(Rom 8:35,37-39 PHI) Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble, pain, or persecution? Can lack of clothes and food, danger to life and limb, the threat and force of arms?… No, in all these things we win an overwhelming victory through him who has proved his love for us. I have become absolutely convinced that neither death nor life, neither messenger of Heaven nor monarch of earth, neither what happens today nor what may happen tomorrow, neither a power from on high nor a power from below, nor anything else in God’s whole world has any power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord!
This morning we continue our series entitled, “Faith and Patience VOL III – Never Give Up!” by continuing with “The Big Picture.” In yesterday’s message Paul reminded us that God can work in anything and everything in order to make a situation work out for our good. A few verses later Paul revealed why he believed that… because he was convinced God loved him. God loved Paul even when Paul was not doing the right things, even when he was persecuting the church, even when he made egregious errors. Paul’s understanding of the love of God helped motivate him to keep going, even when things were going rough.
I am far from perfect and I am sure Paul knew he was as well, but knowing that God loves us – failures, flaws, and all – gives us great peace in troubled times. When you are faced with a major challenge the enemy wants you to feel isolated and helpless. If he can get you to feel like God does not love you anymore, that you messed up too many times, that you are in the mess you are in because God has turned his back on you, and that you are no longer in God’s good graces, then the feeling of isolation and helplessness will overtake and keep you from seeking God’s help.
The devil will always seek to condemn you, but the Holy Spirit will convict you. Let me explain. The devil will highlight the mistakes you have made in order to get you to cross over into condemnation. Once you feed condemned you will never run to God. Condemnation always keeps you from God and it makes you feel inferior and worthless. On the other hand, the Holy Spirit never condemns, but rather comes to convict you of your righteousness. The Holy Spirit will not focus on the mistakes you have made, but will highlight the price Jesus paid for you. Jesus died to make you righteous. The Holy Spirit will always remind you of that truth, so that you can clothe yourself in the righteousness of God. When you remind yourself that You have been declared righteous because of Jesus’ finished work, then you can reconnect with and enjoy the love of God. It is then that you realize that God loves you, not because of what you have done or failed to do, but because of what Jesus has already done. This means that God loved you before you were ever born and His love is unconditional. When you get convinced of His love and how nothing can ever separate you from it, then you are equipped to face every challenge head-on.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. There was nothing you did to get God to start loving you and there is nothing you can ever do to make Him stop.
2. Nothing can ever separate you from the love of God.
3. Condemnation will force you to run FROM God, conviction will cause you to run TO Him!
4. You have been made righteous by the Blood of Jesus. This truth, coupled with the reality of God’s love, should be all the motivation you need to keep going when you feel like giving up.
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for this reminder. You sent Jesus to die in my place. Jesus paid a price I could not pay for a debt He did not owe. Jesus paid it all for me. Jesus took on my sin so that I can take on His righteousness. I have been declared righteous and I am convicted of this reality. I will never allow condemnation to force me to feel any less than the righteousness of God. When You look at me You see I am covered by the Blood of Your Son and Your love for me is unshakable. I have become so absolutely convinced of Your love that nothing can shake me, move me, or cause me to quit. No matter what I am facing, I keep going because my God loves me and He is always there for me. I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
