept each other. No matter where someone else is in their journey, we can accept them because we know Jesus already finished the race. God isn't worried about it, so you don't need to be worried about it either. People will get there when they get there. It's not your job to force them into your belief system. It's your job to love them. And you can only do that when you know that you ARE loved. Because you can't give what you don't have. What if we never questioned whether God loved us and accepted us? Then we would love and accept each other!