Your worth in Christ is not dependent on your record, failures or even successes; it only depends on your obedience to Him.
Thank you for stopping by this week. Its hard to believe we are already in the month of February
If you completed the questions from last week's post, I want to say thank you. I pray that the Lord is inspiring you to go deeper in your walk with Him than you ever imagined. In fact, this week's post is somewhat of a continuation from last week. I trust that in the last few days you have been convicted, encouraged and reflective about your spiritual journey in the new year so far.
Today, I wanted to share with you a simple reminder I got this past week:
No matter what life may bring, I am loved by Jesus
The story from Matthew 18:12-14 illustrates the reminder I got this past week and will serve as the theme for today's post. The verses in the ESV states: “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray."
To provide a little bit of context, in the opening of this chapter, we find the disciples asking Jesus who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven. And to answer their question, Jesus takes a child, puts he/she in the midst of the disciples and proceeds to say that "unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" [Vs 3]. Then, in verses 4 -6, He teaches them about humility.
In verses 7-9, He continues to teach His disciples about temptations to sin and strongly admonishes them to cut out anything that will cause them to want to stumble. "Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire."
In the middle of all of that strong message, He reminds them about his unconditional love through the parable of the lost sheep. In the story, the owner is willing to leave the 99 other sheep to go and find the one lost.
Perhaps, you see/may not be seeing the parallels here. But I do and please allow me to narrate.
In the beginning of the year, you've probably been seeking God to lead and direct you into the goals and plans He has for you this year. Then, perhaps in the last few days/weeks, He has been convicting you over things you need to cut out of your life. And now, because He is not just a God of rules and regulations, He inserts a gentle reminder that He cares even about one person; even if its just you. God cares about just you! You are loved by Him.
One of the things I've been learning lately is that, even though the Lord expects me to strive for perfection, He still cares about me even after all the mess-ups. Its unfortunate because most people equate their worth in Christ with their spiritual record.
To be 100% honest with you, I use to be that person who also equated my worth in Christ with my track record as well. I would answer questions like the ones in last week's post and because I realized there were areas that needed to be worked on, I felt like God couldn't possibly love me. I felt like He only did when things were perfect.
However, I am learning that this couldn't be farther from the truth. And I want to take this time to remind perhaps that one individual who feels like they're already not measuring up and so therefore, God doesn't love them. Your worth in Christ is not dependent on your record, failures or even successes; it only depends on your obedience to Him. So this is not an excuse for you to live anyway you want, but to realize that as long as you are obedient to Him, nothing else matters, because He loves you.
Conclusion
Matthew 18 started off with a lesson on humility after Jesus's disciples questioned Him about who is the greatest in the Kingdom. Then, a few moments later, he proceeds to teach them about setting high standards and removing the things that will hinder them from heaven. But He didn't stop there. His teaching session included a lesson on love with the parable of the lost sheep.
February is sometimes pictured as the month of love (probably because of Valentine's Day). Regardless of that, I just wanted to remind you all today/this week/ this month... that: you are loved by the most High.
Don't quit trying /striving to be a better Christian, but remember that in the midst of it all, you are loved by Jesus.
Verses for thought/Prayer this week:
Matthew 6:35-34; Matthew 10:29; Job 12:7 - 10
Stay Blessed
❤
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