DITCH SELF!

It has taken quite a while in my Christianity to realize that my greatest enemy was and is self. As long as we are trusting in our righteousness to be right with God, everything we do is wrapped up in self. Holding on to my own righteousness as a means to gain God’s favor is the quickest way to lose the life of God altogether! The best revelation that has ever come to my life was that by faith in Christ, I am as righteous as God himself! This is a free gift – definitely not something I earned! 

Isaiah 64:6  All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.  

Galatians 3:10-11 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.” 

Luke 9:24   For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?   

The more you know what God believes about you and how much he loves you, the idea of losing everything for the sake of God is the only thing that makes sense! This includes losing all self-effort to produce works or acts that seem holy enough to feel right about yourself or to be right with God. I love the Mirror Bible Galatians 3:11. It says, “Habakkuk confirms conclusively that righteousness by God’s faith is the only basis to life; this terminates any possible justification before God based upon moral behavior. (Hab 2:4, 3:17-19.) 

We cannot serve God or do his purposes, even in the least bit, by our own efforts. This is a supernatural work of God’s revelation living in us and through us! The fact that we often feel like we have to be “right” in a discussion shows our connection to our own right-ness! Giving this up is not easy! It begins with a revelation of God’s provision for our righteousness through the cross of Christ, and then it culminates inside a childlike heart that is willing to trust God so much that it will kick out all forms of self-righteousness and religious works to be right with God. 

There is no doubt that the life God has for you far exceeds the life of self-righteousness and, therefore, condemnation and failure! But be aware, it will cost you “self.” As Jesus said, “Whoever tries to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.  Luke 9:24 

To live in the life God has for you, it is crucial to give up every form of trying to win God’s favor! The more you know that he is already impressed with you and that you are his dream come true and that you are everything he has ever wanted, the more you will gladly…  

DITCH SELF! 

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