How To Have God IdeasBeispiel

How to Start Having God Ideas: Part 2

Focus on Relationship, Not Rules

My wife, Leslie, is an amazing cook, but there have been a few times when she has cooked too much (please don’t tell her I said that). I remember one evening when all I wanted to do was spend time with her, but she was in the kitchen cooking something specifically for me. By the time she finished, it was time for bed. Now, I couldn’t complain about her cooking food for me. However, it wasn’t food that I really wanted. It was time with her.

Some of us try to please God in a similar way. We think that if we just do enough, then God will be happy with us. Here’s the truth we’re missing though: Our relationship with God is not based on our performance but our perfection. And our perfection is based entirely and solely on the grace of God. That grace allows us to rest in the assurance of God’s love instead of striving in insecurity.

The law was put in place to show us how badly we needed a Savior, because God knew we could never meet the requirements of the law on our own. But because God loves us, Jesus met the requirements for us, and now we get to receive the righteousness of God through belief in His Son.

Many of us accept this idea when it comes to salvation, but we often reject it when it comes to spiritual growth or intimacy with the Lord. But as soon as we pull out our own righteousness again, it’s like we’re putting the wall back up between us and God. Our righteousness is like filthy rags to God. When you spend time with God, I encourage you to leave the filthy rags at the door.

I’m not trying to say that grace is an excuse for there being no fruit in our lives. When we walk close to Him, He is constantly transforming our hearts, and that means that we’ll naturally be fulfilling the law and doing the works of God. However, you and I trying to change ourselves doesn’t earn us a right to grace. The change happens because we receive grace through faith.

If you want to know how God thinks, draw close to Him. Abide in His presence, and remember that you can only come in because of His amazing grace.