Stumble part 3
We think we're horrible. I mean, really, as a people, we think the worst of ourselves. And usually of each other. We wonder how we could possibly be loved by anybody. Let alone God. Especially God. Because, like me myself, God knows every horrible rotten thing I've done. Here's the thing though: Love is not about what you do, or what you've done. Love is about who you are. And who God is. Paul writes at length about what could possibly separate us from the love of God. And his conclusion is... nothing. Nothing can seperate us from the love of Christ. God loves us because God is love. Period. You can't do anything to make Him love you less. And--while you CAN make Him proud of you--you can't do anything to make Him love you more. God loves you the most that anybody can love anybody. What we need to do is stop seeing ourselves in the worst way possible. Stop thinking that our stumbles and falls and failures and mistakes disqualify us or make us less than. Look at 2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with an open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." I love this verse. It's one of my favorites. And my favorite part is the phrase, "From glory to glory." See, we're not starting at the bottom and trying to claw our way to the top. We have already been conformed to the image of Jesus. We are already who we are supposed to be. Ephesians 5:27 tells us that Jesus presented us to Himself as a bride without spot, wrinkle, or any such thing; holy and without blemish. We start at glory. We don't start at crap. And think about it--how could we improve if we didn't have what we needed TO improve? If it wasn't already there inside of us, how could it come out of us? The key is to look into the glass, or the mirror. Look with an open face, and see Jesus. Seeing Jesus in the mirror means seeing Jesus inside you. Seeing your true identity. Seeing yourself as you truly are. Jesus is God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. We have that love inside of us. Which means it can come out of us. We are who we need to be. Which means we can BE who we need to be. One more memory verse. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Corinthians 5:21). That's where we start. At glory. At the righteousness of God in Christ. And no ammount of stumbling can take us out of that glory. When you make a mistake, you are simply the righteousness of God who made a mistake. It doesn't change who you are, or disqualify you from God's love. What I'm saying is: Grace is a messy atmosphere. Because grace equips and empowers people to live. And living isn't something that fits into a box. Living is loving. However that needs to happen. Whatever that looks like. So don't worry about fitting into a box. Don't worry about trying to be someone you're not. Embrace who you are. The righteousness of God. The love of God. That's who you are. Do that. Be that. And don't worry about anything else. If you stumble, keep going. If you fall, get back up. Learn from it and grow. Grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus!