How God really feels about you – Part II

In this season, our faith in God is being stretched like never before. This is a good time to ask ourselves, as Christians, not only who we are but also what we really believe about God.

Do we see God as an accountant, adding up ‘rights’ and subtracting wrongs? Do we believe that we have to earn His love and blessings? Are we angry at God because of things that have happened to us or our loved ones?

Many of us have grown up with a wrong impression of God. It is lodged in our hearts and becomes the basis for our actions. But what is the truth about our Creator and His response to us?

Ephesians 1:4 (NLT) says: “Even before He made the world, God loved us… .” That means that before you understood right from wrong, before you were able to serve Him or to love Him back, God loved you! Romans 5:8 (NIV) says: “…God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

In Christ, God has completely accepted you. The Bible says, “By faith, we have been made acceptable to God…” (Romans 5:1, CEV). Acceptance is not based on approved behaviour; it is based on how much God values you. And the truth found in the Bible tells you just how much.

The Bible says in Isaiah 40:11 (NIV): “He tends His flock, like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart… .” It reinforces in Zephaniah 3:17: “The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in His love He will … rejoice over you with singing.”

Now, when we come to God, we will not immediately know everything about Him and how He feels about us. A Christian’s life revolves around “grow[ing] in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). And this growth is the basis of our self-acceptance – knowing that God completely accepts us through Jesus Christ, sees us as righteous, and means us well.

When you understand this, your fear of God accusing you disappears. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…,” says 1 John 4:18 (NIV). And your relationship with God will improve. Proverbs 10:12 (NIV) says: “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.” And then the plan of God for your life can start taking root. “Commit to the Lord, whatever you do, and He will establish your plans,” says Proverbs 16:3 (NIV).

The abundant life is a continual process of learning, practising, and maturing, as well as failing, recovering, adjusting, and overcoming. And God, your Father, wants to be involved in all of it.

I encourage you to get to know Him and to get biblical truths about who He is in your heart and spirit. And we do this by reading the scriptures daily until the Lord convinces us of His love for us. The scriptures say that God is:

a. Trustworthy, wanting to give you a full life (Lamentations 3:22-23, John 10:10).

b. Committed to your growth and proud of you (Romans 8:28-30, 2 Corinthians 7:4).

c. Longsuffering, patient, and slow to anger (Exodus 34:6, 2 Peter 3:9).

d. Accepting and filled with joy and love (Zephaniah 3:17, Romans 15:7).

e. Always with you and eager to be with you (Jeremiah 31:20, Hebrews 13:5).

So repent of any lies you have believed about God, and get the truth of His word into your heart today. Forgive anyone who helped to damage your image of Him, and remove all doubt that God accepts you as one of His loved and precious children.