Not "If I" But "If Christ"

Do you ever feel like you aren't good enough to be a Christian? You want to live a certain way, but often fail to do so. You think you are living a good Christian life one day and then, without warning, you are blindsided by all the corruption, sin, and death in your heart. 

If you feel this way you are not alone. In fact, this is the type of person Paul just finished describing in Romans 7. So if this is you, Romans 8 is the place to look because Paul is about to tell us how to move out of those feelings of condemnation. 

In the poetry video you're about to watch, you will hear the key difference between those who feel condemned and those who feel convinced. The key difference is this: Who earns your worth? 

If you earn your worth before God, you will constantly feel inadequate, lacking, and condemned. But if Christ earns your worth for you, everything will change. 

Throughout the next six days of this plan you will read through Romans 8 six times. Each time, you will be asked to look for something new. You will also learn how Paul is trying to get us to base our worth in Christ throughout this chapter. 

Today, as you read through Romans 8 after watching the video, try to pick up the two camps of people to whom Paul is writing. Notice comparisons between flesh and Spirit, law and freedom, hostility and peace, sin and righteousness, slavery and adoption, suffering and glory, groaning and redemption, seeing and hoping, condemned and convinced. As you read ask yourself questions: Into which group do I fit? On what basis do I fit in that group? How sure am I that I am in this group? On what do I base this assurance, either negatively or positively? 

Test your heart to see if, in each of these situations, you are trying to earn your own worth or if you are putting your faith in Christ's worth.