Be Merciful Even to Yourself
Eph.1:6; Col.2:10; Psalms 103:12; Isa.1:18;
Rom.5:1; I Cor.6:17; 2 Tim.2:26; Heb.8:12
My child, as hard as you sometimes find it to forgive other people, I notice this: You’re just as reluctant to forgive yourself as you are to forgive your worst enemy. You lie awake nights reproaching yourself for things I forgave many years ago, things you might have done (or left undone) as you matured in your Christian walk. Maturity doesn’t come quickly, and it doesn’t always come easily. If you keep on revisiting some sad scene in your past where you lost your temper and regretted it later, by all means make sure you have confessed and repented of that thing ONCE. Contrary to what satan and his evil religious spirits would have you believe, it is NOT necessary to pound yourself over the head ad infinitum and ask My forgiveness a thousand times before I see you as perfect and complete in Christ Jesus. I am not senile or hard of hearing. When you asked Me to forgive you for a certain thing, I DID forgive you. My Word promises that not only do I have forgiven your transgressions (even the worst of them), when I forgive you I FORGET your sins as well and have cast them from My sight as far as east is from west.
One popular religious notion (from satan) is this: that even though I MAY have just BARELY pardoned your sin, from that moment on until your death you’re forever on probation with Me and I still see the dingy grey stain where I erased your sin. satan will even tell you that grey blot on your conscience is a “scar” I left behind in your soul on purpose after forgiving you to forever remind you you’re still just a dirty sinner saved solely by grace, and nothing more. That lie of hell allegedly is used by Me to keep you humble. But I would have you know that I have washed you whiter than snow. There is such a thing as a confused conscience caused by lying spirits of guilt. The conscience of the most hardened sinners is seared (cauterized) by satan so that they have no qualms about committing the most heinous crimes. The other extreme is the obsessive legalist who is persuaded (by the enemy) that certain things are sins for the Christian believer such as wearing even a modest swimsuit to the beach, drinking cola or iced tea, watching any television, even Christian programming. The worst problem is the enemy making your conscience ache like a diseased tooth without relief over past sins and mistakes already forgiven and washed away by the Blood of Christ.
Although satan insists you are still only a filthy, unholy enemy of God, YOU have received by faith the righteousness of My dear Son Who bore ALL your sins to Calvary. That includes EVERY sin, past present and future. It is satan’s business to MINIMIZE the greatness of My grace and mercy even if he can’t deny it exists. As you trust in My Son and abide in Him by faith, you can know you are secure in your relationship with Me and I keep you from falling.
However, care MUST be taken NEVER to use My grace as a license to sin. When you do you quickly fall as a victim into the snare of the devil, which causes great heartbreak and suffering. Even then I am faithful to deliver you and restore you to the right path. Beware of placing yourself in a position of needing to be corrected by My hand. It’s very perilous to take My grace for granted.
Yet I would not have you to live in abject terror rather than peaceful assurance of My love and resting in your position in Christ as My child. I know that while you are in the body ye are but dust, in that your physical and emotional strength is limited. I know that for the present time you must contend with the weakness and frailty of your mortal flesh. Only your innermost spirit being joined with My Spirit is beyond all temptation to sin. RUN, don’t walk, to Me, when you are made aware that something is wrong and you’ve sinned or failed in the area of obedience to My will. But don’t use yourself as a dart board to torment yourself for your faults and failings. It’s bad enough that satan accuses you. When My children accuse themselves of things I forgave long ago, they aren’t acting holy. They’re just imitating satan, accuser of the brethren. Far better to confess what My Word has to say about your being justified by faith. Rememeber this: Justified means “just-if-I’d” never sinned!
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