One feeling
condemned or in the pall
of negativity cannot have confidence that he is in good stead with God,
that he is a son or daughter of the Creator, a member of the family:.Psalms
27:3-6. But, when you know you are fully accepted by God for all time.(how
do you know when? and how
do you get accepted?), then you
have total confidence:.Isaiah
50:8 "He is near that justifies me; who will contend with me? Let us
stand together. Who is mine adversary? Let him come near to me.(an
expression of confidence)."
But again what if you don't
feel on top of your life circle, maybe feel like you're slipping down the
side of it, feeling like the true, considerate, compassionate and merciful
God just isn't there?
1John
3:20,21 "For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart
and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then we have
confidence toward God."
Romans
8:33-35 "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is
God that justifies. Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea
rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who
also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of
Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution
or famine or nakedness or peril or sword?" Matthew
10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill
the soul....." Hebrews 13:5 ".....for
he has said, I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee."
Guilt causes us to feel
undeserving of any good. If we don't believe that we are righteous, we
must believe then that we are unrighteous. And if you believe that way
a little now, for sure, that's pumped
to increase. What do you believe about yourself? If Christ is in you,
what
is righteous about you is unending. God just does not say anything that
is untrue. If He calls you righteous, well, what do you think? You
already
have God's approval and are His friend, His son, His daughter if you
have accepted.(believe)
Emmanuel
Christ, meaning you know it's all real, know that He lives now and is aware
of you personally and you want Him to
be in charge of leading your life on towards greater good. Making a
decision to accept that is a choice with rewards.
Realize you are 'dead':.Colossians
3:3 "For you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God."
Realize you are now Christ's
workmanship:.Ephesians
2:10 "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Emmanuel unto good
works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Isaiah
64:8 "But now, O Lord, you are our father, we are the clay and you
our potter. And we all are the work of thy hand."
Realize you are now blameless
in the Father's eyes:.1Thessalonians
3:13 "To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness
before God, even our Father, at the
coming of our Lord Emmanuel the Christ with all his saints."
Notice that your heart becomes
established.('stablish'
is old English).then
you realize that you are unblameable, where nothing can be blamed against
you ever again, where nothing can ever again separate you from a relationship
with the Father. At His coming, your heart will still be that way.
Why?
The mind off of Philippians
1:6 is headed toward alienation. Then it's just
a short step to doubting your joy in God.
A guilt ridden mind can have
no confidence.(1John
2:28).and
believes that he is cut off from God.(though
that is never how God sees it.Psalms
31:22;
Hebrews 11:1).thus
does not believe the scripture about God's grace:.Romans
6:14.
Guilt casts away confidence.(Hebrews
10:35).and
in
our minds takes away our participation in Christ:.Hebrews
3:6,14. You can't be strong around someone who you think is not sure
of you. That's why God wants us to be fully confident in that He accepts
us
whether or not we still have faults:.Colossians
2:2; Hebrews 10:22,23.(thanks
to Christ).
The devil's
main trick is to get you against
yourself.
