Introduction
God’s main concern is relationship, not judgment.
Some would have you believe that God’s main concern is the sin in people’s lives. To them, He is judge and accuser, and as a result, they become judgmental and critical. As Christians, we have to make sure that our main concern lines up with God’s. I’m not saying that we ignore or condone sin. However, how we address sin has to reflect God’s main concern.
God’s main concern is relationship, not judgment.
Instead of being judgmental and accusatory, we can approach the topic of sin from a protection standpoint. You see, God created principles and commandments in His Word to protect us from harm. God loves imperfection. He sent Jesus “not to judge the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:17, NLT). Jesus came to give us the chance to have a relationship with God!
Having a relationship with God is so beautiful because we receive His unconditional love, forgiveness and promises. In fact, if we receive these three things that God freely gives us, we'll be empowered to love others!
For example, look at what Jesus tells us in John 14:34, "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other."
So how are we able to do this? Because God loved us first!
Jesus tells us how to let other know that we are His disciples and where we are to find the inspiration in John 13:34-35 (AMPC), I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves]. So how are we able to do this? Because God loved us first!
God Loves Me Unconditionally So I Can Love Others
What Jesus accomplished for us is about true love.
God’s love is unconditional. He loves you regardless of how you treat Him, and you and I have the ability to love that way because we have His nature in Christ. If you choose to follow Jesus, your relationship with God is secure. And earning God’s love is not the issue.
God loves everyone—Christian or not. John 3:16 says He loved the world before Jesus died, which means He loved a world filled with non-Christians. And it doesn’t say that He only loved the “good” people of the world. God loves you, as imperfect as you know you are.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)
What Jesus accomplished for us is about true love. As Christians, let’s make sure we pass that love along to everyone in our world. Let’s love people the way they are, accept them no matter where they are on their journey, and forgive them quickly when they hurt us. In fact, I’m also challenging you to love yourself.
If you love with conditional love, there are consequences. If you’re a parent, you could give a child who keeps their room neat more love than one you have to remind every day. But if you show more love to the one who has a clean room—this is important—you will mess up that child’s head because you are teaching him that his performance earned him this love. He will think that he has to be perfect.
The child with the messy room suffers too because eventually he'll stop putting in any effort to have a clean room. He feels like he'll never be able to measure up, so why bother trying?
I’m not saying that parents can never work with a child on behaviour, but they need to show love while they do so. Kids need to know that nothing they do will ever change their parents’ love for them. While coaching that child, they can communicate their love and respect for him and let him know they’re glad he’s in the family.
Love, accept and forgive others as you keep growing with God.
No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Roman 8:39 (NLT)
No one in your life will ever be perfect. It’s always tempting to want to change people into what we think they should be. However, understanding God’s unconditional love for us helps us to love others with that same kind of love. And when we do, we begin to build incredible relationships. Our relationships benefit most when we love people the way they are and change ourselves!
Love, accept and forgive as you keep growing with God and you’ll laugh, love and enjoy life with the wonderful people all around you.
God can’t even change people who don’t want to be changed. He’s given each of us the power to choose, and He won’t violate that will. If we don’t want His help, He won’t get involved. As a result, He won’t help you change someone else who doesn’t want to change either, no matter how good your intentions are.
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NKJV)
You can influence people. You can love on people and encourage them. But you can’t change them. Actually, thinking that others need to change involves pride. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). So, the only person you can change is you.
If you’ve given your life to Christ, you are a new creation. You’ve been changed internally. You now have the nature of God, which empowers you to change your external habits and attitudes. In fact, second Corinthians 3:18 says that as we get to know God better, we become more like him. As you realize who you truly are, you begin to change. And a wonderful thing begins to happen when you change: everything around you begins to change in response.
God Has Forgiven Me So I Can Forgive Others
No charge brought against a believer will ever stand up in front of God.
If a person wrongs someone, they might bring a charge against them in court and win. They may have to pay a penalty or serve a sentence, depending upon what they did. But as a believer, if someone were to try to get God to rule against you for your past, they wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. Romans 8:33 says He’s already acquitted you. Because you’ve accepted Christ, you’ve been pardoned. You’re right with God. No charge against you will ever stand up in His court.
Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect [when it is] God Who justifies [that is, Who puts us in right relation to Himself? Who shall come forward and accuse or impeach those whom God has chosen? Will God, Who acquits us?] Romans 8:33 (AMPC)
Satan is always trying to convince us that God is angry with us. He is referred to as the accuser of the brethren, but he has no right to accuse you of anything. In fact, He didn’t just forgive you; He remade you! You are a brand-new creation. Old things have passed away, and you are totally new. Of course God wants you to live His way because it’s for your benefit.
God has already forgiven you, and He’s given you the same standing Jesus has with Him.
He’s empowering you to do so, but God doesn’t dwell on the past. He doesn’t define you by your old behaviour, or your behaviour in general. Your identity is in the fact that you are a brand new creation in Christ. You are unconditionally accepted...and from that place of acceptance, you’re empowered to choose right.
Have you ever heard someone say, “I’ll forgive, but I’ll never forget”? In reality, refusing to forget the hurt and resentment isn’t really forgiveness at all. God forgives us and completely forgets the offense.
Through forgiveness, you can rediscover joy, laughter and beauty in life.
I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. Isaiah 43:25 (NLT)
I’m not saying that forgiveness requires you to forget the incident, but the process does involve forgetting (or letting go of) the pain. When you choose to walk out forgiveness, eventually the pain does go and the incident loses its ability to torment you.
I’m not pretending that this forgiveness is easy, and in no way am I minimizing your pain. What happened to you may have been terribly unjust. However, I want you to be free.
Through forgiveness, you can rediscover joy, laughter and beauty in life.
If you don’t forgive, a painful incident can torture you every day of your life. The pain associated with the incident can stay fresh for decades and can continue to affect your relationships and the people around you. You don’t want to live a lifetime trapped in bitterness and resentment because hanging on to these destructive feelings destroys your future.
Keep in mind; forgiveness doesn’t always involve restoring the relationship. Not all relationships are restorable. In abusive situations, you need to establish a new track record of trust before it’s safe to bring that person back into your world. This takes time, and sometimes it doesn’t happen; however, you can still forgive and set yourself free.
Begin the process of forgiveness today. Start with the decision to forgive, and then ask God to help you walk out this journey toward freedom that involves choosing to forget and let go.
God Has Provided Me With So Much, Now I Can Be Generous With Others
You have been given more than enough to handle any circumstance, whatever the need.
Whatever you are going through in your life right now, guaranteed, there’s a promise in the Bible that applies to your situation. That’s not all. In addition to teaching what you’re entitled to as a believer, God’s Word also goes to work on your deepest beliefs. As you claim His promises, those beliefs become challenged and changed, which enables you to live out the blessings God has provided for you.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NKJV)
And those blessings are extremely generous! Just take a look at 2 Corinthians 9:8. The Amplified Version spells it out in even greater detail, saying that God is able to make all grace (every favour and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need be self-sufficient (possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation).
Whatever you’re facing today, this promise applies! Let’s claim this verse together today: “Thank you Father for making all grace—every favour and earthly blessing—come to me in abundance. You’ve made me self-sufficient—given me more than enough to handle any circumstance, whatever the need. There’s nothing you’ve left out of this equation! I’m thanking you in advance for giving me more than enough wisdom, guidance, protection, provision, favour, strength and healing to overcome the challenge before me, in Jesus’s name. Amen!”
So many Christians feel guilty about wanting to succeed. They worry that God will be unhappy with them if they go after more than what they already have. The trouble is, who is better positioned to help others? Someone who is barely getting by or someone who’s doing well and has more than enough?
We serve an incredible God who empowers us to succeed while staying humble and helping others.
If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom. Deuteronomy 28:13 (NLT)
We have to stop falling for these limiting, religious beliefs. Yes, we need to treat others fairly. Yes, pride is destructive. And no, we shouldn't be greedy. But we serve an incredible God who empowers us to succeed while staying humble by giving him the credit!
His power in us helps us manage our money with wisdom so we can grow it while we’re being generous to those in need. It is possible to do both, and we’re empowered to do it! You are called to influence and to be the head and not the tail, above and not beneath.
Every favour and earthly blessing. In abundance. Always. Under all circumstances. Whatever the need!
None of us think as big as God does. Every promise in the Bible is about winning, succeeding and rising up. It’s not about barely getting by. So don’t limit yourself or let yourself be pulled down by crab-bucket mentalities. Instead, get around people who are reaching levels you want to reach, and be inspired by them to go farther and reach higher. And through your work ethic, success, kindness and the Christ-likeness about you, you’re going to help people and attract others to Christ.
