Before I came to know the Lord—really know Him—I carried the weight of every mistake I had ever made. At one point in my life, I was in a pit so dark and so deep that I didn’t think I would ever get out. I didn’t think there was anything that could fix the messes that I had made, but then Jesus came to my rescue.
When Jesus came into my life, my eyes were opened. I wanted so desperately for Him to love me that I tried everything in my power to do what I believed was right, but I also lived my life afraid that if I made a mistake, He would turn His back on me. I wanted God’s love and His approval so much that I tried to earn it. I volunteered to help anyone and any ministry who needed it. Before long, I was rapidly approaching burnout. Have you been there?
The truth is, there is nothing you can do to earn God’s approval or His love. You already have it. His love is not contingent on what you do (or don’t do) for Him. You were created in His image and are precious in His sight. God approves of you and loves you right now and you make Him proud. God is not like mankind who demands that we earn approval and love. He gives it freely. No amount of “good things” could ever come close to making up for the heaviness of sin. This is why God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross as a payment for our sins. It was a debt that no man or woman on this earth could ever pay.
For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. (Colossians 1:19-22 NLT)
Because of Jesus, you stand before God as righteous and blameless without a single fault. Jesus came to make a way for the forgiveness of our sins, that we might be reconciled to God. The Bible says that not a single person is made righteous through their own efforts. We are only made righteous through faith in Jesus.
When I find myself trying to earn the love or the approval of God, Colossians 1:19-22 is my reminder that I don’t need to earn it. I already have it. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross made that possible.
If you find yourself needing that reminder too, know that God sees you. He knows every detail of your life and loves you with an everlasting love that never changes. And, dear one, nothing can take that love or approval away from you.
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