My Story Your Glory - an Eight-Day Reading Plan by Matthew WestSample

When We Fall Short of His Glory

The question is not, “will I fall short?” But rather, “when will I fall again?” Paul issued a sobering truth that is all-inclusive. “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard (Romans 3:23).” Not a single human being that has ever walked the earth has made it through their race without falling, except Jesus. If Paul had left us hanging with a period at the end of that sentence, there would be no hope and no possibility of redemption for our failed stories. We would be left to believe that our stories couldn’t possibly give God glory, the very glory we’ve fallen short of.

But in the next verse, Paul says, “Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins (Romans 3:24).” Notice there is no mention of anything we did or could do to redeem our failures and shortcomings. “Yet God, in His grace, freely made us right in His sight.” Paul reminds us that even our failures and falls can give God glory, but not because of anything we can do to redeem ourselves. Jesus has freed us from that burden!

Notice that the scripture says we are “right in His sight.” But are you right in your sight? If you’re like me, you have difficulty seeing yourself the way God sees you. Perhaps you’ve been beating yourself up over a failure, a fall, a mistake, or sins in your past. I encourage you today to spend some time thinking about this scripture. Remember that God, in His grace, has made you right in His sight; because He has, you can now be right in your sight. Let that truth sink in, and you’ll see yourself and your story differently—the light of God’s glory and grace.

DO SOMETHING:

1. What is the difference in how you see yourself and how God sees you?
2. How does realizing that you are not responsible for your own redemption impact you?