Facing Reality...

At times it has been so hard to believe God loves me- that Jesus came to this earth to die for me. What a concept! It is wonderful and overwhelming to know a God Who cares so much for His children as individuals. I have suffered much in this life, but I've never been subjected to a mock trial, scourged nearly to death, then forced to make a humiliating death march up a hill where I am stripped naked, nailed to a cross & killed. To know that Jesus did this for me brings me to tears. The thought that I was never really taught to focus on this precious truth growing up is heartbreaking. Instead I was taught what to wear, what to eat and how to proof-text people into accepting my beliefs. I was told that I was priviledged to be part of an elite Christian group called a "remnant' and that as such there were some pretty heavy behavioral obligations I must fulfill in order to be ready for Jesus' soon return. When I approached the cross of Calvary, it was with a proud heart which said, "See how much I've done for you, Jesus- how good I've been and how much I've given up? Of course You will have to let me into Heaven now!" Then reality set in... the harder I tried to be good, the deeper was my failure- it was humiliating. I was becoming a religious scrooge. (Bah-humbug on anyone who didn't exactly agree with me on the finer points of theology.) What was happening? The mantra "Get ready, Jesus is coming" always struck fear in my heart and I would once again dig in and try to be good. Then a ray of light broke through to me... As I studied the Gospels, I found myself in the 7 Woes of Matthew 23. I was heartbroken to realize I was the one frantically cleaning the outside of the cup & dish while the inside was filthy. I was a white-washed tomb that looked good on the outside, but inside was full of dry bones. I began to see in the parables Jesus taught that salvation is offered freely to those who see their need! His robe of righteousness is given to 'whosoever will come' to the wedding feast. He's not impressed with a vast amount of theological knowledge, spiritual heritage or a big checklist of good behaviors. We don't score higher in Heaven's eyes for being rigid or segregating ourselves from everyone else. The GOOD NEWS is, if I'm covered in the blood of The Lamb- I'm ready at any moment to meet my Savior when He comes. So many in the church carry heavy burdens. In my travels, I find few have any idea whether they are saved or not. There is NO good in any of us, we are sinful to the core. All have fallen short and are in need of repentence. ONLY the merits of Christ can atone for our fallen natures. Now, instead of coming to the Lord with prideful hearts, we come in brokenness, seeing our need for His Mercy- each saying "I see how much You've done for me, Jesus." (This may be old news to you, but it's just now becoming clear to me and has set my soul on fire!) The Mercy of God will be what we celebrate for eternity- don't miss out...