Here is something amazing about God: He is for us, not against us! So often, especially if we have grown up in a home with a very religious tradition, it is very easy to focus on wanting to please—first our parents, then teachers, employers, and yes, God. Faith can become only a checklist of things to do and not do, instead of a real relationship with someone who says that He loves us so much that He would sacrifice for us.
The older you get, something inside of you knows that you’ve made many, many mistakes. We have all been selfish, unkind, cheated, and hurt others. Perhaps you may imagine God looking down at you like a supervisor at your job, with his checklist and clipboard saying, “So, let’s discuss a few things. We have some serious problems…”
This is not what the Bible says about who God is and the way that He wants to relate to us. It actually says that Jesus, God’s son, is standing knocking at the door of your heart saying, “If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends” (Revelation 3:20 NLT). That’s quite different than the angry supervisor, pointing out your faults, isn’t it?
These accusing thoughts are the work of someone that the Bible calls “the accuser.” His name is Satan and his name means “accuser.” He is the one who gives us false ideas of who God really is and how He relates to us. In fact, God’s Son, Jesus is called our “advocate,” One who is our defender! “… if anyone does sin,” says the Bible, “we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father (1 John 2:1 NLT). Yes, this advocate is Jesus: standing next to you, in front of God the Father, making the case for your forgiveness, your justification. That should bring you a flood of relief!
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Romans 8:31 NLT
Here are four amazing things that the Bible says about you when you have a relationship with God through Jesus:
- You are completely accepted. “You are a chosen people,” says I Peter 2:9
- You are extremely valuable. “God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world,” says I Corinthians 7:23.
- You are eternally loved. “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself,” says Jeremiah 31:3.
- You are totally forgiven. “There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” says Romans 8:1. (NLT)
The Bible says that Satan “…comes only to steal and kill and destroy,” but Jesus says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10). Relief from insecurity can be yours. Relief from guilt. And most of all: a sense that you are loved by God, intimately loved by One who says, “See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49:16 NLT).
No, there isn’t a “supervisor” standing over your shoulder keeping track of all your wrongs. But there is an enemy who whispers accusations in your ear and an advocate who pleads your case and knows you so well that your name is written on his hand. God is for you, not against you! That is why He gave you an advocate to save you from the penalty for all wrongdoing. You can choose to listen to the Accuser or to your Advocate.
Resource Reading: Isaiah 43:1-13
