Day 111 "Stop Struggling to Get Rid of The Old Sinful You!

Disappointment. Frustration. Shame. Do you identify with any of these emotions in your life? For most of us as Christians, these emotions come up repeatedly out of our failure to live up to our own expectations, let alone God's. "I can't believe I just did that, again!" we chastise ourselves and promise ourselves that we will do it better the next time. But after repeated failures, the frustration grows greater and the confidence in our own ability to change grows weaker. Despair begins to set it. Sound familiar?

But there is a better way to live out our lives! And here is the great news, "IT DOESN'T DEPEND ON YOU!" That's right! God did it all already! Our world turns right side up when we truly discover and believe what God tells us in his word, the Bible.

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:19

"This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe." Romans 3:22

"and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ." Romans 3:24

Imagine yourself standing before God. Now, you know who you are. You know everything about yourself and all that resides in your hidden closet that nobody else knows about, but God. How would you judge yourself? Passing or failing? Now, here is the problem: we continue to see ourselves as we see, not as God sees. Now, imagine, looking at yourself through God's viewpoint which sees us through Christ. Rather than seeing all the sins and unrighteousness in our lives, he sees us as he see his own Son-perfect and holy without blemish. It didn't depend one iota of anything that we brought to the table. Jesus on the cross did it all! Can you see it? In Christ, we have already, 100%, been made holy.

"He set aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Hebrews 1o:10

And, if we have been made holy and fully pardoned from anything that we have ever done-past, present, and future-what further action on our part would ever make us unholy again? Nothing! Let that sink in for a moment. You are free from any accusation or condemnation from God.

"Therefore there is now no condemnation for those in Christ." Romans 8:1

Yeah, we keep on condemning ourselves, don't we? Again, the problem lays in the fact that we are looking at ourselves through our own eyes and understanding. The key is to change our understanding. And that is what the Holy Spirit was given to us to do, if we allow the Spirit to do its work.

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:2

"let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Hebrews 12:1-2

Our response becomes simply to follow Jesus and to trust him through the Holy Spirit to guide our footsteps. The Holy Spirit will make evident to our lives what needs to be transformed.

The brilliant Renaissance artist, Michelangelo, was once asked about the difficulties that he must have encountered in sculpting his masterpiece, David. His response was unassuming and somewhat comical: "It is easy," he replied, "you just chip away the stone that doesn't look like David."

So, how would you, now, live your life if you believed that God sees you in the same way that he sees his Son? Can you see a perceptual change in your perspective? Can you see yourself as God sees you? When you do, you will discover that your identity, security, and acceptance no longer depends on you. Therefore, your attempt to sway God by how you act is no longer valid since Jesus already did that for you. It is like someone telling you, "Thank you, but your services are no longer required." Jesus already made you perfect. You can't improve on perfection." God's perfect love for us casts out all of our fears. ( 1 John 4:18) So, if we no longer live with fear hanging over us, what is there left to guide us? How about love? What would you do for the people you love? Almost anything? There is the rub! Our unbelief! If we truly believed that God loves and accepts us just as we are, then what area of our lives would we not trust him with?

Spiritually, in Christ by faith, you have been set free from any fear of condemnation. In fact, you have become a child of God.

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1 John 3:1

Our identity does not come from our actions, but comes from our birthright. In Christ, our spirit is born completely anew. We are no longer the same as we once were. United in love with Christ, how do we, now, act? Notice, I didn't use the word "should." Suppose a king proclaimed that from this point on, throughout the kingdom, prostitution is no longer a criminal offense. Do you think this new edict would change prostitutes from their ways? But what if the king approached one particular prostitute and asked her to become his wife and queen of the kingdom? Do you think that would change her future lifestyle and motivation? This is my point: God helps us to see ourselves as he sees us-as one of his children. There is no longer the need to strive to become a child of God, we already are thorough Christ. As God's child, how do you want to live your life?

Stop struggling with the old you. The world conforms you by its demand for performance and conditional acceptance. God gives you a new mirror to see yourself: by his unconditional love and grace. Looking at yourself through God's grace, God's unmerited favor, changes everything!

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"For he rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Colossians 1:13-14

The last time I looked at my spiritual birth certificate it read that I was a child of God. Since 1972, it has continued to read the same thing. Knowing that it cannot be changed based upon my actions, that I can't screw it up, has made all the difference to my anxiety level and worries in this life. Oh, what a relief it is! I try my best to live each day moment by moment, and within each moment, I try to let love light my way.

Live out your life as a child of God. It makes all the difference! In his love, see you back here tomorrow...

"Carpe Momentum in Love" (Seize the moment in love)