For when I tried to
keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet
all its requirements—so that I might live for God. My old self has been
crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in
me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me
and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:19-20
Do you ever feel as if you can do nothing right? There was a time at work where I felt
everything I did was wrong. Even the
things I did right I would question. I
would double and triple check to ensure that even the things I normally did
well were correct. It got to a point
that it became difficult to function.
Then after making yet another mistake, I asked myself, “What am I
doing?” Here I was focusing more on
trying not to make mistakes than trying to learn more about doing things better. It reminded me of when I first gave myself to
Christ to become born again. When I made
the choice, it did not matter how wrong I was living. It mattered that I was forgiven of past (and
future for that matter) sins, and I would focus on how to live a life that God
had both intended for me and honored Him.
God’s intention for our lives is to look forward to serving
Him better and not focusing on our mistakes.
In reading the verses today, it should serve as a relief to all of
us. We all should aspire to live for God
and to follow His laws and commandments.
The verses above are not meant to make us feel good when we sin. Instead, it is to unburden us when we realize
the gravity that we have sinned. We all
fail to meet God’s perfect example, and if we are truly followers of Christ, there
should be a certain level of self-disappointment. However rather than dwell on that which we
have faltered, Jesus died on the cross both to say that we are forgiven and to grow
spiritually from those failures. We
should fully understand that the gospel of Christ is one of continual growth
and an ever closer walk with Him. Paul’s
statement confirms as much for he aspires for His will (life) less and Christ
instead to dwell within him more.
The laws of God is what we aspire to live by, but it is not
the purpose of our relationship with God.
Jesus said, “‘You must love
the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your
mind.’ This is the first and greatest
commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love
your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the
demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” (Matthew
22:37-40). Thus, we are to above all
love God and His people, and if we continually grow learning His word with
those two loves in mind, we are indeed living ‘trusting in the Son of
God.’ Where do you struggle with God’s
laws? How can you focus on Godly love
instead of Godly judgment? My prayer is
that we focus on God’s love for us above our mistakes. Amen.
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