Stop trying and start realizing! – Thursday, 29 March

We cannot be made right with God by anything that we do. This is the message of the gospel and it sounds nearly too good to be true: it’s not about what we do for God but what Jesus has done for us! We are made right with God by simply believing in Him and what He has done for us! Amazing grace: we are not treated as we deserve nor are we accepted or rejected by God according to our actions and performance.
 
“For God made the only one who did not know sin to become sin for us, so that we who did not know righteousness might become the righteousness of God through our union with him.”
2 Corinthians 5:21 The Passion Translation (TPT)
 
The moment you said “yes” to Jesus and became a Christian you became completely one with God (1 Corinthians 6:17). You cannot get any closer to God than you currently are. Are you trying to get more of God in your life? Right now, you are 100% full of Him! The problem is that you don’t know it or aren’t recognizing it.  I know it sounds too good to be true, but it is true! Through coming to a deeper understanding and revelation of who God is and what He has done for you, you can grow deeper in intimacy and relationship with Him but all that’s happening is that you’re coming to an understanding of what has already taken place. You’re not becoming more righteous as a Christian – you’re realizing how righteous you became the moment you said “yes” to Jesus. You’re not getting closer to God – you’re realizing your oneness with Him that started the moment you said “yes” to Him. You’re not trying to become more holy – you’re realizing that the sacrifice of His body made you holy once and for all (Hebrews 10:10). When you start believing what the gospel says (about you), the power of God will be released in your life and you will begin to experience supernatural transformation and you will start to see the provisions of salvation manifest in your life (Romans 1:16-17).
 
“We know full well that we don’t receive God’s perfect righteousness as a reward for keeping the law, but by the faith of Jesus, the Messiah! His faithfulness, not ours, has saved us, and we have received God’s perfect righteousness. Now we know that God accepts no one by the keeping of religious laws!”
Galatians 2:16 The Passion Translation (TPT)

Being right with God (righteousness) is not a reward for your best efforts, it’s a gift to receive by believing in Jesus and what He has done for us. Christianity is not about what you can do for God, it’s all about what He has done for you! Thank God that we aren’t saved by our faithfulness – His faithfulness has saved us, not ours! You may be a great person and you may live a pretty good (holy) life – it benefits us to live holy and do good, it also blesses those around us – but all our best efforts don’t count for anything in being right with, accepted by or blessed by God. What pleases God is faith in what He has done for us.
 
“And since it is by God’s grace, it can’t be a matter of their good works; otherwise, it wouldn’t be a gift of grace, but earned by human effort.”
Romans 11:6 The Passion Translation (TPT)

Are you relating to God according to your puny efforts instead of His perfect finished work? Are you trying to get closer to God, not realizing that you’re perfectly one with Him, already? Are you trying to get full of God not realizing that you’re already crammed full of Him? That probably explains why you’re tired and weary! (Matthew 11:28-29) It probably explains why you’re not enjoying the abundant life like you know you should be (John 10:10). Stop trying and start realizing! Stop trying to become and start discovering who you are! It’s time to look to Jesus and what He has done for you. As you grow in a revelation of what happened to you the moment you said “yes” to Jesus, you will experience more abundant life!