We are born into sin, and there is nothing inherently in us that has any value whatsoever. I’m sick of people saying that we have value, and that’s why Christ died for us. It’s the opposite. We were helpless in our sin; we couldn’t help but sin; we are all selfish pigs. All of us deserve hell. No one deserves heaven. If we had any idea how horrendous even the slightest sin is to God, we would get a grip and fall on our faces in the dust. God is holy. We are not. Look at the impossible chasm.
It’s because of God’s mercy that He chooses us and gives us faith so that we can love Him back. We can’t even take credit for the faith, because that is a gift from God. It’s the transformation that gives us worth. At salvation we become a new creation; that new creation has infinite value. We now have worth because of Christ.
Many people have the erroneous view that we continue to be rotten sinners after salvation. Not so. Scripture says we are saints. Our flesh causes us to sin against our will (Romans 7:15-24). The core of our being is now good, not only because Christ is there, but because He has changed us to reflect Him in a way that nobody else can. In heaven as well as here on earth, people will be able to get to know God because of what He has done in our lives. That’s why testimonies are so powerful. I’m not talking only about conversion. I’m talking about how God is in a continuous process of changing us. For example, I used to be ruled by anger, and now I’m not. God has broken the chains. Each Christian should have ten or twenty testimonies of how God has miraculously changed them. If you’re not growing, you’re not reflecting Christ, and you’re missing out on a lot of joy. Seeing the impossible is so incredible. The Spirit of God brings the fruit of the Spirit, and you don’t even have to work for it except to yield to God and obey to the best of your ability. God will do the rest.
Many people believe in a Christ-filter. They believe that after conversion, they are still filthy sinners, and that God looks at us through Christ, and He doesn’t see our sin because of His propitiation for us. Basically, they are saying that only Christ is in heaven, because everyone else is rotten and God can only look at Christ. But this is not true. Christ has transformed us to be holy. I myself am holy because Christ made me holy at the moment of salvation.
The first time I heard about my true value in Christ, I was floored. For years as a teenager, I had struggled with depression and wanted to die. It wasn’t until my now-husband Alan opened the Word of God to me and expounded His Word for three hours from Romans 6, 7 and 8 that I finally understood and felt clean. I wanted to shout from the rooftop that we don’t have to wallow in sin. We are a new creation that is holy and wants so desperately to do what is right. The first question Alan asked me was, “Do you desire to please God in the deepest core of your being?” I said, “Yes.” “Do you realize that it’s only the flesh, the world, and Satan that cause you to sin? When you die, all three fall away, and you are ready for heaven without sin. This is the truth.”
I couldn’t believe it. I had to see it with my own eyes. After Alan dropped me off at my house, I ran to my bedroom, opened my Bible, and wept. To this day, I still have tiny notes all over my Bible. I discovered that I was free from the power of sin. I sin not because I want to, but because of my flesh, and I have the power to gain victory over the flesh. I didn’t have to feel like a piece of dirt any more. I had a way to reflect Christ that was beautiful and unique. I finally understood my worth in Christ, and I was free.
Tags: Christian Living, pride, self-esteem
Susan, I needed this reminder, so very much! Thank you for posting this.
This truth has changed my life!