“Even as [in His love] He chose us [actually picked us out for Himself as His own] in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy (consecrated and set apart for Him) and blameless in His sight, even above reproach, before Him in love.”
Ephesians 1:4
What is wrong with me?” If you are like most people, you have asked yourself that question many times throughout your life. I know I asked myself that for many years and it’s a common question the enemy plants in people’s minds. It is designed to make you feel like you are not what you need to be and to prevent you from enjoying yourself. It encourages insecurity and all kinds of fear. We frequently compare ourselves with other people and if we are not what they are, we assume something is wrong with us. There is, however, an antidote for this type of thinking that poisons our life. It is thinking frequently God loves me unconditionally! Not only does God love us but He chooses to view us as being right with Him, accepted and blameless. This all comes through our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. So we can accurately say, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ. I am chosen in Christ, and in Him I am blameless before God.” This is our inherited position with God through our faith in Jesus and it is not based on our own works of right or wrong, but entirely on faith. God wants us to learn proper behavior, but He accepts and loves us first and once we are rooted and grounded in the knowledge of His unconditional love then He can begin the work of transforming our character into the image of His Son.
The truth is that if you want your behavior to improve, then your knowledge of the unconditional love of God must be the foundation for the “new you.” The more we experience God’s love, the more we desire to do what pleases Him.
Knowing God loves us unconditionally is an absolute necessity in order to make progress in our walk with Him. Jesus didn’t die so we could be religious; Jesus died so we could have deep, intimate, personal relationships with God through Him. Religion offers us rules and regulations to follow in order to be close to God. But relationship lets us know we can be close to Him because He has chosen us. We will not draw near to God if we are afraid He is displeased with us. It is vital that you learn how to separate how important “you” are to God from what you do right or wrong. How can we hope to have an intimate relationship with God, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit if we are not confident that we are loved unconditionally?
Good relationships must be based on love and acceptance, not on fear. All too often we are deceived into thinking that our acceptance is based on our performance, and this is totally unscriptural. We are loved and accepted by God, and made right with Him because we place our faith in Jesus Christ and the work He accomplished for us on the cross. He paid for our sins and misdeeds. He absolved us from guilt and reconciled us to God. Now, when we stand before God, we have “rightness,” not “wrongness.” And we have it because He gave it as a gift, not because we have earned it. Blessed is the man who knows he has right standing with God apart from the works he does.
Think about It
In your own words, how do you believe God feels about you? Now say, “God loves me unconditionally!”
